Jump to content

What Ink For Calligraphy?

sangrisano

By sangrisano
in Calligraphy Discussions

 Share

Recommended Posts

sangrisano Extremely Rare

sangrisano

Posted
Posted

Hi All, can someone recommend what black ink is better suited for calligraphy?

 

I have just finished a small bottle of black ink that I purchased a long time ago together with nibs, nib holders, etc. It was quite dense and a very intense black, unfortunately the bottle didn't have any indications of the producer on the label. I tried the Herbin Encre Authentique, but it seems to be more 'grey' than black, and it's also more fluid than the other one.

 

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

Stefano

Arguing with a woman is like reading a Software License Agreement.

In the end, you ignore everything and click "I Agree".

 

flying-letter-exc.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • Replies 8
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • sangrisano

    2

  • Tasmith

    2

  • ac12

    1

  • BBU

    1

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

smk Collectors Item

smk

Posted
Posted

Stefano - fountain pen ink is usually much thinner than dip pen ink (like India Ink or other pigment based inks). Strangely I have found Noodler's Black to flow well in pointed nibs which is unusual for FP inks. It flows well in broad-edged nibs but comes out gray and shaded.

 

My favorite dip-pen only ink in black is Winsor & Newton Matt Black - it flows well, is easy to clean off the nibs and goes on a dense matte black. Higgins Eternal is another very well behaved black ink but it doesn't go down as opaque with broad edged nibs as one would want.

 

You can also try India ink too but I think they are better suited for drawing. The bottle you used up could have been India ink as it is quite thick. I'm not a fan of it for Calligraphy though as it tends to dry on the nibs requiring them to be cleaned often. This behavior is not universal and depends on a number of factors like general humidity and the age of the ink.

 

I hope this helps a little.

 

S.

Store :: Instagram :: Blog

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Randal6393 Antique

Randal6393

Posted
Posted

Hi, Stefano,

 

Welcome to FPN!

 

In addition to the above inks, I would recommend Aurora Black for fountain pens -- used by Ken Fraser and other professional calligraphers.

 

For dip pens, either broad-edged or pointed, either a good iron-gall (IG) ink such as McCaffrey's Penman or Old World Gall ink -- or an acrylic gouache or ink. Liquitex is my favorite for acrylic gouaches but many other brands make good paints. Thin well and practice a lot, may need to add some gum arabic to the mix. The classic ink of the ages is the IG and has a character that no other ink has. Ziller makes many good acrylic inks and (I think) at least one IG ink for the dip pen.

 

Enjoy,

Yours,
Randal

From a person's actions, we may infer attitudes, beliefs, --- and values. We do not know these characteristics outright. The human dichotomies of trust and distrust, honor and duplicity, love and hate --- all depend on internal states we cannot directly experience. Isn't this what adds zest to our life?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Tasmith Collectors Item

Tasmith

Posted
Posted (edited)

Hi, Stefano,

 

Welcome to FPN!

 

In addition to the above inks, I would recommend Aurora Black for fountain pens -- used by Ken Fraser and other professional calligraphers.

 

For dip pens, either broad-edged or pointed, either a good iron-gall (IG) ink such as McCaffrey's Penman or Old World Gall ink -- or an acrylic gouache or ink. Liquitex is my favorite for acrylic gouaches but many other brands make good paints. Thin well and practice a lot, may need to add some gum arabic to the mix. The classic ink of the ages is the IG and has a character that no other ink has. Ziller makes many good acrylic inks and (I think) at least one IG ink for the dip pen.

 

Enjoy,

Thank you Randal6393. I'm currently using Waterman Intense Black in a 1.5mm Rotring Artpen on Clairefontaine Seyes, and it's also more gray than black.

Edited by Tasmith

Website: www.tasphoto.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toddasmithphoto/

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ac12 Donor Pen

ac12

Posted
Posted

 

Thank you Randal6393. I'm currently using Waterman Intense Black in a 1.5mm Rotring Artpen on Clairefontaine Seyes, and it's also more gray than black.

 

I think the Waterman ink depends on the pen. Out of my cp1 it is BLACK. Maybe the Rotring is a dryer pen.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites
BBU Near Mint

BBU

Posted
Posted

Noodler's X-Feather? It's an extremely black black with no shading. SBRE Brown did a video review on it and he mostly chose the ink for calligraphy purposes, so his video may say something of value to you.

