Blue vs black

[nstlgia70]

I can't help noticing that more and more people are writing with black ink these days, be it with a FP or BP. Back in the days when I was in school, everyone was writing in blue, and not a single person wrote in black. I agree with comments in the Ink and Beans blog that black is devoid of color. Blue just looks pretty to me, while black simply turns me off. I had not bought a single bottle of black ink todate, I just cannot get myself to like it no matter how I tried. I cannot understand why so many people are turning to black now. Why had blue ink fallen out of vogue these days?

[Pfhorrest]

Black isn't devoid of color.. it's the darkest one..

 

To me, black is the easiest to read, most crisp, "bright"est color you can use - imagine typing in blue

 

It's easy to find particular words and phrases on paper marked with black. Not so with blue - I have to carefully and meticulously look.

 

Black is also easiest to annotate, in which you can use different color inks and not worry about them becoming dominant over your initial write (as well as prevent color mixing).

[watch_art]

as a long time believer in the black, i've recently become a convert to blue thanks to bay state blue. to write with that is. to draw and doodle with i still prefer black 100%. drawing with blue just looks funny. and i can draw with some darker reds but mostly i prefer black.

 

but yeah, i like blue to write with much more.

[Crim]

I used to agree with the TC.

 

Now I only partially agree.

 

Before I didn't really care of black. I thought it was kind of bland and stale. Ever since HoD and Dark Matter I've changed my mind. From time to time I really enjoy the way black looks on paper, especially since I'm always using colors like brown, blue, green, purple etc. Black has more of a classic look I guess.

 

Oh and like Pfhorrest said, it's a good color to use when taking notes, because you can use another color to annotate things. I've started using Noodler's HoD, Apache Sunset and Napalm Red to help give my notes some contrast. Going to buy a pen sometime this week and throw BSB in it so I have a nice blue to use as well.

[Sandy1]

Hi,

 

I hadn't noticed an increased interest in Black ink amongst FP users, or those who write with other implements.

 

I somehow thought that FP users, certainly those who are FPNers, would not be going nuts over the Pilot iro inks if they were always using Bk. (?)

 

That said, it may be interesting to take a look at the Ink Reviews, and browse the number of Views & Replies for colours and for Bk. (Oh, ignore the Noodler's - it seems that folks go nutty over the stuff, and seem to be anticipating some epiphany or blasphemy or who knows what.) Or just look at the quantity of Reviews alone: how many people thought it was worth the time, effort, materials, etc. to review a Bk ink? Do they bring something new to the party? Or just thought they'd have a go?

 

I was much impressed with the prior post by our dear Pfhorrest. I had no idea that Bk could be so lyrical. Tip o' the hat for that! :-)

 

So, I don't have any Bk FP ink. I do grind my own Bk ink for sumi-e, and would not consider using any colour but Bk ink for that endeavour. & yes, I do have more contradictions than my cutlery drawer.

 

Bye,

S1

[Margana]

I'm in the same camp as watch_art though I write with all colors. Black and sometimes dark brown are my choices for drawing but blue-black might be my favorite for writing...today at least.

[nstlgia70]

I concur with watch_art. Blue is for writing, and black is for drawing or sketching. That's the way it's supposed to be, different colors for different purposes. It would be boring if everything is black and white. I write with blue, but use black for sidenotes. I use red to encircle certain words to highlight them.

Can't imagine typing in blue? That is only true for typed or printed text but not for handwritten notes. OTOH, can you imagine wearing black jeans? I know they exist (so do blue-colored printed texts), but I would have no part of them, no thanks.

[lapis]

I have several blacks, although I don't like the "colour" black, at least as an ink on paper...

... but I still use them a lot for mixing every other colour to get it look darker, subtler, older.

AFAIK many of us do the same.

 

Mike

[faustulus]

For the longest time, black was the only color I used. Over the years I have started using more browns in my writing (and other colors as well). But I have never been a big fan of blue. I think I own three of them and one of them is a blue/black. I just think it is easier to read black on white or yellow than blue. (I use a lot of legal pads because I think the yellow paper is easier on my eyes.)

[beluga]

I can't help noticing that more and more people are writing with black ink these days, be it with a FP or BP. Back in the days when I was in school, everyone was writing in blue, and not a single person wrote in black. I agree with comments in the Ink and Beans blog that black is devoid of color. Blue just looks pretty to me, while black simply turns me off. I had not bought a single bottle of black ink todate, I just cannot get myself to like it no matter how I tried. I cannot understand why so many people are turning to black now. Why had blue ink fallen out of vogue these days?

 

 

I was one of the students who had to use Royal Blue in school and in the end I got tired of always having to use this colour.

To this day, I have only little interest in MB, Waterman or Pelikan Royal Blue that all epitomize these inks for me.

Once I was allowed to switch to black, I found it a much richer, substantial colour and it influenced my choice of ink for years.

 

There may have been a good reason to stipulate this Royal Blue for school children though.

