New Red No 5, Berlin Notebook

[AidenMark]

Hip stationers "Berlin Notebook" released the excellent Blue No.1 ink a few months back. What colour would you guess, their second ink would be? Well obviously ... blinding neon pink!

 

Like Blue No.1 it's an artist created ink, in this case Caroline Corleone, who has an interesting tale to tell about its inspiration in pink water cannon (linked from the BN web site). It's a medium priced ink 13.50Euros for 30ml (between Pelikan 4001 and Edelstein). Although it's called New Red, the colour is actually more of a pink.

 

 

(higher res scan here)

 

Pink is not a colour I would use much for writing and this is more of a creative/art or statement ink but even for every day writing it has some interesting properties. First it's well behaved. No significant feathering or ghosting even on the swabs. There were no issues writing with it in a broad or fine nib, it dried quickly, flow was fine and it was moderately water resistant.

 

Secondly it has interesting shading. For the broad nib writing I used a Delta Veneto pen and you can just see the pink colour shades to orange-red with a pleasing gold sheen on the stronger strokes. Finally it's legible.

 

But, one aspect to be aware of is, it's not easy to clean and can stain convertors and demonstrators. I suspect it's a pigment ink but couldn't confirm it.

 

I tried using it as a highlighter and it is transparent enough to reveal the ink below but there are cheeper inks for this purpose.

 

Would I buy it? Probably not unless I had an art project in mind. Berlin Notebook sell 5ml EDC tubes of their blue ink but only stock this in 30ml bottles. If they brought out a EDC version of this New Red I might be tempted. It's bright and fun and something different.

Edited July 13, 2020 by AidenMark

[yazeh]

Great review! You should've put a warning that we need sunglasses to view this ink.... my eyes are hurting!
Thanks....

[eciton]

I have a bottle too, and I enjoy this ink. The colour changes a lot. I suspect you're right about it being a pigment ink, or even a bit of shimmer too — if you turn the bottle upside down, there is definite movement of particulate or sediment in there.

[lapis]

Interesting how the colour changes according to depth. I.e. 1 swab → pink going on to 3 swabs → orange.

[inkstainedruth]

Interesting how the colour changes according to depth. I.e. 1 swab → pink going on to 3 swabs → orange.

I was just thinking that. And also that this is the sort of color that is right up Amberlea Davis's alley (she does like her eye searing colors).

Not surprised that it's hard to flush (a lot of reds, browns, and purples are). But while I think it's a little dark as a highlighter color, I could see myself using this ink in small doses -- the dry time seems reasonable and the water resistance is decent. I can see it as a markup ink, and also for love letters and in my journal it doesn't matter what color I use from day to day....

Of course I probably already have pinks this color; at a glance it's reminding me of one of the Lamy Crystal line (Rhodonite?), and also Lamy Vibrant Pink (and I have 2 bottles of that so I don't need this anytime soon... maybe... ).

Thanks for the review. And, well, perhaps not....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[migo984]

Fountainfeder sell 2ml samples of New Red No. 5

 

https://fountainfeder.de/en/Berlin-Notebook-New-Red-No.5-Ink-Sample-2ml/SW10162

[inkstainedruth]

Well, at the moment I can't get shipments from there. Fountainfeder has a notice across the top of the page on their website, saying that currently they can't ship to the US (amongst other places) due to the pandemic.

Guess I'm adding this to the spreadsheet of (long term) inks to buy, rather than the "get soon" spreadsheet.... (Oh, am such an OCD nerd, aren't I? )

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[AidenMark]

Of course I probably already have pinks this color; at a glance it's reminding me of one of the Lamy Crystal line (Rhodonite?), and also Lamy Vibrant Pink (and I have 2 bottles of that so I don't need this anytime soon... maybe... ).

 

Comparing some on-line pictures of Rhodonite with the New Red #5 they do look very similar. If someone has both, a comparison would be fascinating.

[Patrick L]

Hi Aiden,

You look like Orson Welles .

[AidenMark]

You look like Orson Welles .

 

Darn - I was trying for the Hemingway look.

[AidenMark]

A quick update on this ink.

 

Below is the result of a fade test. 6 sunny days on a car dashboard.

Some rethinking:

The ink isn't as hard to clean as originally though. A touch of pen flush removed all signs of staining - conclusion - it's probably not a pigment ink.

The gold shading emerges more prominently after a week of the ink drying which is quite attractive.

It's an ink that grows in appeal, I like it a lot more than when I first encountered it.

[Antenociticus]

I wonder if they're following an Yves Klein cue here. Klein's principal colour, IKB, was essentially a deep ultramarine – like Berlin Notebook Blue No. 1. Then he did some monochromes in a vibrant pink – like this New Red No. 5.

 

Let's see if they do a gold ink next.