Ink Review: Noodler's Gruene Cactus

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Noodler's Gruene Cactus
Pen: Lamy AL-Star 1.1mm stub
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: high
Saturation: high
Flow: wet
Dry Time: 20 seconds

Noodler's Gruene Cactus was one of the first bottles of ink that I bought when I rekindled my love of fountain pens.  Prior to that, I used a Pilot G2 0.7mm in green.  In my hunt for fountain pen inks, I'd decided that I wanted an ink that looked very similar to the G2 green that I loved so much.  Noodler's Gruene Cactus is the closest to that color as I've found so far.

Gruene Cactus is a very nice neutral green in Noodler's line.  It is a great shader, despite the fact that it's got quite a bit of saturation.  Inks with the best of both these traits are some of the best in my opinion.  The ink flows very well, but the dry time suffers a bit at 20 seconds with my stub nib.  Noodlers also makes an "eel" version of this ink which is meant to lubricate pens with a piston mechanism - though a lot of people also use them because they provide a nice smooth writing experience.

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This ink doesn't compare well to any other shade I have in my collection, but I've heard that Private Reserve Spearmint matches up pretty well.

If you're a fan of the Pilot G2 green, or a nice neutral green, then I'd highly recommend Gruene Cactus.  You can pick up a 3oz bottle for $12.50.

Thanks for reading!
Lori

Ink Review: Franklin-Christoph Midnight Emerald

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Franklin-Christoph Midnight Emerald
Pen: Franklin-Christoph Model 40 Pocket - Masuyama Medium Cursive Italic
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: high
Saturation: medium
Flow: medium
Dry Time: 13 seconds

After seeing all of the amazing photos online of Franklin-Christoph's pens, especially the "ice" models, I knew I had to have one.  Never has a company impressed me as much with their unique designs as Franklin-Christoph has.  Of course this review isn't about the pen itself, (that will come soon!) but about the ink that I bought along with the pen.

Midnight Emerald is a fairly new ink to the Franklin-Christoph line, and is one that I'm convinced will be one of their best sellers in due time.  I likely wouldn't have given an ink of this shade a second glance if it hadn't been for seeing Jeff Abbot's post on The Pen Addict.  He'd bought the same pen I was interested in, and when I saw the way this ink looked in the barrel of an eyedropper-converted Model 40 Pocket, I knew I had to have it.

Arguably the best thing about Midnight Emerald is its incredible shading properties.  With my medium cursive italic nib, it lays down enough ink to give quite a nice variation in color.  Depending on the speed at which you write, the ink will go from a deep blueish-green to a lighter medium teal.  It isn't overly saturated, and flows wet, but not so wet as to drown out the variations in color.  It doesn't feather at all on your standard fountain pen friendly papers, and there's no ghosting or bleed to speak of.

Shortly after picking up a bottle of Midnight Emerald, I grabbed a sample of Noodler's Squeteague to see how it compared.  It's actually very close in comparison, but leans more green than blue, unlike Midnight Emerald which exhibits more blue than green.  A lot of folks also compare Midnight Emerald to Sailor Yama-dori, though I've not had the opportunity to do the comparison myself yet.  From the pictures in Jeff's post, I'd say they're very close.

Chromatography shows the ink to be comprised of a royal blue, brown-ish red, and yellow tones.  I was surprised to see very little green in the mix!

If you've not tried Midnight Emerald yet, you definitely should! Unfortunately, Franklin-Christoph doesn't do ink sampling, but if you're a fan of Yama-dori or Squeteague and want an ink with incredible shading, then it's worth picking up a bottle.  You can pick it up at franklin-christoph.com for $12.50/2oz.

Thanks for reading!
Lori

Ink Review: Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin

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Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin
Pen: Kaweco Brass F
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: moderate
Saturation: medium
Flow: medium
Dry Time: 9 seconds

I've always been a big fan of green, and my boyfriend and I have really been enjoying the Iroshizuku line of inks; so I figured it was time to pick up a sample of Chiku-rin and see how I liked it.  It definitely didn't disappoint.

Chiku-rin translates to "bamboo forest," which is actually a very fitting description of the color of this ink.  The shade of green very much resembles a stick of fresh bamboo.  I love the mild shading properties this ink has, even with a fine nib.  With larger nib sizes, I'd imagine the ink is quite an exceptional shader.  It's nicely saturated, but not so much so that it kills the shading, and it flows quite well.  Dry time is right around average at 9 seconds in my fine nib.

As far as comparisons to other inks I've tried, the closest I've got is Diamine Meadow.  Chiku-rin is a tiny bit lighter in color and to me, has better shading characteristics.  Meadow is a nice slightly darker medium green with rich saturation.  I tried to decide which one I like best, and honestly I just can't make that decision - I love them both!

Once again, Pilot doesn't disappoint with another great Iroshizuku ink!  If you'd like a bottle for yourself, it'll run your about $28 for the full sized bottle.  However, if you're interested in a smaller 15mL bottle, you can check out Vanness Pens - they sell the 15mL bottles for $10.50, or you can get a 3 pack for $29 that comes with a really nice display box.  I definitely plan on getting a set once I decide what my favorite Iroshizuku inks are!

Thanks for reading!
Lori

Ink Review: Waterman Harmonious Green

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Waterman Harmonious Green - May 2015 Ink Drop
Pen: Pilot Metropolitan M
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: moderate to high
Saturation: medium
Flow: wet
Dry Time: 9 seconds

As soon as I inked up Waterman Harmonious Green, it immediately reminded me of the green ink that is ink the Pilot Precise V5 and V7 pens.  Before I used fountain pens, the V5/7 and the Pilot G2 in green were my most used pens, so I had a little bit of flash back when using this ink.  Admittedly, I liked the green ink that was in the G2 a lot more than the V5/7; so Harmonious Green isn't my favorite green, but it's still a good one.

A great characteristic of this ink is its shading.  I got quite a bit even with my medium nib, so with a stub or broad nib, you will likely get even more.  The ink is about a medium on the saturation scale, which probably contributes to the shading characteristics.  The ink flows nice and wet and has a very decent dry time at 9 seconds.

Amongst the swabs that I have currently, Harmonious Green sits between Noodler's Bad Green Gator and Diamine Woodland Green.  It's a lot lighter than Green Gator, and a tad bit darker than Woodland Green.

Waterman Harmonious Green is really a nice, neutral, well behaved ink.  If you're nostalgic for your old Pilot Precise V5/7 green pen, then you may like this one.  You can pick up a 50mL bottle from Goulet or a similar retailer for $11.00.