10. Diamine

Diamine is a tried-and-true brand with a huge range of colors and multiple lines: the standard line, the 150th anniversary collection and the new Inkvent collections. The prices for each of the collections are so reasonable that I think the inks are often overlooked — and sometimes overwhelming. Diamine has often worked with fans like FPN and Reddit to create custom limited edition inks too. The most recent Celadon Cat was a Reddit fans collab.

The standard line of inks are available in 30ml (about $8 each) and epic 80ml bottles (about $17 each). The 150th anniversary line come in 40ml pie-wedge shaped bottles and sells for about $18 per bottle. Many colors can even be purchased in standard international cartridges (18 cartridges for approx.$9) .

If you’re just looking into Diamine inks and haven’t fallen down the rabbit hole of the Inkvent inks yet, one of the most popular colors is Red Dragon, a deep red with a bit of gold sheen. Ancient Copper is also a popular choice.

9. Pen BBS

Pen BBS is a Chinese online fountain pen community much like FPN in the West. They started creating their own inks and pens pre-2016 (thats the earliest date I have on a bottle of ink) and has continued to produce new colors ever since then. Originally, Pen BBS inks came in massive 60ml faceted bottles with engraved logo caps. As new series have been released the bottles have changed size and shape but the quality and wide range of color options have continued. When the shimmer inks trend first took off, Pen BBS lead the way with the finest shimmer particles and remains one of my favorite options for shimmer inks. June Pearl No. 226 is a delightful pale purple with silver shimmer. If you can find a bottle, I highly recommend it.

Lily of the Valley No. 507 is a great option as well, its a watery green with just a hint of blue. Its another one to keep a look out for. Vanness is clearing out the Pen BBS inks so what’s left is marked down considerably. Get a bottle while you can!

8. Pelikan Edelstein

Pelikan 4001 is a classic ink but when Pelikan introduced the jewel-inspired Edelstein line, they really helped to launch a new era of fountain pen ink fans. As a result of being one of the earliest to create new inks in a wider range of colors, Pelikan Edelstein is often overlooked until they announce their “ink of the year”. The 2023 color is Rose Quartz. Each bottle is 50ml for about $28 per bottle. It’s not the most affordable ink in this list but its a good ink in a beautiful, desk-worthy bottle.

One of my favorite Edelstein colors is Jade, a bluish green. It’s a very pretty, unusual shade. But if you are purchasing your first Edelstein ink, Smoky Quartz is also a great option.

7. Callifolio

Callifolio is an ink made by a French art supplies company.  Each of their ink colors come in a 40ml pie-shaped bottle (just like the Diamine 150th Annivesary inks for about $13 per bottle) or a 50ml refill pouch for about $10.25USD. The palette of colors (or should  say “colouers”) is truly sophisticated and refined.  Inti and Heure Doree (Golden Hour) were early alternatives to the coveted but hard to get KWZ Honey for a short time but now I think that the Callifolio options are a better option for those golden-y yellows without the controversial fragrance of the KWZ inks. Don’t get me wrong, I still like the way KWZ Honey smells but I think I might be in the minority.

If you’re looking for a gateway color from Callifolio, I recommend Gris de Payne (Payne’s Grey), a smoky steely blue-grey color. The previously mentioned Inti and Heure Doree are also solid first-time Callifolio options.

6. Papier Plume

Papier Plume is a small New Orleans pen shop that makes their own inks. They have made many standard colors as well as New Orleans-themed colors and many, many special editions. Their standard 30ml bottles sell for $8 to $10 per bottle.

Get in touch with your inner Nawlins with one of the New Orleans collection colors like one of my favorites, Sazerac, a deep orange that makes me thirsty just looking at the swatch.

5. De Atramentis

DeAtramentis offers over 475 (actually 492 inks according to Vanness Pen Shop) different ink colors including the most insane array of scented inks. If you’ve ever participated in one of the Vanness open house events during the Arkansas Pen Show, you might have been forced to endure one of our “guess the ink stink” games and been forced to sniff Leather, Motorbike, Cannabis, or help us all, Horse. No joke.

They have lovely floral scents as well. And document inks, artists inks, shimmer inks, . But the array of colors is why I stick with DeAtramentis (40ml bottles for about $14) after all these years. My favorite ink from my earliest days of fountain pens in Pigeon Blue but the Deepwater Obsession Black Edition series is a great collection of dark colors. I especially like Black-Red.

4. Kaweco

While the Kaweco ink line is a little smaller than most with just 10 colors, it’s a classic assortment. Previously, the inks came in the 30ml bottles shown above but now the inks ship is square shaped jam jars. These 50ml bottles sell for $11 per bottle.

The Summer Purple, Smokey Grey and Paradise Blue are my favorite shades in the line so if you’re trying to decide where to start with Kaweco inks, I recommend one of these three.

3. Lamy

Lamy’s stock ink line (AKA T52, approx. $12.50 per bottle) comes in the most unique 50ml bottle. The exterior of the bottle includes a channel with an absorbent tape to wipe off your nibs after filling your pen. While there are not a ton of colors in the line, if you need a staple ink, having one of the colors available from Lamy is a great addition to your collection.

Lamy has their posher T53 “Crystal Ink” line but these come in smaller 30ml bottles for approx. $16 each. The colors are more sophisticated but the bottles don’t have the tissue tape.

Both the Crystal Inks and the standard line offered the Vibrant Pink color which is one of my favorites. It’s not super vibrant but provides a stunning pink color. The Vibrant Pink was a limited edition color for 2018 and can still be found if you look around for it. The Vibrant Pink contains some gold flecks which gives off a fabulous gold sheen. Rhodonite from the Crystal Ink line is the same color if you can’t find it in the T52 bottle.

2. Waterman

Waterman inks are the inks I most recommend to people looking for inks that are “safe for vintage pens”. But Waterman inks aren’t just for vintage pens. The line of 10 classic colors have some hidden features at a price that won’t shock your wallet. Several of the 10 colors have some sheening properties including Serenity Blue Audacious Red and Tender Purple. Each 50ml bottle costs about $12. If you’re looking to have a couple tried-and-true inks that can be used in any pen, you can’t go wrong with Waterman.

…and finally…  1. Monteverde

Monteverde is by far one of my favorite inks. It’s well-behaved and some of my favorite ink colors are from Monteverde. Its not an ink that people talk about in rhapsodic tones but I do. It’s inexpensive, there are some amazing colors. The box sets of 10 colors in 30ml bottles ($100 pr set)  are great gateways for new ink collectors too.

Monteverde inks are available in 30ml (MSRP $10)  and 90ml bottles (MSRP$20) so ints relatively inexpensive to purchase a small bottle and, if you really love an ink, 90ml for $20 (or less) is a deal. A couple years ago, Monteverde had a brief issue with a couple colors of ink having mold or scumming issue but those have been resolved. Unfortunately, it has given a lot of folks pause before purchasing. I spoke with a representative from the company earlier this year and he assured me the problems have been resolved and any bottles with issues were replaced with no questions — even when people insisted they had issues with bottles that were not actually from the affected batches. That said, there’s no reason to hesitate in purchasing ink from Monteverde.

Monteverde inks are also available in standard international packs of 12 for approx. $6 each, not all colors are available in cartridges but this gives some great color options for on-the-go needs.

If you’ve not tried a Monteverde ink before, I recommend either California Teal, a great green-teal with sheen or, my favorite ink, Birthday Cake.

California Teal was a favorite sheening ink a couple years back but as more ink makers have created sheening inks, people have forgotten about California Teal. I still think its one of the best sheeners. Its a deep green that has a hint of blue and a red sheen. It looks good, even in fine nibbed pens.

Birthday Cake is a deep, muted purple ink is the perfect balance between a unique, unusual color and a good everyday writer, even subdued enough for the office. Birthday Cake has been my go-to ink all year and I may have to invest in one of the 90ml bottles.

There are lots of other ink brands I could have mentioned here. Which under-appreciated inks would you include in a list like this?

