Parker ceased production of Penman Sapphire in 2000 meaning that the bottle I have is at least 16 years old and probably older; that's more than half my age! I bought my bottle from a seller on eBay (and as of this writing he has another bottle up for sale). The ink is very well regarded and sort-after and the price certainly reflects that with prices upwards of $125 USD common. The price also dissuades many from getting the ink so alternatives are sought, and some, like Bungubox Sapphire, specifically mention that Parker Penman Sapphire was an inspiration for the ink. Brad Dowdy mentioned that Noodler's Baystate Blue, Private Reserve American Blue, and Diamine Majestic Blue come up as suitable substitutes but I've found in my testing that there are much better alternatives to Parker Penman Sapphire than these.
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Double Ink Review: Bookbinders Emerald Boa and Eastern Brown
Bookbinders Snake Inks, from Bookbinders Online are, a series of, at the time of this writing, eight inks. Bookbinder's released these two in their initial release of four inks (the other two from the initial release being Red Belly Black and Everglades Ratsnake). Bookbinders Online are a Brisbane, Australia based company that also bind their own Tomoe River notebooks (the ones I use in these reviews). Emerald Boa is a light green ink and Eastern Brown is a warm brown both with distinct characteristics from each other.
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Ink Review: Noodler's Pacific Dawn at the Golden Gate
in Ink Review
Made for the San Fransisco Pen Show but curiously exclusive to Straits Pens in Singapore this ink is both very disappointing but also very nice and quite interesting. The ink tries to include red in a blue ink without becoming purple. It's moderately successful.
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Ink Review: Kobe INK #38 Kitanozaka Night Blue
in Ink Review
I was given a sample of this ink earlier in the year but it wasn't until I eventually swatched it on Tomoe River that I decided to grab a bottle; I've never seen an ink sheen quite like this one. As a Nagasawa Sailor-made exclusive, the ink isn't the cheapest to acquire from outside of Japan (and even within Japan there are restrictions on how many you can buy at a time). Before I continue, yes I am aware of the spelling error throughout the written review. I thought Kitanozoka sounded more Greek than Japanese but I didn't do my research enough and instead relied on an incorrect spelling that I read online! Oops.
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Ink Review: Bungubox Valentine's Choco Brown
in Ink Review
I've had Bungubox Valentine's Choco Brown since late April this year and have never inked a pen with it. In swatch form, the ink never enticed me to ink it. It is a rich deep brown that isn't overly red or yellow leaning but is a nice true brown. The ink is a seasonal ink that comes out around February for Valentine's Day along with another themed seasonal Bungubox ink, Sweet Love Pink.
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