These inks are usually washable and can easily be removed from hands and clothes, something many mothers must have appreciated.

 

There may also be a good reason today for the prevalence of black ink.

Black offers advantages on pages that may need to be photocopied and my employer for example specifies that certain documents need to be filled in and signed in black.

 

Privately, I often use inks that I can easily substitute for black; blue-blacks, ebonies, dark purples, burgundies, midnight blues and Sherwood greens.

 

The one colour that is in none of my pens? Washable Royal-Blue, which I still find it rather boring, after all those years....

 

 

 

 

 

B.

 

 

edit: typo

Edited May 4, 2010 by beluga

[ethernautrix]

When I started using fountain pens, maybe 25 years ago, I used blue mostly, not knowing anything about inks or the differences between blues or inks in general.

 

Then I used black sometimes. And then I started buying colors, a typical trajectory, I'd say, into exploring a new area of interest.

 

But I always reverted either to blue or black without questioning why. I didn't have to know why. I just liked it, and that was sufficient.

 

Then about a dozen years ago, I started to prefer black always and nearly exclusively. I used blue as the exception.

 

I dabbled with other colors, cos how is that not fun? It isn't not.

 

But for my journal, I used black ink primarily.

 

And then I had to find the perfect black.

 

And so the years passed.

 

Within the past couple of years, I've discovered a huge array of colors. When I like the color, then I want the ink to be water-resistant. But my primarily ink color remains black.

 

Recently, I started using this gorgeous blue-black ink (a mix of three blues with a dash of black), and I'm experimenting by using this color primarily with Noodler's Walnut as the exception, in the current notebook. I love the contrast of this dark blue and the dark brown. It's very pleasing to my eye. But it is weird to open the notebook and see all this blue, dark and lovely as it is.

 

One - I'm used to seeing mostly black ink in my notebooks (at least for the past dozen years), so changing habits accounts for part of the "weird" feeling.

Two - I'm not sure what this other factor is... it's a little uncomfortable, but not in a harmful or painful way, but there's something about using the dark blue or not-black.... It's interesting (for me, anyway) to note it. I think it's one of those things where I'll have to have filled the notebook, time will have to have passed, and then I'll have to pick up the notebook again and see how that affects my... aura... or something. Heh.

 

Anyway, I might end up using the Noodler's Walnut as my primary ink for journals. The suspense is thrilling!

 

 

 

 

ETA: Silly crucial omission. Heh.

Edited May 4, 2010 by ethernautrix

[Torque]

Well, I prefer black, because most blue inks I've used are rather light-blue and they're fading away. Black keeps its color.

[Bug]

Solution: use blue-black. Best of both worlds and classy to boot.

[bjornhansson]

One of the reasons I started using fountain pens, was that I liked black ink. I found that black FP ink was much richer and darker than "black" ballpoint ink, and after trying a fountain pen filled with black ink I was hooked.

 

Today I hardly ever use black ink. As I started using broader nibs, I felt that black ink became a little too obtrusive. When writing in black ink, I prefer using pens with F/XF nibs.

[JBat]

Blue and its variations has always been my favorite ink color, but I love a good saturated black like Aurora Black too. There's a place for both, IMO.

[willprice94]

I use black mainly, thats because my exams that are coming up require a black pen otherwise they 'cant scan properly' which i think is just a lie, though black scans clearer. Anyway, i prefer black to blue, especially seeing as i draw quite a lot

[Ernst Bitterman]

I can understand the appeal of black, with its gravitas and forceful contrast with the background paper. However, unless it's a weak and objectionable version of a black ink, you lose the shading that proves you're using a fountain pen, and what fun is that?

[Gene V]

I usually use Waterman's Florida Blue and a few of J. Herbin's colors but the other day, I wrote a letter using black ink. I really liked the contrast on bright, white, Clairefontaine Triomphe paper. Overall, the look was very pleasing.

 

Gene

[dmmcf]

When I was in elementary school in the central US in the early 70s, we were required to start each year with two blue Bics and some number of No. 2 pencils. In high school, we could have used black ink, but almost no one did. I think the experience took most of the fun out of blue ink for me.

 

These days I find I prefer a very dark red or reddish brown on paper that's not too bright. I find this a little easier on the eyes than either black or blue when taken a page at a time. But I could get by with black alone if need be. My favorite black to read is perhaps Diamine's Jet Black, but it's unpleasantly dry in most of my pens, so I'm looking forward to buying a 100 mL bottle of J. Herbin's Perle Noire when they become available and so answering that question for a few years.

 

I should perhaps mention that my notion of black ink was fixed in the era of technical pens, India ink and drafting "vellum" (yeah, I'm an engineer). Compared to that combination, nothing I've ever seen come out of a fountain pen can be called "black". But I enjoy these off-blacks just the same.

[ethernautrix]

Solution: use blue-black. Best of both worlds and classy to boot.

 

 

 

You make it sound so easy.