Fountain pen design nuances

New article in our Link page thank to Ron Zorn and Murray MacKay for letting us know.

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Inkvent 2021! The wrap-up (Dec 21, 22, 23, 24 & 25th)

Late to the party, but here are the final colours from the Diamine 2021 Invent calendar, and some very nice additions.

Dec 21 – Brandy Snap (standard). To be honest, I think of gingersnaps when I see this colour. Also, to be honest, when we make gingersnaps we pretty much triple the amount of ginger used in the recipe too. A warm brown, with nice shading – I think it’s a great colour that’s not too dark, and doesn’t lean too much to the yellow or red.

Dec 22 – Black Ivy (sheen). I was so excited to try this one seeing it was a sheen only I managed to mispell Ivy when writing 😒. Please forgive the sample that reads Iyy. This is a great colour – a dark green that gets near black but isn’t overtaken by it. The sheen didn’t come out as much as I had hoped but that is likely a pen/paper combination issue. It did show up better on the Rhodia though, which is great because that tends to be my go to.

Dec 23 – Wonderland (standard). This one made me think of peaches. Not the ripe reddish side of the peach like their peach punch, but more the lighter orange-ish section. I had initially though Irishuzuku Fuyu-gaki, but the Pilot Persimmon is much pinker in tone. A bright, summery colour for sure.

Dec 24 – Yuletide (standard). A blue-green that reminds me of the Blue Spruce out in the front yard. More Christmas wreath than teal, but definitely more than just a hint of the blue. Some nice shading as well.

Dec 25 – All The Best (shimmer). The colour of mulled wine. In the maroon range of things, which is an area I like. And the shimmer is definitely there, but doesn’t seem to overpower like some of the others. Not as dark as Winter Spice, comes across as warmer with more of the red showing through.

So… my favourites out of this set of 25? Garland, Vintage Copper, Brandy Snap, Black Ivy, and All The Best. And yes, while having questioned shimmer inks, I fully realize a good number of my favourites are in their shimmer range. There are some colours I think work incredibly well with the shimmer – and I think Garland and Vintage Copper are subtle enough with the shimmer they add, where some like Storm (which is also a colour I quite like) come across as more about the shimmer.

Honourable mentions go to Night Shade and Ruby Blues. Night Shade has fantastic shading, st and that dusky grey-purple is one of my favourite shades. Ruby Blues may well shock some members coming from me – but I think it’s a great shade of blue, and I really love the red sheen with it.

Happy New Year everyone!

Inkvent 2021! (The week in review… Dec 16, 17, 18, 19, & 20th)

Lots of shimmer in the last 5 days… can you tell which from the shots of the bottle? Definitely need to shake, as these settle quite quickly. Always made me wonder if I should be gently shaking my pen as well, or if the motion of picking it up, uncapping, and starting to write is enough?

I’ve been hoping for more sheen inks, as there has been only one ‘sheen’ so far (the other three have been ‘shimmer & sheen’). I’ve said previously I don’t love shimmer… I find it a bit gimmicky and forward. Purely a personal thing. I will also admit there are a couple inks where I think it works very well, and I like the inks – Gold Star in the 2019, and Tempest & Storm in the current. Today adds another

Dec 16th – Vintage Copper (shimmer). While Red Robin was pretty close, this colour really nails it for me. That brown/red combination is right on the money for my taste. But it’s shimmer…. and subtle enough it adds just a bit to the colour and doesn’t detract. This I would definitely buy a full bottle of. My very first bottle of ink was a Shaeffer Brown – I’ve always had a thing for that sepia range of cool to warm browns, and while this is much redder than what I would consider sepia it still evokes that feeling for me.

Dec 17th – Thunderbolt (standard). I really loved the colour when wet, a beautiful purple blue. Post dry I find it has lost a bit of that purple tone. Still a beautiful jewel tone blue though. Interestingly this is the first ink I noticed had a bit of an odour – not unpleasant, just noticable. I’m guessing it has to do with the pigment/s.

Dec 18th – Subzero (shimmer). I have to admit I was expecting a much paler blue than this. but I really like the colour with the subtle green undertone to it and some subtle shading. This is another one that works well with the shimmer though.

Dec 19th – Festive Joy (standard). Huzzah! A dark purple. A bit of shading. Dare I wish it was just a touch bluer? A colour I will most definitely use, but while I was writing with it the thought did cross my mind that it would be even better crossed with Thunderbolt. Just a little bluer, just like I wished Thunderbolt was a touch more purple. This one also had a slight odour (guessing they share components.)

Dec 20th – Pink Ice (shimmer). If you’re a fan of pink/rose, and glitter… this one’s for you. It’s got a nice tone that makes it easy to read while is still bright, but pinks are not my thing. This one makes me think ‘nail polish’ for some reason.

Please excuse the nose of my trusty assistant….

Inkvent 2021! (Dec 12, 13, 14 & 15th)

December 12th brings us Stargazer (shimmer & sheen) – a deep green, with green shimmer (at least, I think it’s green shimmer) and a red sheen. The sheen is quite pronounced on this one, and the shimmer is fairly subtle. I quite like this colour as it is a deep jewel tone.

December 13th brings Ruby Blues (sheen). A deep blue, but still bright. A bit brighter than the blues I usually go for (I tend to blacker blues). I find the sheen on this one is a lot subtler than some of their other inks. It picket up quite nicely on the Rhodia paper, but is almost unseen on the Pelikan pad.

