Search the Community

Jacques Herbin 1798 Diamant Bleu Ink Review # 213 --- 🧾 Description This is gorgeous, well-lubricated, wet navy ink with silver shimmer. Dry times are quite short on Rhodia. It’s excellent on copy paper with most nibs, but there’ll be some bleed-through with wet pens. The 1798 series celebrates the date Herbin started making inks. The shading is most striking on all the Japanese papers shown below. --- 🧪 Chroma --- ✍️ Writing Samples (scan) Rhodia / Iroful The quotes are: “The blue of the sky is wider than our dreams.” — Victor Hugo “Beauty is a promise of happiness.” — Stendhal “Blue has no dimensions.” — Yves Klein “The real voyage is to see with new eyes.” — Marcel Proust “The heart has its reasons which reason does not know.” — Blaise Pascal Midori /Tomoe River 68gsm Hammermill 20lb 📸 Photo (artificial light) Rhodia/ Iroful Midori / Tomoe River 68 gsm Hammermill 20 lb copy paper Close-up 🔍 Comparison Col-o-Ring paper. Scans are approximate. --- 💧 Water Test --- 🎨 Artwork The curse of the blue diamond Mouse's ancestors lived in the Louvre Palace when it was just a castle. Over the centuries, they amassed many shiny objects during the intrigues, duels, and the Liaisons dangereuses. On one of his explorations, Mouse came upon a unique diamond, the Diamant Bleu. Some say it was a gift brought by Louis IX during the Crusades, that it was cursed, as attested by Nostradamus, Catherine de Medici’s secret soothsayer: when the brilliant blue leaves the darkness, red will follow after. Was it the end of the Valois dynasty under her regency or was it the red of St. Bartholomew’s massacre? Some point to the recent heist of the Crown Jewels of France from the Louvre. Mouse thought that by bringing it to the cat jeweler, he might change the course of history; after all blue is the colour of calm. Jacques Herbin 1798 - Diamant Bleu, 1670 - Opal Nocturne, Tintenlabor Basalt Irongall ink, Talens Mixed Media Notebook. INKTOBER52 PROMPT NO.46 - Sneaker It has been said that when the Portuguese court absconded to Brazil during the Napoleonic Wars, there was no one to care for the many orphans. So when an orphaned Kitty (assuming a Scottish sailor as a father) cried itself out at the shores of Belém Tower in Lisbon and lamented its fate, one of the monks sneaked out a Pastéis de Nata, reserved only for monks and kings. The sweetness of the pastry forged a friendship and changed their fate (fado). Inspired by @catbert's João V! drawings. 🙏 Jacques Herbin 1798 - Bleu Diamant Shimmer ink, J Herbin Bouton d'or, Tintenlabor Basalt iron gall ink. Talens Mixed media notebook. --- - Pens Used: Pilot Kakuno EF, Kaweco Sprt (EF/F/M/B/BB/Stub 1.9) , Noodler’s Nibcreaper fited with a Waterman M2 flex nib. - What I Liked: Wetness, lubrication, colour on most papers, price. - What I Did Not Like: Shimmer, colour on other papers. - What Some Might Not Like: Price, shimmer. - Writing Experience: Excellent. - Pros: Wetness, lubrication, colour. - Cons: Not waterproof, shimmer, price, 🧷 Ink Characteristics - Shading: Good on most papers. - Ghosting: With wet/ wide nibs. - Bleed Through: With wet/ wide nibs. - Flow Rate: Wet - Lubrication: Excellent. - Nib Dry-out: Did not notice. - Start-up: Excellent - Saturation: Saturated. - Sheen: Very faint red sheen where ink puddles. - Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: Did not notice. - Nib Creep / Crud: Did not notice. - Staining (Pen): - Clogging: No. - Cleaning: I used a pen jacuzzi to clean my pens. But I’m guessing it should be easy to clean. - Water Resistance: None. --- 🛒 Availability - Available in 50 ml bottles worldwide. --- 💬 Closing I’m not a fan of shimmer inks. However, I enjoyed writing with this one, there’s something subtle about silver and navy. And writing with it on Iroful was like a dream in heaven. No fountain pens were hurt in preparing this review. Please don’t hesitate to share your experience, writing samples, or any other comments — the more the merrier.

