Make Your Own Dual Shading Inks!

[creeder14]

6 hours ago, msilverton said:

Thanks @creeder14! You can try the food dyes (Blue #1 is best) but they don't show anywhere near the shading of MSB. They were my first try at making dual shading inks and when I look back at them now, they pretty much all suck.

 

I've been using the MSB and Pelikan straight up full strength so far. I haven't even tried diluting them yet and that's where most shading inks really show up. What's that going to look like? Hmmm.

 

I wouldn't say the chromashaders you made in the first post here suck! I'm very excited about them, particularly the one that you described as halfway between blue and purple! I wonder what happened if you mix some Blue #1 in with the MSB? I also wonder what would happen if you tried letting some of the water in the MSB evaporate to concentrate it - would that amplify the sheeny effects when mixed with Pelikan Red?

 

Also! Thank you for doing the gold nib test with MSB - how would you feel about doing a longer-term one? A few months, maybe? 

[msilverton]

7 minutes ago, creeder14 said:

 

I wouldn't say the chromashaders you made in the first post here suck! I'm very excited about them, particularly the one that you described as halfway between blue and purple! I wonder what happened if you mix some Blue #1 in with the MSB? I also wonder what would happen if you tried letting some of the water in the MSB evaporate to concentrate it - would that amplify the sheeny effects when mixed with Pelikan Red?

 

Also! Thank you for doing the gold nib test with MSB - how would you feel about doing a longer-term one? A few months, maybe? 

 

I tried mixing some Blue #1 with MSB and the results were ok, but I wouldn't call them spectacular. I did get a pretty nice deep blue color with no water added and then just a bit of shading when I diluted the mixture quite a bit. It was a great idea though and maybe you'll get better results than me when you try it.

 

I've let my dinky dips (gosh that's an awful name) set open overnight and even for a few days but I just found that the ink was super thick and hard to write with. 

 

I could easily make the gold experiment long-term and will do just that in a minute. 

 

Thank you @OCArt. According to the attached article initially supplied by @amper, their testing pictures (Figure 2) showed serious corrosion. However, the chart below shows this corrosion happening at 70° C. That's really warm and far from room temperature. 

 

prussianbluewritinginks1.pdf

[Karmachanic]

7 hours ago, kestrel said:

I wonder if substituting diluant (basically ink with no dyes added) for some of the distilled water would reduce dryness. 

 

A drop of Glycerine should do the trick.

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/337215-advice-on-glycerin/?hl=glycerine

 

[Karmachanic]

7 hours ago, kestrel said:

I wonder if substituting diluant (basically ink with no dyes added) for some of the distilled water would reduce dryness. 

 

A drop of Glycerine should do the trick.

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/337215-advice-on-glycerin/?hl=glycerine

 

[msilverton]

I just noticed the @Karmachanic link in my post above didn't paste in right. Apologies Karmachanic, but many thanks for turning me on to MSB. I would never have used it if it weren't for you. 

[kestrel]

22 hours ago, msilverton said:

I've never heard of diluant and didn't know such a thing exists. What's in it?

It is fountain pen ink minus the dyes.  It contains all the surfactants, biocides, and other stuff but looks like water.  Several ink makers sell it under a variety of cutesy names.  Birmingham calls theirs Dilution Solution.  My bottle came from De Atramentis and is called Ink Thinner.  I use it when I want to dilute an ink but don't want to increase dryness.  

I bought the De Atramentis stuff because I was trying to make a reasonable facsimile of a favorite but unobtainable ink.  I needed a 1:1 dilution of the ink mix with distilled water to get the right shade and it was too dry.  A fellow FPNer recommended diluant and it did the trick.  It has been a great tool in my arsenal for fiddling with inks.  I also use it to dip test nibs because the clean up is so much simpler.

 

[Karmachanic]

6 hours ago, msilverton said:

 Apologies Karmachanic, but many thanks for turning me on to MSB

 

[msilverton]

3 hours ago, kestrel said:

It is fountain pen ink minus the dyes.  It contains all the surfactants, biocides, and other stuff but looks like water.  Several ink makers sell it under a variety of cutesy names.  Birmingham calls theirs Dilution Solution.  My bottle came from De Atramentis and is called Ink Thinner.  I use it when I want to dilute an ink but don't want to increase dryness.  

I bought the De Atramentis stuff because I was trying to make a reasonable facsimile of a favorite but unobtainable ink.  I needed a 1:1 dilution of the ink mix with distilled water to get the right shade and it was too dry.  A fellow FPNer recommended diluant and it did the trick.  It has been a great tool in my arsenal for fiddling with inks.  I also use it to dip test nibs because the clean up is so much simpler.

