An Autumn Ink Palette Inspired By Van Gogh

My favorite season has returned though where I live, you wouldn’t know it was autumn. One way to compensate for that deficiency is to let my ink and pen selection represent the color variety that the local flora does not. Could my current maximum rotation of five pens do the season justice? After extensive perusing of ink swatches, I was not satisfied with any combination and put aside the project for another day.

Then I noticed a book of Vincent Van Gogh’s paintings, a gift from family earlier this year. Why not consult a master? Eventually, I settled on his painting, Rocks with Oak Tree, and found a few inks in my collection that approximate the colors.

• Herbin Ambre de Birmaine
• Iroshizuku yu-yake
• Iroshizuku ina-ho
• Herbin Lie de Thé
• Noodler’s Dostoyevsky
• Waterman Florida Blue

The two pens already on my desk were filled with Sailor Tokiwa-Matsu and Diamine Violet so adding six more would be too many. Three inks were returned to the shelf, leaving a manageable number.

This group will do nicely for visual variety and writing pleasure.

• Iroshizuku yu-yake
• Herbin Lie de Thé
• Noodler’s Dostoyevsky
• Diamine Violet
• Sailor Tokiwa-Matsu

 

These inks may not reflect the season so much as Van Gogh’s color choices, but that’s fine since they will provide sufficient variety to meet my current writing needs. As the holidays approach, yu-yake and Violet will be replaced by Diamine Emerald and a bright burgundy to carry me into the new year. At least that is the current plan. I am quite fickle when it comes to ink, so don’t hold me to it. I am after all an inkophile. Aren’t you?

These items are available at Amazon.com. For qualified purchases, Inkophile receives a small commission at no additional cost to you.

• Van Gogh His Life and Works in 500 Images by Michael Howard
• Herbin Ambre de Birmaine
• Iroshizuku yu-yake
• Iroshizuku ina-ho
• Herbin Lie de Thé
• Noodler’s Dostoyevsky
• Waterman Serenity Blue (formerly Florida Blue)
• Diamine Violet
• Sailor Tokiwa-Matsu

 

Sunday Reads: Pens, Inks And Doodles

I thought I had a lot of ink samples until I saw Nick Stewart’s collection…

• Fountain Pen Ink Art: SAILOR INK STUDIO SWATCH TESTS – PART 07 – THE PINKY BROWNS
• Paper for Fountain Pens (my first Tomoe River paper)
• Rediscover Analog: 8 Fountain Pens That Won’t Break the Bank
• Nick Stewart: Ink Sample Vial and Ink Swatch Card Storage Systems
• Pensive Candy (outstanding fountain pen doodles)
• WaPo: Believe it or not the fountain pen is back
• Alvaro Castagnet: Watercolor Painting Streetscape Sketch (Part1)

From the archives, a Nemosine Singularity 0.6mm italic nib

Trouble At Inkophile, Part 2

A comment to yesterday’s post gave me the opportunity to expand on the situation about continuing to reside at WordPress. I am reposting that comment here.

Shubhranshu Das wrote:

Sign of the times…I hope you can get out of this paid version and rescue the prior records and exit to a more conducive platform …

My reply:

Yes, it is a sign of the times. Being profitable is essential to survival and expansion. I get that. The rub is that hobby blogs are rarely profitable. There is no income flow to defray expenses. My reviews have dwindled along with my budget while product prices have risen. The WP fee will cut into it further.

Thankfully, Luxury Brands (distributor of Platinum Pens, Noodler’s Ink), Exaclair (distributor of Herbin, Rhodia, Clairefontaine), Pen Chalet, Goldspot Pens, Nemosine, Jackson’s Art Supplies, and others have sent products in recent years that have kept Inkophile alive. Such supporters are priceless as are those readers who have sent products or donated cash. Inkophile has become a group effort in which every individual is greatly appreciated.

Unfortunately, I lack the expertise to relocate. Moving 1,244 posts with associated links and images along with 6,245 comments would be a daunting task. Inkophile is trapped in the clutches of the WP monster.

Update: A lovely reader sent a donation that will help pay the WP ransom. Yay!

The saga continues at Trouble at Inkophile, Part 3.

Sunday Reads: Pens, Ink And Happy Hour

So what do pens have to do with happy hour? Read on.

• Pen Chalet: Conklin Duraflex Limited Edition Fountain Pens (If I were in the market for a new pen, this one looks just right.)
• Quick Fountain Pen Review: Nemosine Fission Gunmetal Quick Fountain Pen Review
• Teoh: IndiGraph – This fountain pen can use India ink
• Mountain of Ink: Ink Review #639: Jacques Herbin Ambre de Baltique
• The Pen Addict: Faber-Castell NEO Slim Fountain Pen Review
• Fontana Penna Furore Collection (I like the Arancio but I am always a sucker for that color.)
• Plooms Fountain Pens in the U.K. (Check out the blotters.)
• Forbes: Is Writing With A Pen Better Than Happy Hour?