Jacques Herbin 1670 - Opal Nocturne (Night Opal) Ink Review # 212 --- 🧾 Description One of the newest 1670 inks with gold shimmer, is a blue-green-grey ink, nicely lubricated and excellent on copy paper. Dry time is fast on Rhodia. Ink colour is very close to Vert de Gris; the only difference is shimmer and lubrication. 1670 inks are gold shimmer inks that celebrate the creation of Herbin company. 1798 inks are silver shimmer inks that honor the date when they started making inks. --- 🧪 Chroma --- ✍️ Writing Samples (scan) Rhodia / Iroful Midori /Tomoe River 68gsm Scan was off. Check photos. Hammermill 20lb 📸 Photo Rhodia/ Iroful Midori / Tomoe River 68 gsm Hammermill 20lb Note: see how ghosting and bleed-through is minimal. Close-up 🔍 Comparison --- 💧 Water Test --- 🎨 Artwork Muse Mouse missing Kitty carved his likeness into Opal. Jacques Herbin 1670 - Opal Nocturne ink, Uniball white gel pen, Talens Mixed Media Notebook. INKTOBER52 PROMPT NO.46 – Sneaker There are many theories about the word Sneaker. This is one of the lesser-known ones: It is said that when the Portuguese court abandoned Lisboa for Rio during the Napoleonic Wars, the fate of the nation changed when a young orphan sang at the foot of the Belém monastery, where her father had abandoned her on one of the ships of cowardice. In her voice, she captured the intangible golden moment of belonging, saudade. On the other side, behind the thick walls, a young monk felt the sacred for the first time in her voice and abandoned the dusty monastery, to join her, sneaking into the guitarra’s sound hole to be close to ecstasy. When her voice rose above the hollow songs of the monks and the indifferent roar of the ocean, he couldn’t help but pluck the chords and change the history of a nation; it was fate. (fado). Jacques Herbin 1670 - Opal Nocturne, Diamine Earl Grey, Octopus WD Bunny Orange, Talens Mixed Media Notebook. Inspired by @catbert's imaginative art, and fado. --- - Pens Used: Pilot Kakuno EF, Kaweco Sport (EF/F/M/B/BB/Stub 1.9) Noodler’s Nibcreeper fitted with a vintage Waterman flex nib. - What I Liked: Colour, lubrication. - What I Did Not Like: Shimmer, price. - Writing Experience: Excellent with most nib. A bit difficult with 1.9 stub, Probably I didn’t have enough ink. - Pros: Same as liked. - Cons: Idem. 🧷 Ink Characteristics - Shading: Subtle. - Ghosting: Faint - Bleed Through: Only with 1.9 and flex. - Flow Rate: Good. - Lubrication: Very good. - Nib Dry-out: Did not notice. - Start-up: Did not notice - Saturation: Soft. - Sheen: Did not notice - Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: Did not notice. - Nib Creep / Crud: Did not notice. - Staining (Pen): Didn’t keep long enough in pen. - Clogging: Didn’t keep long enough in pen. - Cleaning: I used a pen jacuzzi for the shimmer part. - Water Resistance: Decent. --- 🛒 Availability - Available in 50 ml bottle worldwide. --- 💬 Closing I’m not into shimmer inks, so this ink isn't for me. However, if you like the colour of Vert de Gris and want nice lubrication and shimmer, and the price isn’t an obstacle, go for it. Life is too short. No fountain pens were hurt in preparing this review. Please don’t hesitate to share your experience, writing samples, or any other comments — the more the merrier.

