In Ink Review

Ink Preview: Colorverse First Horizon Set

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Ink Preview: Colorverse First Horizon Set

Things I have a weakness for: anything space-themed and ink sets. Who never disappoints in fulfilling my inky dreams? Colorverse. Do you expect this to be an unbiased review? Nope. Not gonna happen today.

Colorverse put together another wonderful collection of inks, the New Horizons set ($60),  themed around the New Horizons spacecraft that has explored our heavens as far as Arrokoth 2014 MU69, the most distant object ever seen up close.

The set of four 15ml bottles of ink come in a round box and includes a beautifully designed package with stickers, information sheet and a limited edition card with the number of the kit.

The four colors included in the set are Pioneer Container, Kuiper Belt, Pluto and Beyond, and Arrokoth. Kuiper Belt is where the Arrokoth 2014 MU69 object exists. Pluto’s orbit crosses the Kuiper Belt at some points is often far outside the Belt. So I understand where the naming for all but the Pioneer Container ink came from. Pioneer was the name for probes that were sent beyond our known solar system and carried the Golden Record so I sort of see the thematic relationship. As for the actual colors I compared them with images from NASA’s website.

I don’t agree with the colors that Colorverse chose for each element of the New Horizon voyage. I think I would have chosen a warm grey for Pluto & Beyond. I would have made the Kuiper Belt ink the color they chose for the Pioneer Container. Since I am not sure what the Pioneer Container is supposed to be, I am not sure what color that should be instead. The Arrokoth color seems spot-on for the images on NASA site.

Regardless of whether I think the ink colors are accurate representations of the heavenly bodies, let’s talk about the actual ink colors.

 

First up, is Pluto and Beyond. While I didn’t think it was an accurate color for Pluto and Beyond, it is a yellow-green so it’s going to be close to the top of my list of favorite colors in the set.

Its not as yellow as Robert Oster Saguaro Green but not as green J. Herbin Vert Olive, Robert Oster Redwood Forest or Pennonia Green Finch. I’m always looking for another citrus green and this is a perfect addition to my collection.

Years ago, I went on a mission (pun intended) to find a smoky purple. If Pioneer Container had been available then, it may have topped my list.

While Robert Oster’s Summer Storm and Sydney Lavender  are more violet and Pen BBS #346 and 270 are more red, Pioneer Container is squarely between them — perfect smoky purple, not too bright and not too grey. I want one of those big 60ml bottles of this ink.

Arrokoth is a warm reddish brown. The closest match I had was Diamine Triple Chocolate. Colorverse Soul and Monteverde Brown Sugar were both slightly more reddish. When I’m looking for a brown ink, I tend to prefer these warmer hot chocolate-y browns so I will definitely put this ink to use.

 

The final ink in the set is Kuiper Belt which I initially thought was a black bit when I started comparing it to other swatches, I realized it is a very dark blue black. Taccia Aogura is probably the closest in color. But you can see that Kuiper Belt is not black but blue.

Is this set a cost effective way to satisfy your ink inklings? Probably not, but it is a delightful set that celebrates another great NASA voyage while also providing me with yet more bottles of ink.

DISCLAIMER: Items in this review were purchased with funds from our amazing Patrons. You can help support this blog by joining our Patreon. Please see the About page for more details.

In Link Love

Link Love: Feeling Matchy-Matchy

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Link Love: Feeling Matchy-Matchy
(Image from Right on the Nail)

Laura reviewed the new Pennonia/Inkdepence ink collaboration Cheerio Waterbus but what makes this particular project really unique is that Audrey (AKA The Nib Doctor) of Right on the Nail worked with Noodles Nail Polish to create a coordinating nail polish. How fast can you say “TAKE MY MONEY!”? Probably not as fast as I did but still, this collab made me particularly tickled. I can’t wait to show off my matching ink and polish combo. Now, who’s going to make a pen that matches? I want the full set!

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In Ink Review

Fountain Pen Ink Review: Pennonia/Inkdependence Cheerio Waterbus

Author Laura CameronPosted on 2 Comments

While at the Atlanta Pen Show, Ana brought back a bottle of the newest ink for us to swatch and review. Cheerio Waterbus is a collaboration between Pennonia and Inkdepence and is available for preorder in Mike’s shop!

