Inspired by Kenouni Renoshin‘s suggestion that I do more ink reviews, I give to you the first day of the 12 Days of Inkmas. Cheers!
On the fifth day of Inkmas, while I do not have five gold rings, I do have Private Reserve Ebony Blue. This is also another of the colors from the December Ink Drop in honor of Private Reserve founder Terry Johnson. And this is in my favorite color wheelhouse, for sure.
I just love blue-black inks. Do I want blue? Do I want black? I get both! Blue-blacks are the Missouri Compromise of inks. They are the “business in the front, party in the rear” of inks. While I’m not a fan of an actual mullet, blue-black inks are a whole other story. I love them. And Private Reserve Ebony Blue is no exception.
Private Reserve Ebony Blue is a blue black with an unusual burgundy undertone. In the large painted letters, you might be able to see a hint of this undertone in the capital E and around the edges in the swab.
My favorite blue-blacks (up to this point) are Noodler’s Air Corp blue-black 3oz/88ml ($12.50), Noodler’s Navy 3oz/88ml ($12.50), and I sort of put De Atramentis Pigeon Blue 35ml ($12.50) in this category even though its more of a blue-turquoise. But P.R. Ebony Blue is racing up the list. That undertone is such a nice added detail.
There’s a bit of shading in Ebony Blue and a reasonable dry time. I confess I’m all about the color, I’ll find the perfect pen and paper for the right color and this is definitely one of those “right colors” for me. I’m thinking I better go watch Dazed and Confused now to douse all the mullet jokes.
Private Reserve Ebony Blue is sold in 50ml bottles for $8.80.
The samples above were written with a TWSBI Mini EF fountain pen in the Quo Vadis Habana bright white, blank notebook. Dry times will vary depending on paper stock. Comparison samples were written using a steel dip nib with a bit of flex which causes some of the more liquidy inks, like De Atramentis, to run a bit. They are included for color comparison. Best efforts were made to achieve color accuracy but the limitations of camera, lighting and individual monitor calibrations may alter the final look. For best results, order a sample of the ink color you like best and try it before you invest in a whole bottle.
Page header on RSS says “Ebony Black” so I was confused when I saw the writing. Nice color, I had no idea what to expect from this one so thanks for posting it.
Oops! Thanks for catching my typo. I type these up either early in the morning or late at night so I can be a little spacey. Will fix!
Really? Not a fan of the mullet? 😉
Maybe Santa will bring me a fountain pen for Christmas so I can try this ink out. Blue blacks are my favorite. Classic with a little bit of interest, and not too much flash.