Van Dieman’s Here Kitty Kitty Ink Review # 204 --- 🧾 Description Van Dieman’s is a prolific ink company based in Tasmania, Australia. Part of the Feline series, Here Kitty Kitty is a pale pink, beige ink with heavy gold shimmer. I don’t like shimmer inks in general, and this one is no exception. I made the mistake of reviewing it under artificial light. At times I couldn’t read what the “shimmer” I was writing. This is my first attempt at video. Many thanks @LizEF for feedback. Sometimes it was too bright, sometimes too pale. It is legible once it dries. I could not ascertain if the flow was wet or not, at times it was, but then it stopped writing. It might be I didn't fill the pen enough or there was just too much shimmer. Yet, I can see some enjoying this type of colour for a secret journal or writing breakup letters to disappointing partners blinding them with fury. I most enjoyed it for drawing. It has a pleasing colour. --- 🧪 Chroma --- ✍️ Writing Samples (scan) Rhodia / Iroful Midori /Tomoe River 68gsm Scan is off. Hammermill 20lb 📸 Photo Rhodia/ Iroful Midori / Tomoe River 68 gsm Hammermill 20lb Close-up Shimmer If there’s one image to remember, it’s this one! 🔍 Comparison --- 💧 Water Test --- 🎨 Artwork Romeo, Romeo I used a bit of Herbin Gris Nuage, and a touch of Noodler’s Eel Red Rattler, Paper is Talens Mixed Media. --- - Pens Used: Pilot Kakuno EF, Kaweco (EF/F/M/B/ BB, Stub 1.9) , Kanwrite with FPR Flex nib. - What I Liked: The base color. Drawing. - What I Did Not Like: Too much shimmer, hard stops, too bright under artificial lights. - What Some Might Not Like: Shimmer, pale. - Writing Experience: Shimmer hell. - Pros: Lovely base colour, shimmer. - Cons: Pale color and shimmer. 🧷 Ink Characteristics - Shading: I don’t know. - Ghosting: Faint. - Bleed Through: A hint with BB - Flow Rate: I’m not sure. - Lubrication: Below average. - Nib Dry-out: Not sure. - Start-up: Depends. - Saturation: Really?! - Sheen: I think not. - Spread / Feathering / Woolly Line: Did not notice. - Nib Creep / Crud: Did not notice. - Staining (Pen): No. - Clogging: At times I had to use a waterbrush. - Cleaning: Because of shimmer I went with pen jacuzzi. - Water Resistance: Ok. --- 🛒 Availability - Available in 30 ml bottles worldwide. --- 💬 Closing While I don’t like shimmer inks in general, in retrospect I found the colour soothing and peaceful, especially for drawing. No fountain pens were hurt in preparing this review. Please don’t hesitate to share your experience, writing samples, or any other comments — the more the merrier.

https://www.jacquesherbin.com/en/shogun-by-kenzo-takada-k3-flacon-50ml.html Colour: Always presented as dark brown in the marketing images, and the manufacturer calls it “twilight-coloured”, but while the ink goes down brown-black, once it dries on Rhodia DotPad 80g/m² paper, it's nothing but charcoal and black, without any hint of brown that I can see. Flow: Rather wet (and you probably know I don't say that of inks very often) Shading: Limited to when the ink is laid down rather dry on Rhodia DotPad paper, and given that it's a wet ink, for ‘normal’ applications I don't think you'll see much shading manifest in handwriting. Sheen: None observed, even when laid down so heavily it starts to bleed through the paper. Shimmer: Quite a lot. Herbin says it's “fine red and gold glitter”, although I see red and cyan in the reflected light. Some of the red particles are really fine; after I left the bottle undisturbed for hours, when I dipped the Pilot steel nib carefully so as not to cause any movement, I could still see a few tiny flecks of red in the ink that gets picked up by nib. Once I turned the bottle over, the shimmer particles that had settled on the base of the bottle immediately started falling away; no clumping whatsoever, and shaking wasn't really required to get the particles to move away from the glass. Feathering: Not observed on Rhodia DotPad paper. Show-through: Between minimal and nil on Rhodia DotPad paper. Bleed-through: Only when I shaded and filled a square completely twice over, and probably damaged the paper's sizing/coating in the process (and the difference in the degree of bleed-through in the two squares, which I filled using different facets of the nib's tipping, attests to it). Drying time: Within 15 seconds, including where pen strokes intersected, except for heavy application of ink in for dot in the minuscule ‘j’ (and so probably ‘i’, and the full stop as well), where even after 45 seconds I can see the slightest hint of black being smeared. Water resistance: In terms of the black ink marks not being eradicated or eroded by water, resistance is high. However, when a water brush is applied, the run-off can make a complete mess of the area and render the written text difficult to read.