The post Top 10 Under-Appreciated Ink Brands appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

One of the most coveted special projects this year is Papier Plume‘s special FPD ink: Cafe Diabolique which was blended to be an exact match for Cafe Brulot, a trance-inducing after-dinner coffee ritual which is still being performed by a few old-school waiters skilled in the flaming at-table ritual. This is something I definitely want to try next time I visit the French Quarter. As of posting this, the direct link to the product was not yet available so check the inks page (linked above at Noon, New Orleans time) or Papier Plume’s Instagram account for more info.

Also available today, the last few pads of our latest iteration of our Vintage Typewriter Paper Pads ($12 each, limit 3 per customer — also on Etsy) featuring super lightweight Southworth Onionskin paper. There are just a few of these pads left (Patrons got a first go at them so they pretty much cleaned us out!) so be swift if you want to try our latest NOS paper pads. Also, all orders placed today and Saturday will include a free Col-o-ring Dipper (no coupon required)!

Happy Fountain Pen Day!

The post Today is Fountain Pen Day! appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

First, CW Pencils held a sidewalk sale over the weekend as a final farewell to their brick and mortar days. The website is still up so if there was ever a pencil you wanted, now is the time to buy. Items are selling out fast.

Then, I received an email from Patrick at Papier Plume informing me that there was an issue with some of their inks. He was able to quickly identify which inks have issues and when they were produced and is offering to replace any bottles. This will be a sizable expense for a small business and I worry how much of a burden this will be to Papier Plume’s finances. Most small businesses have little expendable income. Please, if you have a bottle of this ink you would like replaced, try to pool your request with friends to cut down on the shipping charges (especially since we have entered the USPS’s increased shipping rate season). If you can wait, find out if Papier Plume will be attending a pen show near you soon and exchange your ink then — and also make a new purchase or two.

Next, a blog post from Pencil Talk appeared letting the stationery community know that long-time pencil blog Contrapuntalism created by Sean Malone is gone.

Finally, I received an email on Monday that NockCo was closing. While I know that Brad has many other projects in the works, the products developed at NockCo created a new category of pen and stationery cases that other makers will continue to refine and develop. So, while NockCo will no longer exist as a business entity, the influence that they had on the stationery community will live on.

On the heels of hearing that these stationery businesses are closing or are dealing with product difficulties, I am more committed than ever to try to save the ones we have left. If you believe in these businesses and shops like them, please continue to support them. (Side note: Jeff Bezos does not need anymore of your money.)

And, now for our regularly scheduled Link Love….

Pens:

•  The Good Blue Co. R615 Fountain Pen with Steel Flex Nib (plastic feed & ebonite feed) (via Gourmet Pens)
• Pelikan Jazz Ballpoint Pen Review (via The Pen Addict)
• ST Dupont Line D Guilloche Large Fountain Pens! (via Inkdependence!)
• Unity Day And Pelikan’s “Rebirth Of A New Germany” Commemorative M800 (via The Pelikan’s Perch)
• Workhorse Pens: Opus 88 Fountain Pens Offer Maximum Versatility (via The Gentleman Stationer)
• Swapping Fountain Pen Nibs: From Easy to Expert (via The Gentleman Stationer)
•  Short (via Crónicas Estilográficas)
• Monami 153 Neo Fountain Pen Review (via The Pen Addict)

Ink:

• Diamine Writer’s Blood Ink Review (via The Pen Addict)
• Colorverse Eye on the Universe Season 7: eXtreme Deep Field and NGC 1850 Review (via The Pen Addict)
• Color Traveler Fukuyama Rose Pink (via Fountain Pen Pharmacist)
• Lapis Bard Inks – Everything you always wanted to know (via Inked Happiness)
• Van Dieman’s Midnight Sky (via Mountain of Ink)
• Birmingham Mountain Laurel on Life Schöpfer (via Inkcredible Colours)
• Krishna Halloween Orange Ink Review (via Pen Chalet Blog)

Pencils:

•  Vintage Colored Pencils: Alco Coloring Pencils (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)

Notebooks & Paper:

• Plotter USA Launch (via Notebook Stories)
• Leuchtturm1917 Notebook Guide (via JetPens Blog)
• The Best Pens & Inks for Tomoe River Paper (Plus Paper Alternatives) (via JetPens Blog)
• Montblanc notebooks: a real luxury experience (via UK fountain pens)
• Moleskine Studio Notebook (or Cult Pens Paper Box Part 1) (via Writing at Large)
• Art & Creativity:

  Alternatives to Adobe drawing and painting software (via Parka Blogs)

• My favourite green watercolour pencils (via Liz Steel)
• Deep Deep Light Watercolours (via Liz Steel)
• New and recommended books for illustrators (via Creative Boom)

Other Interesting Things:

• The Post Pen Show Post: London Autumn 2021. (via Fountain pen blog)
•  Bellroy “Transit” Workpack (via Tools and Toys)
• Finally, The 2022 Fat Cat Art Calendar Is Here! (via Design You Trust)
• Star Wars Oil Paintings (via Kottke.org)
• Maya Angelou First Featured on U.S. Mint’s American Women Quarters (via My Modern Met)

We need each other. Please support our sponsors and affiliates. Your patronage will let them know you appreciate their support of the pen community. Without them, and without you, we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you!

The post Link Love: The Sad News Edition appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

On Col-o-Ring paper:

I did several samples with the new Cloud Gate ink. On Col-o-Ring cards and the Oversize notebook, the ink is a very cool grey with a lot of evidence of the gold shimmer particles. When the ink was wet, the shimmer particles weren’t as noticeable as when the ink dried. Once dry, the shimmer particles were very easy to see especially on Col-o-Ring and Tomoe River paper.

When the ink pools in any way, the shimmer is much more visible.

I love how the shimmer looks when the light hits the ink.

On Tomoe River Paper:

On Tomoe River paper, the ink still shades a lot but is a little more neutral grey, the evidence of the blues and purples was not as evident.

Again, when the ink pools, the shimmer is really evident.

Ink Color Comparison:

When compared to other shimmer inks, the closest comparison would probably be J. Herbin 1670 Stormy Grey though Stormy Grey doesn’t have the multi-color range that Cloud Gate has. Diamine Snowstorm is  lighter and has silver shimmer rather than gold and Diamine Solstice is darker and features multi-chroma shimmer. On the furthest ends of the photo above is Starry Ink Lunar Halo which ends up looking much more brown (warmer dark) grey and features gold shimmer too while the Colorverse Glistening Anti-Matter is much more purply pink.

Final Thoughts:

The fact that Cloud Gate is (I think) Papier Plume’s first shimmer ink, and it’s a multi-chroma and a limited edition if you are an ink collector, this is a must-have. If you are new to shimmer inks, since this is Papier Plume’s first foray, the shimmer volume and particle size has not been thoroughly tested for flow and cleaning so it may not be the best place to start though I’ve not had issues with any of Papier Plume’s non-shimmer inks. However, I recommend new-to-shimmer to proceed with caution.

How Can I Buy This Ink?

The Cloud Gate ink will premiere at the pen show on Friday, October 1 and available at the Papier Plume booth. Any bottles left over after the show closes will be available for purchase online the following Monday, October 4, 2021.

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by Papier Plume for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

The post Ink Overview: Papier Plume Cloud Gate (Chicago Pen Show Exclusive 2021) appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

In honor of the Triangle Pen Show, Papier Plume has created a special ink: Carolina in my Mind.  This beautiful smoky teal ink will only be available at the Triangle Pen Show which opens on Thursday, June 10 and runs through June 13 this year. Any bottles remaining after the show will be available for purchase on the Papier Plume web site or in their brick-and-mortar shop.

Carolina in my Mind is a teal blue leaning slightly green with a good deal of shading. There is no noticable sheening but it does pool into a nice halo in spots on certain papers like the Col-o-ring card above.

On Tome River paper, the shading and range of color is evident. I confess this is one of those colors that I can seldom resist.

