Best Inks For Cream-Coloured Paper

[by_a_Lady]

Hello everybody!

 

 

I have recently ordered a Midori MD A5 Notebook, and seeing that it has cream/off-white paper (the reviews and pictures weren't quite conclusive on that one), I'd like to hear your opinions on which ink colours look best on it! I've written on cream paper before, and some colours seem to fade into the background, as though the yellow in the paper had layered over them.

 

I'd be happy if the inks fulfilled one or more of these criteria, but harmonising colour is really the most important one.

• archival, waterproof, or in any way resistant to human mishaps and the tooth of time
• sheen and/or shading, or simply one or more properties that make the ink interesting and add some sort of effect to a body of text

I'll be using the notebook as my personal journal and no one's going to read it during my lifetime, so you could argue that this question is a bit nitpicky. But I like looking at a pretty body of handwritten text, it gives me motivation to write - I probably don't need to explain that one to the readers of this forum, right?

 

 

Dominique

[Mech-for-i]

well your 2 requirements kind of contradict each other, let's examine .. you want an archival quality ink .. well that means its either Carbon, Iron Gall or Pigmented. Well pigmented ink can be very vivid but they also tend to be very opaque an solid in color, and they generally are not as lightfast as the other two. IG ink of course ultimately all turn black ( some with a hint of original color dye added left still ), and Carbon ink is black and matt alright ( its just fine carbon particles ).

 

Are there sheen and shading archival ink .. well yes I've seen some IG ink that shade quite well , but over time the shading will fade as the IG part take over , ditto some show sheen but again as time work its magic and the IG part start to age you can expect very little or none of the sheen left. Some pigment ink are said to be showing sheen but generally they are not much of that and shading is now more a result of the application of the ink ( how thick or how thin you have laid down the ink upon the writing

 

There are some nice colored IG ink and those would be my top choice for the job .. even when aged I like their somewhat faded and dusty color leftover even though it might be just so slight. And modern day IG ink are pretty pen and paper friendly. Carbon ink in turn if used properly and especially in Calligraphy application can be very expressive wit its shading as depicted by so many East Asian Calligrapy work using brush, but generally with fountain pen this is a wasted effort unless you routinely write with a specialist nib that can take advantage of the ink

[azbobcat]

Hello everybody!

 

 

I have recently ordered a Midori MD A5 Notebook, and seeing that it has cream/off-white paper (the reviews and pictures weren't quite conclusive on that one), I'd like to hear your opinions on which ink colours look best on it! I've written on cream paper before, and some colours seem to fade into the background, as though the yellow in the paper had layered over them.

 

I'd be happy if the inks fulfilled one or more of these criteria, but harmonising colour is really the most important one.

• archival, waterproof, or in any way resistant to human mishaps and the tooth of time
• sheen and/or shading, or simply one or more properties that make the ink interesting and add some sort of effect to a body of text

I'll be using the notebook as my personal journal and no one's going to read it during my lifetime, so you could argue that this question is a bit nitpicky. But I like looking at a pretty body of handwritten text, it gives me motivation to write - I probably don't need to explain that one to the readers of this forum, right?

 

 

Dominique

 

Just because I feel a bit devilish Dominique, why not write everything in Noodler's Blue Ghost :lticaptd:That why anyone who actually gets their hands on your journal when they open it all they are going to find is... blank pages!!!

[mehandiratta]

KWZ IG turquoise... will shade for sure ...Though no Sheen, yes it can weather the time ...

another ink I will like to recommend on the cream colored paper would be Platinum Classic Lavender Black.... it also has IG properties....

[by_a_Lady]

well your 2 requirements kind of contradict each other, let's examine .. you want an archival quality ink .. well that means its either Carbon, Iron Gall or Pigmented. Well pigmented ink can be very vivid but they also tend to be very opaque an solid in color, and they generally are not as lightfast as the other two. IG ink of course ultimately all turn black ( some with a hint of original color dye added left still ), and Carbon ink is black and matt alright ( its just fine carbon particles ).