"HERE IT IS: The Kyanite du Népal from our exclusive 1798 Anniversary Ink Collection available 06/21 [21st June] About the ink: Kyanite is bright blue and pulling toward turquoise. It is magnified thanks to a cloud of silver glitter for a powerful and elegant writing. Since the discovery of the famous mining region of Nepal, Kali Gandaki, Kyanite has been recognized as a noble mineral because of its similarities with the rich tones of sapphire." https://www.instagram.com/p/BxPo8LxDyiC/ And see here https://www.reddit.com/r/fountainpens/comments/bmajwk/this_years_j_herbin_1798_ink_kyanite_du_n%C3%A9pal/

I've heard that the release date for these new inks is 4th November; Fountain Pen Day, so I'm posting separate reviews for them on here. I assume they will come in the same type of bottles as the previous set of shimmer inks, but I haven't seen the retail bottles yet. Currently I only have samples that Diamine very kindly sent me to test, and to review 'if I wanted to', but I've noticed that my samples don't need much shaking to mix the particles in, and the pens need very little shaking once they are filled.Generally speaking, I found all 12 of these new shimmer inks to be wetter than all of the other shimmer inks I have used.I have had these inks in these pens for over 2 weeks now. Every pen/ink combination has started straight away without a problem, and I have experienced no stopping or skipping.Some take longer to dry than others, and a couple just soaked into the paper straight away. The most saturated inks will show through and bleed through on cheap paper.None of them are waterproof inks.Diamine Shimmer Inferno Orange is a bright orange ink that is a similar colour to Diamine Pumpkin. It's a quite saturated ink with gold shimmer. The gold shimmer shows up quite easily. I used a Lamy Nexx M (Orange) that has a 1.1mm nib and I had no trouble seeing the golden effect. This ink is quite wet and has quite a long dry time. The first picture is a scanned review form, and the second is a photo. These have been adjusted with Photoshop to get the colour you see to look as close as possible to the actual ink colour.

I've heard that the release date for these new inks is 4th November; Fountain Pen Day, so I'm posting separate reviews for them on here. I assume they will come in the same type of bottles as the previous set of shimmer inks, but I haven't seen the retail bottles yet. Currently I only have samples that Diamine very kindly sent me to test, and to review 'if I wanted to', but I've noticed that my samples don't need much shaking to mix the particles in, and the pens need very little shaking once they are filled.Generally speaking, I found all 12 of these new shimmer inks to be wetter than all of the other shimmer inks I have used.I have had these inks in these pens for over 2 weeks now. Every pen/ink combination has started straight away without a problem, and I have experienced no stopping or skipping.Some take longer to dry than others, and a couple just soaked into the paper straight away. The most saturated inks will show through and bleed through on cheap paper.None of them are waterproof inks.Diamine Shimmer Firestorm Red is a bright red ink that is similar to Diamine Tulip. It's a well saturated ink with silver shimmer. The silver shimmer shows up really easily. I used a red Lamy Safari that has a M nib and I had no trouble seeing the silver effect. This ink feels quite wet, but dries fairly quickly. The Lamy Safari loved it. The combination was a pleasure to write with. The first picture is a scanned review form, and the second is a photo. These have been adjusted with Photoshop to get the colour you see to look as close as possible to the actual ink colour.

Following on from my thread announcing the launch of Diamine Shimmertastic inks I am happy to post my reviews of them. This one is Shimmering Seas This ink is blue-black with a great gold sheen. My reviews show you my experiences with these inks in several of my pens. I’ve experimented by having these inks in my pens for weeks, and have intermittently written with them to see how they start, and how they write. I must say I’m pleasantly surprised. I’ve experienced no feathering with any of them, and they have all behaved really well for me. Diamine recommend that you gently agitate the bottle to mix the particles through the ink before filling your pen. They also recommend that you gently agitate your pen to mix the particles with the ink in your pen when starting a new writing session. I recommend good FP maintenance when using ink that contains particles. I suggest you clean your pens out a little more frequently than you might do with normal ink. These inks will come in 50ml glass bottles, and they have either gold or silver particles in them.