New Caran d' Ache inks on test.

[Larry T]

I went to see Pam at Oscar Braun's the other day and she showed me the new Caran d'Ache inks. The bottles are beautiful, I have paid much more for a nice ink bottle for my desk that doesn't look as good and didn't come with ink.

 

 

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a52/ircameraman/CarndAcheweb.jpg

 

The bottles are very heavy, but they only hold one ounce of ink. The ink is made in France(J. Herbin?), and performs very well in the pens I've used them in. I have a Parker Duofold that is one of my favorite writers, but it is very finicky about the ink it likes. I filled it with Storm, and I have been using it daily for about a week with no problems. All three colors flow well, with a medium saturation similar to Waterman inks.

 

http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a52/ircameraman/CarndAcheinktest.jpg

 

Blue Night is a nice blue-black, Blue Sky is similar to Waterman Florida Blue, but with a little purplish cast that didn't really show up in the scan. Storm is a little different than any other ink I own. It can look purple, burgundy, or brown depending on the lighting. I am really starting to like this color.

 

The Visconti Van Gogh Midi in green is just in the picture for scale, and because it happened to be handy when I was setting up the shot.

 

In summary, I really like these inks. The 12-14 dollar price seems steep, but the bottles are worth the expense, in my humble opinion.

 

Larry

[Betty]

AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME Larry!!!!! I was wondering where I could buy it and now there's Pam I was looking into Storm and Blue Sky. I think I willl have to buy both of them! I LOVE the blue sky a lot! It's so brillant. THanks so much Larry!

[tonyv]

Storm is a little different than any other ink I own. It can look purple, burgundy, or brown depending on the lighting. I am really starting to like this color.

It looks and (from your description) sounds similar to my favorite color in the world--Herbin's Poussiere de Lune. Love the pictures/labels on the bottles, too. Thanks for the reviews!

[Goodwhiskers]

Are these more saturated and/or lubricating than most of J. Herbin's standard line?

[Larry T]

Betty, I thought you would like the Blue Sky. Storm is a VERY interesting color too.

 

Tony, I agree, the pictures on the bottle are a nice touch. How about posting a sample of the J. Herbin Poussiere de Lune?

 

Steve, I don't own any J. Herbin inks, so I can't compare the two. I would say the saturation is very similar to the Waterman series of inks. The ink's lubricity is about the same as the Waterman blue- black I had in the Duofold before I filled it with Storm. I guess the best way to put it is that the ink didn't misbehave at all. I can't say that about all of my(many) inks.

 

I just picked up a bottle of ST Dupont blue. I'll try to put up a sample in the next couple of days.

 

Thanks for the kind words, I really enjoy doing the ink reviews.

 

Larry

Edited July 6, 2006 by Larry T

[Betty]

I they added half the price onto the bottle. I have an old bottle of Caran ink (the ones with the herbin bottl) and it was only 6.50. But I still say it's worth having the bottle he he he....packaging gets me everytime.

[Betty]

I got it! I got Storm and Blue Sky. For New Yorkers, the ink is available at the Joons at Grand Central and at Art Brown. Both places sell for $14 a bottle for 30mL. I am so sure more than half the price was due to the bottle. The old bottles were selling for 6.50 only.

 

The bottle is very heavy and it makes the ink look like there's very little, but I compared it to the Herbin bottles and the Herbin bottles are also 30mL. The bottle is quite nice though I can't wait to try it at home!

[Dudley]

Wah, the storm looks very beautiful indeed, and the bottles are just gems, hope they looks as good in real live as they are in pictures. You might even be able to stick a little LED in them and they'll make nice little lamps too.

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

I believe MB's scented inks are also J. Herbin. The ink looks pretty.

 

By the way, I never have bought the ink for the bottle, and since I drink up ink bottles every now and then, I have quite a bunch of empty ones. I use a fine, dry point, so don't ask me how it is done. :ph34r: Someday soon, I will put up a few empty bottles for sale. I have to fill my M300 every day, and don't ask me how that is done either,

 

Dillon

[Betty]

Here are my photos for my bottles of Storm and Blue Sky.

 

The "Storm" color looks a bit like cooked eggplant color...the purple is very subdued that you might think it is a brown at a very quick glance.

 

The "Blue Sky" color reminds me of Mont Blanc Blue. I didn't have any pens inked with that color that compare, but I did compare Waterman Florida Blue and Aurora Blue, although they're from different pens, so I'm not sure how accurate it is. The "Blue Sky" is lighter than Florida Blue and has a very slight purple tone to it, but not as much as Aurora Blue. The Aurora Blue was written on an EF pen; that's why it appears so light here.

 

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v456/bettybl/carannew1.jpg

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v456/bettybl/carannew2.jpg

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v456/bettybl/carannew3.jpg

Edited July 7, 2006 by Betty

[maia]

Lovely inkwells

Betty, what nib size do you have on that Frontier?

[Betty]

Lovely inkwells

Betty, what nib size do you have on that Frontier?

The Frontier has an "M" nib, which was used to write the "Storm" color sample.

 

"Blue Sky" was written with a Lamy Safari F

 

Waterman Florida Blue was written with a Pelikan cursive italic

 

Aurora Blue was written with a Parker 51 XF

[maia]

Thank you. Mine has a "M" nib as well, though it appears to run a little wider than yours They can't make a "M" nib like they used to.

[Dudley]

That Storm color sounds really yummy, i really must get it. Nice pictures!

[adyf]

Has anyone seen this ink available in the Uk? Would like to try it with my Lehman Godron Rhodium.

[emrecan]

Hi,

Storm does look nice,I'm glad I didn't bought blue sky!!!.It's a disappointment for me.For thoes who like orange colors,I suggest you to the Saffron.It's a beauty.Even in Lamy Safari.I wish I could show sample.

 

Take Care,

EC

[Michael R.]

Yes, the Storm is my favorite too!

 

 

Saffron is a really outstanding orange ink with good intensity but Sunset and Grand Canyon are nice as well.

 

Caribbean Sea is very unique; a true turquoise green swimming pool (or caribbean sea :-) ) color.

 

 

Michael

[L&R]

Saffron is a really outstanding orange ink with good intensity

How does it compare to Diamine Orange? Also, in your Web site you say that it looks similar to Standardgraph Orange; would you further elaborate on that?

 

Thanks in advance. Bye.

[Michael R.]

Don't have the Diamine Orange. CDA Saffron is a very true bright orange neither too red nor yellow plus it has no dark, "dirty" or brownish undertones.

 

I will review the Standardgraph inks as well on my site soon!

 

Cheers

 

Michael

[london]

Just to add a little information on availability to the review.

 

These aren't inks I had noticed before. I certainly hadn't looked at the posts here. However, out Christmas shopping last night, and I was suckered by the bottle - so bought myself some Blue Sky. Alas, they didn't have the Storm in stock. The Blue Sky does have slight purple tones which don't show up in the scans.

 

Anyway, B&M in London - I picked up mine in the Pen Shop franchise in Debenhams on Oxford Street. Afterward, I noticed they also sold it in Selfridges.

 

£7.95 - a bit steep, so not an everyday ink.

 

But reasonable value for the bottle I think. If I saw an empty glass ink bottle of this design at £7.95 in a shop, being sold as a desk accessory, I'd be tempted and not think about the price. I'll probably wash off the label and fill it with something when the ink has run out.

 

And, its certainly a bottle to show off on your desk. (most other inks I have at work are hidden). I will be heading back to Selfridges today to get some Storm

 

- Mark