 

Are there sheen and shading archival ink .. well yes I've seen some IG ink that shade quite well , but over time the shading will fade as the IG part take over , ditto some show sheen but again as time work its magic and the IG part start to age you can expect very little or none of the sheen left. Some pigment ink are said to be showing sheen but generally they are not much of that and shading is now more a result of the application of the ink ( how thick or how thin you have laid down the ink upon the writing

 

There are some nice colored IG ink and those would be my top choice for the job .. even when aged I like their somewhat faded and dusty color leftover even though it might be just so slight. And modern day IG ink are pretty pen and paper friendly. Carbon ink in turn if used properly and especially in Calligraphy application can be very expressive wit its shading as depicted by so many East Asian Calligrapy work using brush, but generally with fountain pen this is a wasted effort unless you routinely write with a specialist nib that can take advantage of the ink

 

As I said, it would be nice if the ink had those properties, but they're not a dealbreaker for me. My general experience with inks is that anything darker than royal blue (the standard, erasable kind that everybody and their mama uses in school) is resistant enough to last a decade or two in a closed notebook stored in a dark place somewhere. But, being a human being (and not exactly the most careful one, neither), I do happen, from time to time, to have moist hands, or spill my drink while writing, or something could happen and the dark storage place could suddenly turn into a wet storage place, for instance - those are the scenarios I'd like to be prepared for, if possible. But it's not the first thing I think about when I look at a page of writing. Writing should be fun, and an interesting colour makes it fun for me.

 

 

Dominique

[LizEF]

Not sure about specific inks, but I find greens (esp darker/muted greens), browns, and blue-blacks look good. For example, I have the following inks in a "cream" Hippo Noto (which is Tomoe River paper).:

• Kobe #15 Maiko Green looks especially good.
• As does Organics Studio Walt Whitman Leaves of Green (if you happen to have it - appears not to be an option anymore)
• Akkerman Oranje Boven doesn't look one way or the other - it just looks like bright orange.
• Sailor Sei-boku looks nice
• Robert Oster Caffe Crema and Aussie Brown both look great
• J. Herbin Lie de Thé looks pretty good, but not as good as the RO browns
• Pilot Blue-Black looks great
• Colorverse Extra Dimensions looks good, but its bright companion, Warped Passages, doesn't look as good
• Waterman Mysterious Blue is just so-so

From this, I conclude that the cream paper sort of dulls bright inks, but is nice with more muted inks. It's also better with the green-blue end of the spectrum than the orange-red end.

 

Is your Midori MD soft-cover? Because I think I have one of those at home, and the color is quite different from the Tomoe River. When I get home, I could compare and try to figure out what inks I've used in it and let you know my thoughts.

[Karmachanic]

My subjective ink preference for cream/offwhite paper:

 

Diamine Ancient Copper

Kyoto Kyo-iro Moonlight of Higashiyama

Maurezen Nihonbashi Renga

Monteverde Copper Noir

Robert Oster Astroquiza

 

Because analogous colour harmony

[ENewton]

I don't seek out inks with superior resistance to time or the elements and can therefore comment only on color.

 

I especially like J Herbin Poussiere de Lune in my Midori A5 notebook.

 

Kyo-Iro Soft Snow of Ohara is also lovely.

[JakobS]

I am basing this off of the cream colored Tomoe River paper found in the Seven Seas Writer 4th Edition:

 

KWZ: Honey, IGL Aztec Gold, IG Turquoise, IG Green Gold and Baltic Memories all present with nice shading, and the IG inks provide a water resistance-proofness.

 

Diamine: Umber, Beethoven, Ochre, Oxford Blue all present with wonderful shading and interesting pop off the page.

 

Even a standard blue black looks a bit more interesting on cream paper, I have used vintage Sheaffer's Permanent Blue Black, and either Diamine Chopin, or Abraxas Night Blue, which I should really figure out because it's quite a dramatic color on this paper!

 

I am surprised I haven't used brighter colors on this paper yet, I should give it a go soon. I do agree that something like Poussiere de Lune, KWZ Brown pink, Diamine Tyrian Purple, or R&K Scabiosa would look awfully nice.

[migo984]

I have a penchant for bright & varied ink colours, however I use Montblanc Toffee Brown on my Midori MD paper, as I like the subtle sophistication of brown on cream. I also like using Herbin Pearle Noir; black on cream is so refined & vintage-looking.

[lapis]

On a "yellowish" paper something/anything "purplish" for sure. E.g. De Atramentis' Aubergine. You'll love it. I promise!

[Mech-for-i]

Well I do concur with the others that Brown generally work really good with cream colored paper, and in fact so do ink in the similar but more vivid hue, say Orange. My favorite would be the ( slightly grey ) H. Herbin Cacao Du Bresil and Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-Gaki. And yeah indeed even the basic traditional IG Blue Black look nicer on cream paper. I've also find dark teal like the Lamy Petrol looking very very nice too and in fact any green that's not on the bright side. Diamine Black Green or J. Herbin Vert Empire come to mind.

Edited October 9, 2018 by Mech-for-i

[Noihvo]

[Octo]

Search the various ink forums for Luster/Lustre Dust. Then find the bulletproof or resistant ink you prefer. Mix until you have a sheeny ink in the colors you like. Lots of fun.

