Initially, I was just going to post and review about the new(er) Dominant Industry Ink Archiving Book: The Log of Elixir ($31). Jesi posted a review awhile ago about the Log of Atlantis ($28) awhile back so I thought I didn’t need to write about it. But I acquired both Ink Archiving Books at the same time and I am in my beachy time (even though I live in the middle of the country) so I decided I’d include a few pages and samples of both of these wonderful books.
Both books feature hardcovers and foil accents and about 256 pages. They are B6 and the paper is a smoothish, warm white. The paper is nice and thick– 100 gsm paper.
The Log of Atlantis:
First up, the Log of Atlantis is filled with a variety of pages featuring aquatic artwork that can be painted or colored with your choice of creative tools. I started my project with only a few bottles of ink since I started painted this in a hotel room during the most recent pen show I worked.
I used a water brush to create ink washes and get a wider range of hues and tones from each ink.
I am not a big fan of coloring, in general, because a lot of being a graphic designer requires that I “color” artwork so coloring as a hobby has never appealed to me. Until I found that I could play with fountain pen ink and “paint” my colors. Now I’m hooked.
I do think using a paint brush and a dish of some sort to allow the chance to water down the colors, mix different colors and just try different approaches in a great way to play with inks and use up some of those sample vials I’m sure you’ve accumulated.
There was very little show through or bleed through on the back of the pages. On the page above, there is a little peek of the Apricot Jam from the plant at the bottom of the previous page but its pretty minimal.
In the back of both books, there are places to just catalog inks as well as some blank pages and aplces to make swatches throughout the book. The illustrated pages also repeat a couple times so you can experiment without “ruining” your book. In the Log of Atlantis, there are about 50 original pages that repeat about times before the ink swatching pages start.
The Log of Elixir:
I don’t want to give too much away by showing all the pages in the Log of Elixir because there are so many delightful pages full of apothecary, magical and vintage vibes that every time I open it, I find something that wows and delights. If you love cats, I challenge you to find all the cats which appear on many pages as well as magical mushrooms, butterflies, unicorns, dragons and astronomical goodies.
I enjoyed test driving the stained glass windows and flowers. I was still only working with a handful of ink colors which I recommend limiting your ink colors per page or spread to create a more unified finished piece and give yourself a chance to mix colors with the 5 or 6 inks you use on each page.
Above, is the back of the roses painted page and there is no show through, just a little buckling of the paper as a result of the water used.
Above, is one of the many pages with cats in weird positions and also shows the reverse of the stained glass window page so the only bleed through was the swatch of Sailor x Dromgoole’s Apricot Jam. It’s not terrible and I’ll definitely try painting this page to see if the ink bleeds onto this paint or if I can just paint over it.
I counted the original pages in the Log of Elixir and it also has about 50 original pages which repeats 3-ish times (almost four) but the last repeat is a little mixed up. After quite a few ink swatching pages in a section of just blank pages for more open creativity or writing.
The Final Verdict:
I found that painting with ink was a joy and these books tickle my fancy. The paper is good and the art is delightful. I like that these books leave room for journaling as well as ink sampling and coloring. If you don’t have one of these books yet, don’t wait. They won’t be around forever.
DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by Dromgoole’s for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
