Ink Review: Iroshizuku Yama-guri (Wild Chestnut)

in
yama-guri-header

Pilot Iroshizuku Yama-guri - June 2015 Ink Drop
Pen: Lamy Al Star (F)
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: low
Saturation: high
Flow: wet
Dry Time: 14 seconds
Waterproofness: only the black undertone

The fourth ink in this month's Ink Drop is Iroshizuku Yama-guri.  Yama-guri, or Wild Chestnut, is an apt name for this ink, which fits right in with the Farmer's Market theme.  A warm, dark brown, the ink reminds me of milk chocolate.

Yama-guri is a very well behaved ink, as is typical of the Iroshizuku inks.  No feathering or bleed occurred in my Rhodia pad, even with the flex nib.  The ink is pretty highly saturated, so there was minimal shading, though I've found that to be the case with a lot of the darker brown inks.  Dry time was a tiny bit high at 14 seconds, and water test shows the only portion of the ink that stays behind is a dark grey or black color.

Chromatography had quite a few colors in the mix - the greyish-black base stayed put, which makes sense based on my water tests.  then there is a dusty purple,, followed by a bit of orange, yellow and pink.  The chroma sheet was nearly identical to the Kobe #3 Sepia I did a few days ago.

Speaking of #3 Sepia, this ink definitely resembles that ink on the page.  In swab form, Sepia is a little more reddish than Yama-guri, but on the page the resemblence is closer.  Yama-guri is a tiny bit lighter with certain nibs.  KWZI Green Gold has some similar brown tones, but is quite different on the page.

I am actually really warming up to some of the brown inks out there.  Yama-guri is definitely one to check into if you're looking for a good brown ink to add to your collection.  You can get a full size bottle for $28 at most US retailers, or you can get the smaller 15mL bottle for $10.50 from Vanness Pens.

Thanks for reading!
ori

Ink Review: Noodler's Saguaro Wine

in

Noodler's Saguaro Wine - June 2015 Ink Drop
Pen: Lamy Al-Star Silvergreen (F)
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: low to moderate
Saturation: medium
Flow: wet
Dry Time: 17 seconds

The third ink in this month's Goulet Ink Drop is Noodler's Saguaro Wine.  The ink gets its name from a red fruit from the Saguaro - a cactus that grows tall over many years and is native to the western united states.  The fruit is prized by the locals, and is often made into wine - hence 'Saguaro Wine.'

The ink is nicely saturated and wet flowing.  On my Rhodia pad, it behaves quite well with no feathering, bleed or ghosting.  The ink doesn't spread either, which is a plus.  Shading is minimal because of the high saturation, but you can get some.  Noodler's doesn't list the ink as waterproof, but after a decently long soak, a faded pink line still remained on my test.

Chromatography shows a light pink which makes up most of the color, and then bit of magenta.

The closest swab in comparison that I have is Noodler's Socrates - though it differers quite a bit on paper than it does in swab form.

If you're a fan of purply-pinks, then you'll definitely like Saguaro Wine.  If you're interested in a bottle for yourself, you can get 3oz for $12.50.

Thanks for reading!
​Lori

Ink Review: Diamine Bilberry

in
bilberry-header

Diamine Bilberry - June 2015 Ink Drop
Pen: Lamy Al-Star Silvergreen (F)
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: low
Saturation: high
Flow: wet
Dry Time: 19 seconds

Next up for this month's Goulet Ink Drop is Diamine Bilberry.  With this month's theme being "Farmers' Market," Bilberry must have been an easy choice.  I honestly wasn't sure what a Bilberry was, so Wikipedia came to the rescue!  On first glance you might thing that a bilberry is the same thing as a blueberry, but it is actually distinct from the blueberry, but in a similar family.  It is native to Europe & the British Isles, so naturally with Diamine being a European brand they chose the name Bilberry for this deep, rich blueish purple ink. (As a side note, I think Goulet's swab of this is a little deceiving - I found it to have a little more blue tone than what their swab (or even my swab) shows).

One of the coolest things about this ink is its amazing gold sheen.  If you lay it on thick you will notice right away that there is a nice halo effect that shimmers like gold flakes that you'd see in a J. Herbin 1670 ink.  Don't get me wrong, it's not nearly that pronounced, but it's definitely there.

Bilberry is a heavily saturated ink, so you don't get a ton of shading, but the heavy saturation seems to make the ink flow nicely.  It runs smooth as silk out of my Lamy F nib, and produces no feathering, bleedthrough or ghosting on typical fountain pen paper.  Dry time is a bit on the high side at 19 seconds - left handers beware.

Chromatography is just blue with the faintest hint of purple.

bilberry-swabs

Depending on your light source, this ink in swab form can look both blue and purple.  It honestly looks like you'd taken De Atramentis Hyacinth, or a similar royal blue that really pops, and mixed it with a color like Noodler's Purple Martin.

All ink all, if you love blues and purples you'll love this ink.  As an added bonus you get an incredible sheen as long as you're using a heavier writing pen.  If you're interested in a bottle for yourself, you can grab 80ml for $14.95 or 30ml for $7.50.

Thanks for reading!
​Lori

Ink Review: De Atramentis Cucumber (Scented)

in
cucumber-header

De Atramentis Cucumber (scented) - June 2015 Ink Drop
Pen: Lamy Al-Star Silver Green (F)
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: moderate to high
Saturation: medium
Flow: medium
Dry Time: 13 seconds

When I inked up the first ink in this month's Ink Drop, I was surprised by the color.  I had imagined a color called "Cucumber" by De Atramentis would either be a lot darker like the skin of a cucumber, or lighter like the inside.  I was actually quite pleased - this shade of green has always been one of my favorites.

De Atramentis Cucumber is another in the brand's scented line of inks.  I was actually a bit disappointed by the cucumber scent, though.  It really doesn't resemble cucumber at all to me.  Unlike, Hyacinth from last month's Drop, the scent doesn't really resemble its name at all - at least to me.  I had my boyfriend smell it too and he seemed to agree with me.

The ink is lighter on the saturation side, which produces a pretty substantial amount of shading.  It flows pretty well, though a little on the dryer side, but there's no feathering, ghosting or bleedthrough on Rhodia.  Dry time was a bit on the high side for a fine nib at right around 13 seconds.

Chromotography was...anti-climactic, but interesting nonetheless.  It's literally green, with a touch of greyish undertone.  It shows really well on the page - and incidentally couples my two favorite colors!

I've not come across an ink that compares exactly to this ink, but in swab form it is somewhere between Noodler's Bad Green Gator and Private Reserve's Avacado.  It's much lighter than both of these on paper, though.

This ink may be my favorite of this month's Ink Drop by Goulet Pens.  Stay tuned for the other 4 reviews this week!  If you're interested in a bottle for yourself, and aren't dead-set on having an ink that smells like real life cucumbers, then you can grab a 35mL bottle for $12.95.

Thanks for reading!
Lori