 

 

I had no idea this stuff was available. I guess it plays nice with all the inks you've tried? Just thinking some surfactants and biocides wouldn't be compatible with certain types of dyes. Looks like the De Atramentis is the real deal, 250 ml for about $15. 

[kestrel]

9 hours ago, msilverton said:

 

I had no idea this stuff was available. I guess it plays nice with all the inks you've tried? Just thinking some surfactants and biocides wouldn't be compatible with certain types of dyes. Looks like the De Atramentis is the real deal, 250 ml for about $15. 

My recipe for the Frick Stained Glass substitute includes Diamine Deep Dark Purple, Aurora Black, and Slovenian Skrip Red and the Ink Thinner caused no problems.  I have used it with a Waterman's Purple/Slovenian Red mix and a Noodler's Eel Red/Eel Blue mix and saw no nasty reactions or thermonuclear events.  

[msilverton]

9 hours ago, kestrel said:

My recipe for the Frick Stained Glass substitute includes Diamine Deep Dark Purple, Aurora Black, and Slovenian Skrip Red and the Ink Thinner caused no problems.  I have used it with a Waterman's Purple/Slovenian Red mix and a Noodler's Eel Red/Eel Blue mix and saw no nasty reactions or thermonuclear events.  

 

. I'm just now getting your main point about the Diluant. You are absolutely correct that it would be better than just distilled water for dryness and also to keep mold from forming.

 

And I may very well have to go back to the food dyes. I'm worried the MSB is going to turn into Chromafaders. Looking back at some of my previous writings, they seem a bit "muted". I wouldn't say they faded, the shininess and luster are still there, but there is something different about them. I guess it's just the way MSB cures that is causing the effect. Hard to describe until you've seen it yourself. Yet, some of my writings haven't changed at all, the colors are still vibrant and brilliant. Weird. This all may come to nought and I'll have to hide my face in shame. ☹️

 

If that happens, I'm already on the lookout for another shading dye or pigment that could possibly give the same effects as MSB. Although I am very doubtful I will find one to match its beauty, not to mention the wide gamut of colors it can produce (just unbelievable), I am prepared for the search. And it will be expensive, placing orders for them one by one and then testing and eliminating those which don't work. I've read many posts here about people using methylene blue and other dyes, but it's hard to tell in their photos if there is any potential shading there. 

 

The Frick Stained Glass thread was an interesting read. It is a very nice shade of purple and I would try to make it if I had any of the other inks besides Aurora Black. 

Edited June 5, 2025 by msilverton
Spacing

[creeder14]

On 6/3/2025 at 11:34 PM, Karmachanic said:

 

For all of you who've now tried Mrs. Stewart's Bluing in ink (or as an ink on its own), have you guys found it to be... gross and chunky and awful?

 

I got my bottle yesterday, immediately tried it, both mixed w/ Pelikan Red and on its own, both with a dip pen on Tomoe River, and it's horrible. The pigment is coarsely ground and only pools in the swells of my letters. The thinner areas are almost completely devoid of color. It doesn't have the lovely multicolored sheen(?) of Silver's pictures, it looks like something made by a middle schooler who's using a mortar and pestle for the first time.

 

Did I get a bad bottle? A counterfeit even?

[creeder14]

I'll upload pics shortly

[msilverton]

Perhaps your bottle is old and the pigment has settled. Make sure you shake it extremely well before using. No worries about bubbles or it frothing up, it does not do that. I'm intrigued to see your pictures.

[Karmachanic]

12 hours ago, creeder14 said:

,have you guys found it to be... gross and chunky and awful?

 

 I suggest reading the link I provided on the first page of this thread.

[msilverton]

From the MSB website FAQ:

"I found an old glass bottle of bluing in my grandmother's basement. Will the bluing still work? What is the value of the bottle that I found?

Many people have discovered old bottles of bluing on homesteads and in basements. After all, in the early 1900s, bluing was a laundry staple — every homemaker used it to keep white clothes white. Bluing has an indefinite shelf life, so if your bottle still has bluing in it, it will likely work just as it does today. MSB is water-based so evaporation can occur easily. Be aware that the bluing in your old bottle may have concentrated over the years just a bit."

 

 

[inkstainedruth]

I'll admit that I never really understood the concept of "bluing" for "whiteness when doing laundry -- other than possibly it helped with stuff not turning yellowish (the way people used it in hair dye).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Karmachanic]

18 hours ago, inkstainedruth said:

I'll admit that I never really understood the concept of "bluing" for "whiteness when doing laundry -- other than possibly it helped with stuff not turning yellowish

 

That's exactly why.    Also makes it more bling when you're in Antibes for the summer.

[inkstainedruth]

Ehhh, maybe not.  I tend to do the "burn and peel thing" unless I have as SPF 32 level sunscreen/sunblock as a MINIMUM....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth