25 Blues (Updated)

[dneal]

So I had one of those "which ink shall I use today" moments, and scribbled out some samples with a dip pen in order to do a quick comparison.

 

Although they're very saturated because of the dip pen, I went ahead and scanned/photo'ed the samples in case someone else might find it useful

 

I laid the left sample, then the right; and then blotted the left sample. What's interesting is that some of the inks (Sargasso Sea, for example) are so saturated that there is little change between the blotted and unbolted sample. Also, where Visconti Blue and Asa Gao are similar, the blotted samples are drastically different (with Visconti being more saturated).

 

Photo:

 

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa163/roomdog/Ink/25BluesPhoto001_zpsc32cb083-1.jpg

 

Scan:

 

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa163/roomdog/Ink/25BluesScan001_zps26abc7ec.jpg

 

 

 

-----EDIT-----

 

This started out as 14 blues, but I went ahead and did the rest of them for my reference. Also, where I originally just drew a line and then a "scribble"; this time I used two "scribbles" and blotted the left one.

 

Edited September 5, 2014 by dneal

[chiaroscuro]

This is very helpful. I've been meaning to get a new blue. Thanks

[visvamitra]

That's really useful. Although I'm not really interested in blue inks, I must say some of these looks nice. I like Idyllic Blue and Asa Gao, but they all look decent herre.

[A144]

I'm not a huge fan of true blues, which many of these are. However, I do like Asa-gao and it looks almost identical to Visconti Blue.

 

Thanks for sharing the comparison!

[dneal]

I'm not a huge fan of true blues, which many of these are. However, I do like Asa-gao and it looks almost identical to Visconti Blue.

 

Thanks for sharing the comparison!

You're welcome. I also find Visconti blue to be very close to Asa Gao.

 

I did notice that there is a slight lack of red tint in the pictures that I see in person, South Sea Blue and Éclat des Saphir being two particular instances.

[Diderot]

Thank you, that is very useful.

 

Visconti Blue and Asa Gao do look very similar - haven't tried either.

I did have a bottle of Visconti blue, but when I 1st opened it, it had formed a sludge, so I just threw it out.

Currently waiting for a bottle of Asa G.

 

[arcadeflow]

Great! I have been wanting a bottle of Shin-kai (it was Tsuki-yo for a while) and this confirms I prefer that tone of blue. Also Caran d'Ache Magnetic Blue is gorgeous, but I refuse to pay the price. De Atramentis Indigo and Atlantic Blue are also contenders. I ordered 6 Diamine inks from npiab.se which includes 4 blues, to have some fun before I order Shin-kai. I got Twilight, Midnight, Mediterranean Blue and Asa Blue. I used the all Diamine's compared thread to decide between that many blues. My favorite pick is Twilight.