Because Carolina in my Mind was in a color range which is widely represented in my ink collection, I had WAY too many swatches to compare it to. Probably the most noticeable similarity is to the coveted Lake Michigan Winter from Papier Plume which was a Chicago Pen Show exclusive in 2019. If you missed getting a bottle of Lake Michigan Winter, than I would recommend jumping at the chance to pick up a bottle of Carolina in my Mind. The other ink that is very close is the Edelstein Aquamarine. The other inks shown above are either bluer, darker or lighter, or in the case of Colorverse Photon — greener but they show where Carolina in my Mind sits in the inky color spectrum.

Tools:

• Paper: Tomoe River Plain A5 Notebook (from Elia Note, see Jesi’s post about Tomoe River) with 7mm guide sheet ($1 for set of 2)
• Pens: Midori bullet pencil modified dip nib holder with Zebra G titanium nib ($33.50 per 10-pack), Acrylic dip nib pen (Approx. $15), James Finniss Serendipity Nib Holder with Franklin-Christoph Fine SIG Nib
• Swatches: Col-o-Ring Ink Testing Book ($10) & Col-o-dex Rotary Cards ($15)
• Ink:  Papier Plume Carolina in my Mind

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by Papier Plume for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

The post Ink Preview: Papier Plume Carolina in my Mind (Triangle Pen Show 2021 exclusive) appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

Papier Plume will be donating $4 per bottle sold to Special Olympics Louisiana and St. Michael Special School of New Orleans.

The timing for this ink couldn’t be more perfect — not just because St. Patrick’s Day is just a few days away. This weekend I read the first book in the Molly Murphy mystery series by Rhys Bowen which is set in New York during St. Patrick’s Day. Of course its set in the late-19th century/early-20th century and the main character has just arrived in New York from Ireland. So, I was clearly in the mood for an Irish green ink.

Irish Channel Green is a lovely shading ink. No sheen.

(From top to bottom, left row: Papier Plume Ivy 108, Colorverse Sea of Tranquility, Papier Plume Irish Channel Green, Birmingham Pen Co. Field Tourniquet. Right row: Pen BBS #342 Green Matcha Ice Cream, Tacci Uguisa and Sailor Jentle Waka-Uguisa.)

When compared to other green inks in my vast collection, the closest colors are Birmingham Pen Co. Field Tourniquet and Colorverse Sea of Tranquility. Field Tourniquet (old formula) is slightly more yellow and Sea of Tranquility is slightly brighter, grassier green. Sailor Waka-Uguisu is the same value but, again, more yellow.

This ink is limited edition so don’t delay! If you want those Irish Eyes to smile, you better order now.

Tools:

• Paper: Elia Note A5 Blank Notebook  (Currently out of stock) with 6mm guide sheet
• Pens: Kaweco SP dip nib holder with Zebra G titanium nib ($33.50 per 10-pack)
• Swatches: Col-o-Ring Ink Testing Book ($10) & Col-o-ring Dipper ($5)
• Ink:  Papier Plume Irish Channel Green ($12 for 30ml bottle)

The post Ink Overview: Papier Plume Irish Channel Green appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

The Bertoletti glass pens are hand-crafted in Italy, and come in a variety of colors of entwined glass. Mine is the Alexandrite color. The grip section is a nickel-metal alloy with an elegant design of flourishes. Despite the scroll work, it is comfortable to hold, and the glass itself is well-balanced. The glass pen comes standard with a metal nib or you can upgrade to a glass nib (+ $12) or get both (+ $14).

I spent the most time playing with the dip nib, which is very fine with a bit of flex. I used a bottle of Papier Plume Ivy Green that I already had to play with lettering and flourishes as well as my sad little attempt at sketching an ivy leaf.

Truthfully, I found the glass nib a bit harder to play with. The glass nib has swirling channels in it, designed to hold the ink so you can keep writing. I have an acrylic nib in a different dip pen that I use quite often and I love how long I can write with it, but I didn’t quite find my sweet spot with this one (It took me a while with the other one as well, so I can’t say that it’s a fault of the pen … probably user error!)