The name, Cheerio Waterbus, which in Hungarian is a bit like saying “after a while crocodile.” We imagine it rhymes charmingly!

Cheerio Waterbus is a gorgeous emerald green ink with lots of blue pigment. The pigment doesn’t mix into the ink but rather hovers creating almost a sheen of blue against the green. The pigment itself does separate – you can see it at the bottom of the bottle and the box advises to shake well before use.

This ink is super fun. I didn’t know whether I was getting much of the blue in my samples, but I can see it everywhere except for the Col-o-Dex card – only a scant bit there. But look at those glorious ink drops! The green definitely shades, although in a fine or medium nib you mostly just get green.

It was hard to find similar inks in my “stash.” On the light end of the ink, Birmingham Pen Co Summer Jade is close, although a bit mintier. On the dark end, Waterman Harmonious Green isn’t a bad match. Sheaffer Green is a bit too teal, although I feel like in the blue sections maybe?

The ink loaded up and flowed well through my TWSBI Eco and after a day or two I don’t see too much pigment gathering at the bottom. It dried reasonably quickly and looks amazing!

And don’t forget that Audrey, the Nib Doctor, and nail polish afficionado has a preorder available for Cheerio Waterbus in nail polish!

DISCLAIMER: Some of the items included in this review were provided to us free of charge, others were purchased with our own funds, for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In Fountain Pen Review

GIVEAWAY WINNERS: Lamy Safari Strawberry and Cream

Author Laura CameronPosted on

I know you’ve all been patiently waiting for the winners of the Lamy Safari Strawberry and Cream pens, generously donated to us by Pen Boutique for giveaway. Wait no longer!

Our winners are Chad and Dave:

As always, I wish I had enough pens to give one away to everyone who entered! But thank you to everyone who entered for reading along and we’ll have more giveaways soon.

In feature

The Perfect Nib for a One-of-a-Kind Pen?

Author AnaPosted on
The Perfect Nib for a One-of-a-Kind Pen?
Okay, my drawing of a cursive/italic nib looks like a music nib but you get the idea.

When you are blessed with a truly unique pen, it only seems fitting to pair it with a truly unique nib. I have had my Lamy custom Urushi pen for a couple years now. If you are not familiar with this pen, several years ago, Brad, Myke and I ** challenged Jonathan Brooks of the Carolina Pen Company to make the most ridiculous pens imaginable. We posed the question, could he Urushi a Lamy Safari or AL-Star? And even, should he? Jonathan is always up for a challenge and at the Atlanta Pen Show some years ago, we handed him two Safaris and one AL-Star to test his skills.

The final results* were nothing short of stunning. This video from Jonathan shows my Urushi-Star in all its glory.

So, between the pandemic and my sheer awe at how awesome my Urushi-Star was, I hadn’t really considered how to best take it to the next level. Until a couple of weeks ago at the Atlanta Pen Show.

I met Matthew Chen  who is a relatively new nibmeister and we got to talking about his work and training. He has been honing his craft with Mr. Nagahara of Sailor Pens fame and has been working closely over the last few months with Mike Masayama. Matthew’s dedication and the seal of approval from these two nib grinding legends made me quite comfortable that Matthew was up to the task of making my Urushi-Star even better.

I gave him a Lamy B nib to work with and though it does not have quite as much tipping material as he would have liked, he was able to craft what I think is a delightfully unique writing experience.

I asked him to put a Naganati Togi grind ($50) on the nib. This is an unusual grind that features some of the characteristics of an architect nib coupled with some of the characteristics of a zoom nib. The Naganati Togi has the reverse volume of tipping material like an architect nib so that it will write thicker on cross strokes and thinner on vertical, up-and-down strokes. That is, unless you are a lefty. For me, the architect grind often provides me with a perfect simulation of an italic or stub nib so my down strokes become thicker than my cross strokes which is more consistent with an italic, cursive italic or stub nib.

