I’ve purchased this ink on a whim, not knowing what to expect beyond the colour of th eink. I’m pleasantly surprised to find how good a shading ink this is. Like its name, the colour is deep and rich. The dark teal appeals to me a lot. And the dryness is a good fit for my wetter nibs ..read more

My thanks to Ana of Well Appointed Desk for the ink sample. Nitrogen blue is a sheening ink. But that’s not a surprise for any one now. I’m pretty late to this bandwagon after all. It’s a dark blue ink that’s super saturated and lubricated. It shades well and has a strong red sheen. You don’t even have to have a ton of ink on the paper to see the sheen to show up. It’s even sheening on my nib collar and grip. That’s how much it shows. It also dries up quickly on the nib if you take too long to figure out what to write next. If you’re looking for a super sheening ink, this is the one for you ..read more

This is the last of my TY Lee exclusive De Atramentis inks that I’ve purchased from them a few years ago. I really enjoy this colour. It’s a muted green-yellow with a strong grey undertone. It shades subtly even in my 1.lmm nib. Unlike the other TY Lee exclusive that I’ve reviewed, this isn’t a scented ink. I can’t really say why this ink is named after one of the characters of the Chinese story, Journey to the West, but all in all I enjoy this ink. Similar Colours: De Atramentis Meng Hao Ran (TY Lee Exclusive) Graf von F ..read more

This is my first experience with Colourverse inks. It is thus far a very enjoyable ink to use. Kepler’s Laws goes down lika bright red but dries to a more muted colour. It doesn’t shade much and remains relatively flat even in my 1.1mm nib. Personally this colour isn’t my cup of tea but don’t let that deter you if you do like it. In terms of wetness, it’s slightly wet and lubrivated, fits well in my dry-ish TWSBI mini nibs. Similar Inks: Akkerman Rembrandt Karmozijn KWZ Chicago Blue Scribes’ Ink Cloud Break (Scente ..read more

I got this in a long time ago and had assumed I’ve reviewed it. Turns out I’ve not. So here it is. KWZ Brown Pink is an interesting blend fo colours. It verges on the purple end of colour, shading very well even in my EF nib. It goes from a deep dark purple to a muted pastel purple-grey. It also has the distinctive KWZ scent. I love it but it may not be for everyone. Similar Inks: Montblanc Antoine de Saint Exupery Pelikan Edelstein Amethyst Montblanc Lavender Purple ..read more

Waterman Inspired Blue is a wet and lubricated blue ink. It’s saturated and shades moderately. I enjoy how it makes my nib glides across the page. This is a good first impression to my first time using Waterman inks. I can see why it is a go to ink brand for many. Similar Inks: KWZ Hawaii Blue Noodler’s Midway Blue KWZ Chicago Blue ..read more

Benzaiten is one of Pilot’s 100th anniversary inks. It’s a soft pink colour that shades beautifully going from a pastel pink to something stronger and vibrant. Among all the 100th Anniversary colours, I like the yellow (Pilot Iroshizuku 100th Anniversary Daikokuten) which I’ve reviewed previously and this one. Both are unique colours to the Iroshizuku stable of inks. Too bad they are limited edition inks. It’s worth buying a bottle of Benzaiten even if it’s not a collectable. Similar Inks: Sailor Sakura Mori Robert Os ..read more

My thanks to Louisa for the ink sample. Or Audaciux is french for bold gold. Does it look gold to you or is it just brown? GOld is a very trickey colour to get right. Putting aside how true to gold this ink looks to you, Louis Vuitton Or Audaciux is a beautiful shading ink. It feels relatively lubricated. If I am a gold / brown ink lover, this ink will be on my radar. However, I’m not. Also one has to take the hefty price tag into consideration as well. Similar Inks: Noodler’s Golden Brown Akkerman Hopjesbruin ..read more

My thanks to Rongli for the ink sample. St Dupont Turquoise is a bright turquoise on the blue end of the blue-green spectrum of turquoise. It is a relatively wet ink but it dnd’t write well in my Pilot Myu 701 F despite it being a dry nib like this TWSBI Mini 1.1mm nib. In the Myu 701, it writes but the feedback it produces with this ink is a little too much to be enjoyable. I think it is just a case of bad ink and pen combination, no fault of the ink really. That said, even in the F Japanese nib it has shading. With the right pen, this ink will be a great shading ink ..read more

My thanks to Sunny for the ink sample. Now Slowpoke Green is right up my alley. I love greens in the green-yellow range especially the darker ones.It shades really nicely even in my European fine nibs. It goes from a dark forest green to a muted sort og grass green. And with its excellent dry time, I think this is an ink that’s made just for me. Similar Inks: Monteverde Olivine Elixir River Safari Pelikan Edelstein Olivine ..read more