Diamine 150Th Anniversary- Safari

[chingdamosaic]

Last year, I was zealously searching for a perfect olive/musk/dark/umber/you-name-it green ink. I gathered almost 20 samples, and in the end decided that Safari, one of Diamine's 150th anniversary line, is that one ink.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Paperholic paper, with G dip pen. Green inks tend to go a bit "off" on this paper.

 

Is it sheen, or is it not? The texture kinda reminds me of 2H pencil. I'd call this a mauve ink.

Same paper, with different fountain pens.

The pens I used here. By now they all sunk to the bottom of the Meuse, I guess... (weep)

On copy paper, with G dip pen.

On copy paper, with the fountain pens metioned above.

On Tomoe-kawa paper (creamy). All the smudges were caused by my clumsy fingers.

Comparison with 14 other similar inks.

You can see that Safari looks browner on one paper and greener on the other.

In some circumstances it is very similar to Montblanc Daniel Defoe or Diamine Salamander.

On cheaper notebooks, it looks darker, almost black. No bleed-through or feathering.

Some doodle on Tomoe-kawa paper.

I only used a fountain pen, but the excellent flow and shading made it seem as if it was done with watercolor and paintbrush.

Added water with a Chinese calligraphy pen.

 

Close-up: How the color dissolved in to yellow and blue gray.

Chromatography on tissue paper.

Comparison

 

It turned more umber-ish when dried.

How it looks in the pen.

 

Only the parts where I heavily applied water bled through a bit.

 

 

【Thoughts in general】

Color：A color with complexity (which I like). Varies from burnt sienna to dark green depending on different pen/paper combination. Dark enough for daily use, yet still an interesting and enjoyable color.

Performance：Good. No bleed through or feathering.

Water resistance：A little. Water washes away the color but leaves the strokes gray and still legible.

Flow: Average~nice. Lubrication slightly less than Sailor inks, but still pleasant.

Price：Cheap~Average.

Accessibility：Average (Special but not limited edition)

Other: Lovely bottle and package design.

For the color itself I like Sailor Rikyu-cha and Montblanc Daniel Defoe the most, but they are just waaaaay to hard to acquire (limited edition & so pricy). R&K Alt-goldgreen and Sailor Tokiwa-matsu are also great inks with excellence performance, but the color is a bit "too simple" for my taste.

Therefore, in the end I declared Safari the winner and got one full bottle

P.S. Other inks that were also on my list:

1. Diamine Wegner (didn't get a sample)

2. Sailor Waka-uguisu (didn't get a sample)

3. Papier Plume Moss green (got one bottle after I did this review)

4. J. Herbin Olive green (crossed it out because I've had enough of this brand)

5. Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin (too light)

6. Pilot Iroshizuku Ina-ho (not green enough)

7. Kyonooto Kokeiro (didn't get a sample)

Mandarin version of this review:

http://chingdamosaic.blogspot.nl/2016/07/diamine-150safari.html

[Old_Inkyhand]

Great review! I like this colour. It is not as close to MB Defoe as I would like it to be, but I consider it a fairly good replacement. I am so sorry to hear about your pens!

I must admit I love your profile picture. I knew a similar cat, but she would never allow anybody to stack anything on her.

[namrehsnoom]

Kudos for the review and the fabulous drawing - it really shows what the ink is capable of. Safari is one of the great inks of the anniversary set, together with Terracotta. Hope to see more of your reviews soon.

[Cyber6]

FANTASTIC REVIEW of a FANTASTIC INK!!!.... I Love my Safari so much... is my type of green.

 

I completely ADORE your comparison sheet... ... Your doodle.... well, let me say I need a high qulity pic so I can print it an hang it on my walls...

 

 

Thank you SO MUCH for the amazing review...

 

 

C.

[the_gasman]

Absolutely wonderful review of one of my very favourite greens: for a bright emeraldy green I like Pelikan Edelstein Aventurine but for an olivey green, Safari is fabulous.

 

David.

[alexander_k]

Many thanks for the inspiring review.

[white_lotus]

Thanks for the great review.

 

Be aware that Sailor's Rikyu-cha is readily available now as part of the "expansion" or "re-issue" within their Four Seasons line. Of course whether this remains the case is for seers to know.

[MsRedpen]

Great review!!! Thank you...

 

Fantastic drawing with amazing ink.

 

I was surprised how wet it looks in Platinum EF!

[inkstainedruth]

Not a color for me. But thanks for the very comprehensive review.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[gylyf]

Wonderful review!

[chingdamosaic]

Great review! I like this colour. It is not as close to MB Defoe as I would like it to be, but I consider it a fairly good replacement. I am so sorry to hear about your pens!

I must admit I love your profile picture. I knew a similar cat, but she would never allow anybody to stack anything on her.

Yes, I like that Defoe has more vibrant and brighter hue than Safari. But considering that it is 3-times the price of Safari and all the trouble required to hunt down one bottle..... well Safari is fine. And thank you for your kind words! I wish my pens and notebooks all rest in peace.

 

As for the cat, the fact is that those pens only stayed on his back for no more than 10 seconds. I just managed to take a shot right before he ran away lol.

