Ink Review: Birmingham Pen Co. Eroded Bronze

June 28, 2022 in Ink Review

Duotone, dichromatic, or whatever you want to call it. Inks that present on the paper with different colours have been very popular in recent years. The first of these inks that really took off were from Sailor’s Ink Studio set of inks but since then there are many from Sailor, from Troublemaker, Vinta and of course Birmingham Pen Company. Many of the dichromatic inks are based around a pink dye that separated from a blue teal or green dye. That is fundamentally the same combination there! The ink is green with a pink that separates when the ink pools and dries.

Ink Review: La Couronne du Comte (Diamine) Vert Sapin

June 17, 2022 in Ink Review

In September 2019 La Couronne du Comte, a stationery store based in Tilburg, Netherlands (and sponsor of this blog) released Comte d’Or (“Count of Gold”), a gold ink made by Diamine exclusively for their store and the first from what will become their Les Couleurs du Comte (“The Colors of the Count“) ink series. La Couronne du Comte describe the series as “a range that focuses on special colours, rich in colour intensity, with a wonderful shading and/or sheen”. A year later they released three more inks, Bleu Cuivré (“Copper Blue”), a blue ink; Pan d’Epices (“Gingerbread”), a red ink; and Vert Sapin (“Pine Green”), a green ink . I’ll be reviewing all the ink in the series alphabetically.

I received Comte d’Or as part of a general promotion from La Couronne du Comte and I purchased Bleu Cuivré, Pain d’Epices, and Vert Sapin myself. You can find the inks here and use code “MACCHIATOMAN10” for 10% off!

Ink Overview: Esterbrook Inks Part 2 (Aqua, Shimmer Aqua, Shimmer Lilac, Tangerine and Shimmer Tangerine)

November 05, 2021 in Ink Review

Recently, Esterbrook released their initial set of inks. This set of nine inks I have split into two overview posts. The first post had a rather traditional set of inks; they have a vintage feel and wouldn't be out of place in a vintage Esterbrook lineup. That first part had Cobalt Blue, Ebony, Evergreen, and Scarlet. This second part has some more modern feeling inks with Aqua, Simmer Aqua, Shimmer Lilac, Tangerine and Shimmer Tangerine. This is a long part 2!

Thanks to Desk Bandit and Esterbrook for sending in these inks for review. I received samples and a bottle of Cobalt Blue.

Ink Review: La Couronne du Comte (Diamine) Pain d'Épices

October 07, 2021 in Ink Review

In September 2019 La Couronne du Comte, a stationery store based in Tilburg, Netherlands (and sponsor of this blog) released Comte d’Or (“Count of Gold”), a gold ink made by Diamine exclusively for their store and the first from what will become their Les Couleurs du Comte (“The Colors of the Count“) ink series. La Couronne du Comte describe the series as “a range that focuses on special colours, rich in colour intensity, with a wonderful shading and/or sheen”. A year later they released three more inks, Bleu Cuivré (“Copper Blue”), a blue ink; Pain d’Épices (“Gingerbread”), a red ink; and Vert Sapin (“Pine Green”), a green ink . I’ll be reviewing all the ink in the series alphabetically.

Ink Overview: Esterbrook Inks Part 1 (Cobalt Blue, Ebony, Evergreen and Scarlet)

September 22, 2021 in Ink Review

Recently, Esterbrook released their initial set of inks. This set of nine inks I have split into two overview posts this first post has a rather traditional set of inks; they have a vintage feel and wouldn't be out of place in a vintage Esterbrook lineup. This first part has Cobalt Blue, Ebony, Evergreen, and Scarlet. The next part will have some more modern feeling inks with Aqua, Simmer Aqua, Shimmer Lilac, Tangerine and Shimmer Tangerine.