What Type/color Of Ink Do You Use For Mail?

[Manalto]

Please let me know if you find one you like. Noodler's Walnut is so dark and neutral it could easily be mistaken for black, if not viewed in direct sunlight. I think of brown as evoking earthiness and warmth; for that reason I urge you to pursue the "reddish with a lot of shading" route. That color (it's clear in my mind, dammit) with ample shading on ivory-colored stationery would be gawjus.

Edited February 25, 2015 by Manalto

[HollyGolightly]

You have opened, as the expression goes, a can of worms. Many, many typewriters. I favor the standard office typewriters for their features and stability, but I'm as fickle as they come. One day, the Olympia SG-1 (a behemoth!), the next, a gossamer Olivetti Lettera 22. I have an early (1954) Underwood electric in pristine condition that I love to use, even though it sounds like a running chainsaw in the room. On the other end of the (vintage) spectrum, there's a 1924 Remington whose gloss and general beauty would make you swoon. Who in his/her right mind wouldn't enjoy typing a letter to a friend on that? My go-to is the Royal KGM, boring to some, but with tombstone-shaped keys that have yet to be equaled in ergonomic perfection. I feel like Edward R. Murrow pounding away with my missive. The combination of fountain pen and typewriter in the 21st century is an art form whose surface has received only the slightest of scratches.

 

I have a pink Royal portable from the 50's. It was a gift so I was never given the specific model though I believe it's a Quiet Deluxe. Quiet would be subjective, however as it always causes a stir when I set it out and begin to write on it. Since I became pen obsessed I've been neglecting it a bit.

 

 

Also back on topic- at the mention of a reddish brown, I immediately thought of J. Herbin - Terre de Feu.

[Manalto]

Quiet Deluxe is almost certainly it. They made portables in adventurous colors. FYI, pink machines are rapidly gaining in value.

 

Thank you! Terre de Feu (earth on fire?) Sounds perfect.

Edited February 25, 2015 by Manalto

[Lorna Reed]

I use deAtramentis Document Black for addressing envelopes.

[SaintLoup]

 

I have a pink Royal portable from the 50's. It was a gift so I was never given the specific model though I believe it's a Quiet Deluxe. Quiet would be subjective, however as it always causes a stir when I set it out and begin to write on it. Since I became pen obsessed I've been neglecting it a bit.

 

 

Also back on topic- at the mention of a reddish brown, I immediately thought of J. Herbin - Terre de Feu.

 

I, too, will have to give this ink a try. Thank you! I was looking at Sailor's red-brown, which is well reviewed around here. How would you say the J. Hebrin's shading properties are?

 

I love the shape of Royal typewriters. An old professor of mine kept a pearl white Safari on the desk in his office. It was a constant distraction for me whenever I visited.

[Manalto]

Perusing some of the old brown-ink reviews here, I find myself drawn to the more golden shades: J. Herbin Lie de The, Noodler's Kiowa Pecan, Diamine Sepia, Swisher's Cocoa. But the clear winner was Noodler's Golden Brown. Here's the review that sold me:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/11365-mini-review-of-noodlers-golden-brown/

 

The shading is luscious, and the color straight out of a Merchant-Ivory production. The recipient of this letter is certain to clasp it to her breast and faint. No tears, though - not waterproof.

Edited February 25, 2015 by Manalto

[inkspot]

I use all my inks for letters and addressing envelopes - tailored to the particular correspondent. I do rub a layer of paraffin wax over the address on letters that are headed for the mail. It does a fabulous job of staving off water and keeping the address clear and smudge-free.

[bone215]

I just tried Pilot Namiki Sepia ink cartridges. It isn't sepia in my world, it is very much reddish brown.

Let me know if you would like to try a sample. I can't stand it.

My tastes in brown are satisfied with Diamine Macassar (in an M nib it is rich and dark) and Pilot Iro Yama guri, which is not quite as dark but nice. Both of those are probably too dark to look 'old fashioned'.

 

Good luck in your search.

 

 

Regards,

[1962falcon]

Like many I use a IG ink for addressing envelopes but I sometimes forget; this usually happens after the postage stamp has been fixed! When this happens my current modis operandi is to cover the address with clear tape to protect the address from the elements, a fiddly solution if you want the tape edges to be symetrical ......

 

Rubbing parrafin wax sounds like a much more elegant and less fiddly solution for those senior momnents ....

 

Falcon

[1962falcon]

Opps duplicate!

Edited February 26, 2015 by 1962falcon

[Manalto]

I just tried Pilot Namiki Sepia ink cartridges. It isn't sepia in my world, it is very much reddish brown.

Let me know if you would like to try a sample. I can't stand it.

My tastes in brown are satisfied with Diamine Macassar (in an M nib it is rich and dark) and Pilot Iro Yama guri, which is not quite as dark but nice. Both of those are probably too dark to look 'old fashioned'.

 

Good luck in your search.

 

 

Regards,

 

The goal is not to look old fashioned, it's to distinguish the color from black for those who don't pay as close attention to inks as you and I do. Macassar is indeed a gorgeous rich color. But use it to write a letter (God forbid, using a fine-point pen) which the recipient picks up from the mailbox after a long day of work and brings into a dimly-lit house (it's winter here) and the subtlety may be lost. Not the end of the world, of course since the fascinating content of your letter holds up regardless of medium, but a loss nonetheless.

 

I used to occasionally stabilize photographs with sepia toning and wondered (or forgot) what the general technical description of the color is. Wikipedia has a good explanation, including da Vinci! My fuzzy recollection is that it tends to be closer to purple than milk chocolate.

 

I've got a big bottle of Noodler's Golden Brown on its way as we speak. There's no point in being subtle with the Neanderthals I correspond with. Heck, we've just recently graduated from chiseling words on stone slabs.

Edited February 26, 2015 by Manalto

[Manalto]

The Noodler's Golden Brown arrived yesterday. Here it is in a Rosetta Magellan with a Pendleton nib:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[soum]

I use ESSRI for addressing envelopes, or a Staedtler pigment liner. Inside the envelope, there could be anything from blues, violets, greens, browns, and reds.

[dspeers58]

Pilot Blue or Blue-Black, which tends to be just as water resistant as ball-point ink if not more so.

[Inkydinkydog]

For addressing the envelope something water resistant, such as Noodler's Black, #41 Brown or perhaps--only on a bright white envelope--Lexington Gray.

[Blue_Moon]

I use primarily blue, blue-black, burgundy, an occasional purple, etc. I use black for nothing.

 

Several years back, I mailed something that I needed to retrieve prior to delivery. I went to the post office, filled out the forms, and requested it back. A short time later it returned to me, having never been delivered. I was told that the one thing that had made it easy to identify was that I had used green ink.