 

 

I have the ink and I like the blackness, but if you plan on doing anything that will involve laying down a lot of ink (ie. anything except writing with fine nibs, really), then prepare to leave lots of time for it to dry, and maybe don't use it on papers that will be folded. I drew a treble clef with X-Feather and when I folded the paper approximately 16 hours later, some ink transferred to the part of the paper where the drawing made contact. It was only 2 cm high and I didn't draw it particularly thick, either. It may work for you if the appearance of the calligraphy is what matters most.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
sangrisano Extremely Rare

sangrisano

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Thank you all for the kind replies. It looks like I have a few to choose from, I will see what's available here in Italy...

Arguing with a woman is like reading a Software License Agreement.

In the end, you ignore everything and click "I Agree".

 

flying-letter-exc.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites
RodgerM Dipped Only

RodgerM

Posted
Posted

If you are doing broad pen calligraphy (italics, uncial, etc.) then if you can, try a Pilot Parallel pen. They work great with fountain pen ink and the Pilot Parallel pens are not expensive. The Pilot Parallel pens are also available in different sizes. If you are doing pointed pen work (Spencerian or English Roundhand aka Copperplate etc.) and you want to use fountain pen inks, simply add Gum Arabic as a binder. Try 1 1/2 oz of fountain pen ink (Pelikan 4001 works great) and 1 large teaspoon of powdered Gum Arabic (sorry, I don't know what those proportions are in metric measurements). This ink can also be used with a broad nib. The choices above are also great to use.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Tasmith Collectors Item

Tasmith

Posted
Posted (edited)

 

 

I think the Waterman ink depends on the pen. Out of my cp1 it is BLACK. Maybe the Rotring is a dryer pen.

Changed to Noodler's X-Feather since I have it on hand. Now the pen writes black.

 

I just purchased Aurora black and will try the next.

Edited by Tasmith

Website: www.tasphoto.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toddasmithphoto/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Most Contributions

    1. amberleadavis
      amberleadavis
      43844
    2. PAKMAN
      PAKMAN
      33583
    3. Ghost Plane
      Ghost Plane
      28220
    4. inkstainedruth
      inkstainedruth
      26772
    5. jar
      jar
      26105

  • Upcoming Events

  • Blog Comments

    • Shanghai Knife Dude
      Links to web pages or articles about Chinese typesetting, signwriting, etc.

      By Shanghai Knife Dude · Posted

      I have the Sailor Naginata and some fancy blade nibs coming after 2022 by a number of new workshop from China.  With all my respect, IMHO, they are all (bleep) in doing chinese characters.  Go use a bush, or at least a bush pen. 
    • A Smug Dill
      Skeleton of a primer for a budding hobbyist

      By A Smug Dill · Posted

      It is the reason why I'm so keen on the idea of a personal library — of pens, nibs, inks, paper products, etc. — and spent so much money, as well as time and effort, to “build” it for myself (because I can't simply remember everything, especially as I'm getting older fast) and my wife, so that we can “know”; and, instead of just disposing of what displeased us, or even just not good enough to be “given the time of day” against competition from >500 other pens and >500 other inks for our at
    • adamselene
      Skeleton of a primer for a budding hobbyist

      By adamselene · Posted

      Agreed.  And I think it’s good to be aware of this early on and think about at the point of buying rather than rationalizing a purchase..
    • A Smug Dill
      Skeleton of a primer for a budding hobbyist

      By A Smug Dill · Posted

      Alas, one cannot know “good” without some idea of “bad” against which to contrast; and, as one of my former bosses (back when I was in my twenties) used to say, “on the scale of good to bad…”, it's a spectrum, not a dichotomy. Whereas subjectively acceptable (or tolerable) and unacceptable may well be a dichotomy to someone, and finding whether the threshold or cusp between them lies takes experiencing many degrees of less-than-ideal, especially if the decision is somehow influenced by factors o
    • adamselene
      Skeleton of a primer for a budding hobbyist

      By adamselene · Posted

      I got my first real fountain pen on my 60th birthday and many hundreds of pens later I’ve often thought of what I should’ve known in the beginning. I have many pens, the majority of which have some objectionable feature. If they are too delicate, or can’t be posted, or they are too precious to face losing , still they are users, but only in very limited environments..  I have a big disliking for pens that have the cap jump into the air and fly off. I object to Pens that dry out, or leave blobs o

  • Chatbox

    You don't have permission to chat.
    Load More

  • Files






×
×
  • Create New...