The zoom nib aspect is what allows the nib to write a finer line when held at a 90º angle on the paper versus a more standard 45-75º angle that most people usually write at. The Naganati Togi does a good just of writing a very fine line when held at a 90º angle which allows me to write in small spaces, add details to drawings or purposely vary the size of my writing as needed.

The overall final line width for my standard writing is similar to a medium cursive italic — it provides a range of line width variation that brings out the colors in my ink and in my handwriting that I really like.

I tested the grind writing with a lefty overhand grip, underhand grip and a side writer with slight variations in the overall line quality but not significant. The nib also wrote smoothly at all the angles I used which is not always the case for me with italics or cursive italics without some adjustment either in the grind or my hand position.

I love the Naganati Togi nib and it is the perfect accompaniment to this extraordinary pen. I will definitely have Matthew grind some other nib for me soon. I think there will be a Concord nib in my future for sure!

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*NOTE: Do not ask Jonathan Brooks to make you an Urushi Lamy. He made four and he said he would not consider ever making another so don’t ask. That doesn’t mean that there are not other special, rare or unique pens out there for you to have a custom nib grind added. Just not this one.

** To hear me gush about the beauty of my Urushi-Star, listen to Episode 413 of the Pen Addict Podcast. Maybe I’ll be asked onto the show again to gush about the Naganati Togi nib?

In Fountain Pen Review

Fountain Pen Review: Kaweco Sport Collector’s Edition Iridescent

Author AnaPosted on 2 Comments
Fountain Pen Review: Kaweco Sport Collector’s Edition Iridescent

One of the best things about working a pen show is getting to see, handle and try new pens. I get to see firsthand, over the course of a weekend, many pens I have not seen in person before. Sometimes they are pens I have wondered “How big is that pen?” or “Is the new finish really pretty?” In the case of the new Kaweco Collector’s Edition Iridescent Fountain Pen ($27) , yes. It really is THAT pretty.

The plastic is translucent with very fine iridescent shimmer particles embedded in the material. Depending on how you hold it to the light, it will look pink, purple, yellow, green or turquoise blue. Because of the faceted cap it often looks like all those colors at once.

I applaud Kaweco for continuing to play with the materials they use on these intro level pens. It really is a delight to look at and knowing its such a reasonable price doesn’t make it overly precious. It’s a little magical unicorn party for your pocket.

But the other rad thing about a pen show is looking up from the table where I’m working and see a nib grinder, THE Nib Grinder, sitting just across the room from me. Because what does a magical unicorn pen need most? A magical nib. So I swapped out the standard F nib on the pen for a BB nib and trotted over to Mark Bacas to have him grind the nib to a cursive italic. He rounded out the corners just a bit for my sometimes awkward left handed grip and behold!

Look at that delicious flat writing surface.

I realize it seems a bit absurd to spend $40 on a nib grind for a $27 pen but look at this writing sample and try to convince me it was not 100% worth it.

Probably the most challenging decision was what ink would look best with the shimmery exterior of the Kaweco Iridescent. I decided to go with a color-shifting greyish ink: Vinta Aegean Armada. I suspect this pen will consistently be filled with one of the magical color-shifting inks. Which one should I try next? Maybe one of the new Sailor inks?

Tools:

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by Vanness Pen Shop for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In Link Love

Link Love: Stolen Plants Always Grow

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Link Love: Stolen Plants Always Grow

While April weather is a crap shoot — one day warm and sunny, the next day is frost warnings and grey, spitting rain, it seems like plants and gardening have been on my mind. Lots of the flowering shrubs are blooming bring vibrant pinks and yellows to our neighborhood after months of grey and it makes my heart sing. Coincidentally, Austin Kleon posted about “proplifting” this week. While I’ve never stolen a cutting from a garden center, I have received cuttings from friends and, for the first time in my life, I’ve actually been able to propagate new plants from the cuttings. I trimmed back my basil plant and its sprouting in new places just like I hoped so I’m getting more confident about my gardening skills. While I am not super outdoorsy I do love plants and have always been able to keep them alive but now I’m feeling more confident about my skills and looking forward to extending my gardening skills. Do you garden? Do you document your plantings in a journal? Have you ever “proplifted”?

(via Austin Kleon)

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