 

 

 

Kudos for the review and the fabulous drawing - it really shows what the ink is capable of. Safari is one of the great inks of the anniversary set, together with Terracotta. Hope to see more of your reviews soon.

Thank you so much! I really love your ink reviews and those ink shoot-outs!

Terracotta is also my favorite of the set! In fact the whole 150th series are great, I like almost half of the colors (which is quite rare).

 

 

FANTASTIC REVIEW of a FANTASTIC INK!!!.... I Love my Safari so much... is my type of green.

 

I completely ADORE your comparison sheet... ... Your doodle.... well, let me say I need a high qulity pic so I can print it an hang it on my walls...

 

 

Thank you SO MUCH for the amazing review...

 

 

C.

Hahaha your comment made me blush!

All the pics were taken with my phone so it's the best quality I could get.

Now all the ink, pens, notebooks including the drawings are gone.

This review is for my own memory only

 

 

Absolutely wonderful review of one of my very favourite greens: for a bright emeraldy green I like Pelikan Edelstein Aventurine but for an olivey green, Safari is fabulous.

 

David.

Thanks! Glad to hear that others also adore this ink!

 

 

Thanks for the great review.

 

Be aware that Sailor's Rikyu-cha is readily available now as part of the "expansion" or "re-issue" within their Four Seasons line. Of course whether this remains the case is for seers to know.

Yes thank you for reminding me of this news! Now it's super easy to buy Rikyu-Cha in the B&M store in Taiwan.

What's odd is that once I learnt that it's available again, I don't crave it as I once was anymore...... Maybe I was crazy for it simply because I couldn't get one? I decide to wait for another few months to see if I really want to get it.

 

 

Great review!!! Thank you...

 

Fantastic drawing with amazing ink.

 

I was surprised how wet it looks in Platinum EF!

Wait, maybe my demonstration wasn't accurate.

What it really looks like with Platinum EF is this one:

In other pics it looks wet because it was freshly inked. Sorry for the confusion!

 

 

-----

 

Thank you all for your kind words! I'm glad you enjoyed this review, and hope it's helpful for you!

[Tas]

You simply MUST review every single ink in the world, ever !

[DrDebG]

Very nice review! This isn't a color I would likely use.

[Barkingpig]

Thank you for one of the most enjoyable reviews I have ever read here! I loved this ink when I first made it's acquaintance here; I immediately ordered it, along with Terracotta. It has always been a favorite ink & like all Diamine inks I have used, quite without issue. I loved your comparison swabs because so many of them are my favored inks; I am proud of you for choosing wisely, I have bought MANY of them.

 

Please share other "thoughts"/reviews if you find yourself enjoying another new ink.

[mallymal1]

Great review. Thank you.

[ca49reber]

OK, What happened to the pens & notebooks? Thank you for the great review. I purchased the whole set & a handmade stand for them. My favorite pie.

[chingdamosaic]

You simply MUST review every single ink in the world, ever !

 

 

 

 

Thanks! Btw, your profile pic always makes me smile

 

 

Very nice review! This isn't a color I would likely use.

Let me guess, too murky/dirty?

 

 

Thank you for one of the most enjoyable reviews I have ever read here! I loved this ink when I first made it's acquaintance here; I immediately ordered it, along with Terracotta. It has always been a favorite ink & like all Diamine inks I have used, quite without issue. I loved your comparison swabs because so many of them are my favored inks; I am proud of you for choosing wisely, I have bought MANY of them.

 

Please share other "thoughts"/reviews if you find yourself enjoying another new ink.

Thank you for your kind comment! I won't be able to acquire any new ink recently, but here are some other reviews I've done earlier; hope you'd enjoy them as well

1. Sailor Jentle Ink- Nioi Sumire(匂堇)

2. Pilot Iroshizuku- Kon Peki(紺碧)

3. Rohrer & Klingner 2014 Taiwan Limited Ed. "青花瓷"

4. Rohrer & Klingner- Scabiosa (Iron-Gall Ink)

5. Private Reserve - Ebony Blue

6. Private Reserve- Velvet Black

7. J. Herbin- Diabolo Menthe

8. J. Herbin- 1670 Stormy Grey

9. J. Herbin- 1670 Emerald Of Chivor

 

OK, What happened to the pens & notebooks? Thank you for the great review. I purchased the whole set & a handmade stand for them. My favorite pie.

Well in short, I traveled with them in my luggage, and the whole suitcase was stolen

 

I'd love to see how this tempting pie looks on a handmade stand! Would you share with us?

Edited March 29, 2017 by chingdamosaic

[Barkingpig]

Thank you so much for the links of your previous reviews; I have some Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa awaiting shipment from La Couronne du Comte, which was a purely impulse addition to an existing order. After reading your review I am almost as excited to receive it as I was to order the bulk of the original order! I apologise for not being aware of your previous reviews, but thoroughly enjoyed your making them available to me.

 

Your photography, illustrations & general thorough review bring a new level of enjoyment to the ink. Thank you for your efforts & time spent on these works.

[amberleadavis]

You simply MUST review every single ink in the world, ever !

 

 

 

 

 

Between the pictures and the cards - WOW

[Newjelan]

Fabulous review, stunning drawings and great ink!