From the archives, my kit from five years ago. Only one pen has remained a constant in my rotation. Can you guess which one?

Pens: Platinum #3776, Noodler’s Standard Flex, the Pilot Prera Italic and the Sheaffer Taranis Medium. Inks: Diamine Sepia, Noodler’s Black Swan in Australian Roses, Noodler’s Black and Diamine Steel Blue. Autopoint Mechanical Pencil, a daily user that has never failed me.

You Deserve Something Special

Several weeks ago, I was wearing a sad face over the passing of Roy Clark, musician extraordinaire, and decided to write some thoughts in a Black n’ Red notebook. Not expecting to jot down more than a sentence or two, I still needed to select an ink and pen.

The aqua Nemosine Singularity with an italic nib caught my eye as did a bottle of Rohrer & Klingner Blu Mare. It wasn’t so much the color as the anticipated performance in the notebook that dictated the pairing. Though something short of genius, it was still a very satisfying minute that extended into several while I filled a page and a half with notes about music, musicians, and the music industry. It did cheer me though aqua ink and an italic nib have been known to produce that effect even on a good day.

And that begs a question. Is there an ink and pen duo that can bring you out of a funk? Perhaps that is what a pen gives back for the care we take of it. We give it a long and healthy life and it gives us a little joy.

What say you? Do any of your pens or inks have such an influence over you? If not, then may I suggest presenting yourself this holiday season with the gift of a fab pen and a bottle of luscious ink. Don’t neglect yourself. You deserve something special just as much as your friends and family do.

 

Nemosine Singularity On Sale

Pen Chalet has the Nemosine Singularity on sale. Nemosine.com has them as well. If you’ve had an urge to try this model, grab it now. As they say, supplies are limited.

Links to a few of my posts about the Singularity:

Nemosine Singularity Stub – First Look

Nemosine Singularity Fountain Pens

Fountain Pens Are Cool

Fountain Pens Are Cool

Last week, HisNibs.com shared a link to a Bloomberg article about fountain pen ink that stated, “Worldwide, fountain pen sales are forecast to total $1.15 billion this year, up 3 percent from 2017 and almost 31 percent from a decade ago, according to market-research company Euromonitor International.” Yes, fountain pens are cool and so is ink.

An inkophile needs a stable of pens to test and compare several colors at the same time. A five-pen rotation works well for me and for a reasonable investment, these are some of my favorite models.

• Pilot Metropolitan – My three are good writers, but might seem slender in a large hand.
• Pilot Kakuno – Mine has a good nib and adds virtually no weight to my kit.
• Platinum Plaisir – Good nibs and attractive colors. Slightly larger than the Metropolitan.
• Kaweco Sport – Modern pocket pen works well in small spaces. Nibs can be swapped.
• TWSBI Eco – Small nib and simple design, but folks swear by the Eco. The Diamond 580 is my preferred model.
• Lamy Safari – Sturdy build, but the grip is awkward for some users. Nibs can be good if finicky about ink. The Studio is my preferred model for an everyday pen.
• Nemosine Singularity – Good build for the price. My italics work best with well-lubricated inks.
• Conklin Duragraph – The stub nibs are smooth and juicy. I liked the design and performance well enough to purchase two.

Although I have owned a few inexpensive Chinese pens that wrote well enough, most brands have been too inconsistent to recommend. However, for the modest investment, they could be worth the gamble. Amazon and eBay offer quite a few, but you might have better luck at His Nibs.

The Pilot Metropolitan has emerged as my favorite fountain pen for ink testing because it cleans easily and flows well with every ink. The Duragraph with its wide nib is good for general writing so it will often get filled with an ink I would use for a journal or correspondence. The Kakuno or the Singularity come out to play when aqua ink is on the menu. The Nova Orange Plaisir is happy with orange ink or sometimes a fill of Noodler’s Lexington Gray. Either way, it makes my desk look cheerful.

My current pen rotation for testing ink includes

• Silver Pilot Metropolitan – green ink
• Aqua Pilot Metropolitan, Kakuno, or Nemosine Singularity – blue/aqua ink
• Plaisir – red/orange ink
• TWSBI – purple/burgundy ink
• Duragraph – black/brown ink

That makes five pens for under $150. Or a mix of Metropolitans and Plasirs could be put together for less than $75. Add a selection of ink samples and you are on your way to being a collector. Now wasn’t that easy!

Though I have never needed to make a return, do purchase where that would be easy. Low-end pens can be imperfect by some accounts though I suspect that is less common with the pens on my list.

Most of the links are to Amazon from which Inkophile receives a tiny commission when you buy within 24 hours of clicking the link. Thank you for your support.