I was also a bit disappointed in how the nib + ink + paper worked together. I was writing in a Maruman Mnemosyne N182A Inspiration Notebook. Though I haven’t had problems with that paper in the past, you can see that the ink feathered quite a bit.

Regardless, I loved playing with this pen and I may need to own one for future exploration!

• Papers: Maruman Mnemosyne N182A Inspiration Notebook A5 ($8.75)
• Pen: Bertoletti Entwined Glass Murano Dipping Pens ($42)
• Inks:  Papier Plume Ivy Green (30mL for $8)

DISCLAIMER: Some of the items included in this review were provided to us free of charge for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

The post Bortoletti Entwined Glass Murano Glass Dipping Pen With Glass or Metal Nib appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

The ink comes in Papier Plume’s classic glass, 30ml bottles with wax topped caps. Lake Michigan Winter features an icy blue wax seal on the cap pressed with the signatue Papier Plume fleur de lis seal and Bad Bad Le Roy Brown has a deep chocolate brown wax seal with the same seal.

Lake Michigan Winter turns up the density on the deep sea teal tone of Lake Michigan Summer creating a deeper, denser color. As this was one of the most popular limited edition colors that Papier Plume has released, I can fully understand why they would do a remix of this color. It’s a stunning color and I expect there will be a rush of people wanting to grab a bottle of this.

When compared with the copious amounts of teals and blue-greens already in my collection, I was flabbergasted to discover that I had few things truly similar in color. Robert Oster Morning Mist was probably the closest. I have Robert Oster Peppermint but it was too green. Other colors like Kaweco Paradise Blue  went too vibrant or too turquoise.

Bad Bad LeRoy Brown is a deep, rich brown. In a wide application, its almost too dark but in a finer nib, it has a lovely milk chocolate quality. I find that when you find a good warm brown ink and a good cool brown ink, I don’t find that I continue to look for more. I then start looking for golden browns or more unusual hues. That said, LeRoy Brown is a good, solid deep brown.

When compared with other brown inks in my stash, You can see the range of values. Kaweco Caramel Brown is more reddish, Smoky Quartz has an orange undertone, Diamine Espresso is definitely a cool brown, Robert Oster Chocolate is clearly red-brown and the new Lamy Crystal Topaz has more red with a green sheen. LeRoy Brown is almost a neutral brown by comparison — at least, based on these initial swatches.

Both inks will sell for $10 per bottle and will be available starting Friday, May 3 at the Chicago Pen Show. There will be 180 bottles of each color at the bottles are $10 each.

The post Eye Candy: Papier Plume Bad Bad LeRoy Brown & Lake Michigan Winter (Chicago Pen Show 2019 LE Inks) appeared first on The Well-Appointed Desk.

I wasn’t able to attend this year’s LA Pen Show, but my favorite pen show attendee brought me back a bottle of the special show ink, Monteverde’s Coral.

It turns out that Monteverde’s version of Coral is a very orange ink, leaning slightly red.

When I compared it to other ink swatches I had in my “stash” it looked pretty close to Robert Oster’s Red Orange or Monteverde’s Mandarin Orange. I had the special Papier Plume Heart of Gold ink ready to swatch at the same time and it has a bit of a reddish orange look as well.

When I compared the Monteverde to what I traditionally think of coral (like J. Herbin’s Corail de Tropiques) they don’t look similar at all.

In my other ink tests, I really found Monteverde’s Coral to lean very orange. I got almost no red in the regular writing experience, though I did get some really dark shading especially in the ink dots.

Overall, Monteverde Coral seems like a great orange, but I’m not sure it satisfies my need for the one true coral ink!

• Papers: Maruman Mnemosyne N182A Inspiration Notebook A5 ($10.50), and Crossfield Journal ($24.00)
• Pen: Delike Glass Signature Pen ($37.80)
• Swatches: Col-o-Ring Ink Testing Book ($10) and Col-o-Dex Rotary Cards ($15)
• Inks: Monteverde Coral (LA Pen Show 2019)

DISCLAIMER: Some of the items included in this review were provided to us free of charge for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

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