[dan in montreal]

I've recently gone crazy for Rohrer and Klingner Alt-Goldgrun. I've been using it for everything (lists, journaling, grading papers). It's great on cream-coloured paper. It shades beautifully and the colour is very distinctive.

 

In a fine-nibbed pen, I like to use Diamine Oxblood and Diamine Chocolate Brown. Among others...

 

As others have stated, brownish reds / browns / greens usually do it for me with cream or almost yellow papers.

 

Reading all the answers, I'm reminded how much the scene has changed over the last 10 years or so. Used to be if you weren't using inks made by the big pen manufacturers (the exception being Herbin), the only other game in town was Noodler's and maybe Private Reserve. There are so many inks to choose from. It really is quite amazing.

OK, back to the topic at hand...

[A Smug Dill]

I'd be happy if the inks fulfilled one or more of these criteria, but harmonising colour is really the most important one.

• archival, waterproof, or in any way resistant to human mishaps and the tooth of time
• sheen and/or shading, or simply one or more properties that make the ink interesting and add some sort of effect to a body of text

 

Inks (always willing to trade samples!):

Diamine: Amaranth, Ancient Copper, Asa Blue, Bilberry, Classic Green, Earl Grey, Eau de Nil, Golden Brown, Macassar, Majestic Blue, Oxblood, Sargasso Sea, Syrah / Lamy: Black / Noodler's: Heart of Darkness / Rohrer & Klingner: Alt-Goldgrün / Sailor: Jentle Yama-Dori, Nano Sei-Boku

How many of these inks have you actually tried writing on your notebook yourself, so you can get a first-hand experience, and subjectively evaluate whether the outcome is pleasing to you? I mean, you have the notebook you're going to use, you have the pen(s) you're going to use, and you have the inks. All you need do is dedicate a few blank pages at the back of the notebook for testing.

 

Just about any dark colour is going to overcome the issue of the off-white colour of the paper beneath the ink changing the colour of the reflected light. Whether vivid colours or muted colours look better on off-white paper is a matter of personal taste. I'd personally be happy to use any dark purple / indigo / blue / teal / green / brown / burgundy / maroon, as well as rich vivid orange or vermillion, on cream-coloured paper.

 

I'd have thought that, for journalling, it is more important to check whether the ink will feather, show through or bleed through the type of paper you're going to use.

[by_a_Lady]

 

Inks (always willing to trade samples!):

Diamine: Amaranth, Ancient Copper, Asa Blue, Bilberry, Classic Green, Earl Grey, Eau de Nil, Golden Brown, Macassar, Majestic Blue, Oxblood, Sargasso Sea, Syrah / Lamy: Black / Noodler's: Heart of Darkness / Rohrer & Klingner: Alt-Goldgrün / Sailor: Jentle Yama-Dori, Nano Sei-Boku

How many of these inks have you actually tried writing on your notebook yourself, so you can get a first-hand experience, and subjectively evaluate whether the outcome is pleasing to you? I mean, you have the notebook you're going to use, you have the pen(s) you're going to use, and you have the inks. All you need do is dedicate a few blank pages at the back of the notebook for testing.

 

Just about any dark colour is going to overcome the issue of the off-white colour of the paper beneath the ink changing the colour of the reflected light. Whether vivid colours or muted colours look better on off-white paper is a matter of personal taste. I'd personally be happy to use any dark purple / indigo / blue / teal / green / brown / burgundy / maroon, as well as rich vivid orange or vermillion, on cream-coloured paper.

 

I'd have thought that, for journalling, it is more important to check whether the ink will feather, show through or bleed through the type of paper you're going to use.

 

I haven't received my order yet, so I can't test the notebook. I expect by default that the paper quality should be up there with Rhodia, Clairefontaine, Tomoe River, Oxford, etc. (no bad behaviour, brings out the best in the ink), and the reviews seem to agree that Midori MD indeed is very well-suited for fountain pen ink.

 

Thank you guys for all the kind recommendations! I have pulled some colours from my stash to try them out as soon as the notebook gets here; I'll do a little writing test and report back with a review!

 

 

Dominique

[Lloyd]

Noodler's Kiowa Pecan

[MG66]

DeAtramentis Blackcurrant.

[eharriett]

I might just be weird, but even when the colors are the same color as the ink, I sometimes use it. For example, right now, I've written a letter on J. Lalo powder blue paper. I wrote the letter in vintage Skrip peacock blue. Somewhat the same color. Why? Why not. Something interesting. And still came out clear. Sometimes a clash makes the words rather noticeable and grabs people's attention. I wish I had some purple stationary paper of high quality. I have a very nice collection of that ink too.