December 14th is Red Robin (standard). A slightly brownish red, very much the colour of a Robin’s breast. As I watch the snow fall and the temperature drops, it makes me wish for spring.

December 15th is Night Shade (standard). For some reason, I keep writing this as one word… Nightshade. But is definitely is reminiscent of night, being a purple/grey and it definitely shades very nicely on the Rhodia.

Inkvent 2021! (Dec 8th, 9th, 10th, & 11th)

If you have ever sat down at your computer and been welcomed by a non-responsive computer whilst being serenaded by the grinding sound of a hard drive…. let’s just say we’re in recovery mode. (Note to self: more frequent backups.)

December 8th: Raspberry Rose (standard). I would definitely say ‘juicy’ – this one seems by far the wettest ink so far. And while I quite like the colour, for some reason I find it just a bit flat to be honest. I think it strikes me as a bit browner than I think of when I think Raspberry. Definitely will need to experiment more with pens & paper combinations.

December 9th: Storm (shimmer). Aptly named, a deep grey with green/blue tones to it. I prefer the sheen to shimmer, but the shimmer works quite well with this colour.

December 10th: Peach Punch (standard). Some decent shading, and would definitely be your colour if you like the colour peach. To be honest, I personally prefer more of a jewel tone or deeper ‘dusty’ colour palette. So far this is probably my least favourite colour out of this calendar.

December 11th: Party Time (shimmer). This one has a longer dry time than most of the others, as you can see by my unintentional smudge. I don’t mind this one, as it’s a deeper colour. It also has some shading. It reminds me a bit of Noodler’s Saguaro Wine. I don’t mind it, and can see myself using it when I’m in the mood for something different for a short period, but I don’t see myself owning a larger bottle in the future.

Inkvent 2021 (Day 5, 6, 7)

Three new colours to check out.

December 5th brings us Harmony, a standard ink. This one strikes me as a twilight colour – a dusky purple, or a purple toned grey if you prefer. Quite a noticeable difference from Ash a few days ago in colour but the same sort of tone and wetness.

December 6th brings us Winter Spice, which is a shimmer & sheen. This one reminds me quite a bit of the Laurentian pencil crayon #11 Chestnut. It is the colour of cloves, black caradmom, and vanilla beans. A deep, rich brown that is nearing black. The shimmer is a bit more subtle than that of tempest, and it has a great blue tone sheen to it. This one felt like a drier ink than most of the others.

and December 7th brings us Candle Light, another standard ink. I expected something more like Gold Star from the 2019 Inkvent, so I was pleasantly surprised to discover it was a standard ink. It is a rich, warm yellow orange and has some nice shading to it. I quite like this ink… it reminds me of when I first saw Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-gaki (Persimmon). In the bottle I wasn’t sure what it was going to be – but it’s a gorgeous colour on paper. One of my favourites so far.

As always… your mileage will vary.

The bottle are definitely interesting this year – they will store easier than the round glass ones, and being plastic I would guess had an impact on shipping – both the reduction of weight, and the hope (?) that the bottles shouldn’t explode in the cold. Each one is also sealed in a shrink-wrap plastic wrapper – which I have to admit I have struggled with some days. It’s pretty heavy stuff, and doesn’t have a perforation line, but beats having to worry about leaking for sure.

Last note – the three small swatches are done by laying down the 3 swatches, and then going over the left and center again so it is 3 passes, 2 passes, and the right side with one. Just to try and get a sense of how it may lay down with drier or wetter nibs.

Inkvent 2021 (Day 2, 3, & 4)

Okay… so the red ‘theme’ is only the box, which is sort of a pity. I would have been really interested to see 25 reds. Two things I’m known for in our club is that I have a penchant for ridiculously extra extra fine nibs, and little love for blue inks (I do own several I quite like though).

Dec 2nd brought us Garland, a nice medium-dark green with shimmer & sheen.

Dec 3rd brought us Ash, a nice mid grey that is pretty neutral. I was hoping to see some more shading, but that may be the paper I’m using for testing.

And today brings us Tempest (which I kept reading as Tropical without my glasses, and couldn’t fathom how that worked with a Christmas theme) that is a deep green, and has a ridiculous amount of shimmer.

For anyone wondering, the top is a Pelikan paper pad, and the bottom is Rhodia. The pen is a glass dip pen to ensure there’s no colour contamination. The same combination of items as used for the previous Inkvent samples.

Inkvent 2021 – Dec 2nd, 3rd, 4th

Inkvent 2021!

Last year, Diamine did not put out an inkvent calendar, but it has returned for this year…. Red Edition! Not sure if that is just because the box is red this year, or if the actual focus is on red inks.

December 1st brings us “Seize the Night”. A colour that seems a black-red, a dark plum.

(a note: the schedule is complex at the moment, so posts will most likely not be daily.)

Invent 2021 – Dec 1st – Seize the Night

KWZ inks

Open the review page for a few pictures of four of their inks. Which ones? check it out or you can just visit https://www.purepens.co.uk/ to order them. Well packed with two layers of cardboard and tracking numbers so you can make sure your inks don’t freeze.

The race is on

The race is on to get a consensus for the color(s) of our very own Calgary Pen Club ink, so many color suggestions, sheen no sheen, bottle types. Its great to see our members excited about this new project and if you have not followed the emails or given your own two cents please do after all its ours. If you are not on our email list let us know so we can add you.