Carol asks:
I wrote Brad Dowdy this question and he didn’t know however thought you might be able to help me understand.
I am looking to find a way to desaturate some of my fountain pen inks.
As an artist I’m looking to add ink lines, marks by drawing on top of my watercolor washes. Most of my inks: Diamine, Noodlers, Birmingham, Faber Castell, Pelikan and Edelstein are great inks yet their values are too saturated. I’m looking for a way to reduce the saturation to create a more muted tone in the line. Birmingham are some of my favorite as Nick and Josh have created inks that are favorable to me by their faded look – yet those are still a bit dark.
Diluted water I have found does little to alter the saturation while it makes the ink obviously wetter – which is a bit defeating as I am also looking for drier inks. A permanent or water resistant quality would be wonderful to maintain as well in those inks that offer this. I love for example Faber Castell Stone Grey and Noodlers Walnut – however both come off severely too dark.
It’s an odd ask I realize. Just thought if any experience has been noted on this. Advise would be welcomed.
What a fascinating question. And I’m tickled to think I might know something Brad doesn’t.
When thinking about color theory, muting color in a luminous material like ink, which behaves a lot like watercolor, is challenging. If you want to dull down a color, you will want to start by adding it’s complement. Refer to a color wheel (search : “color wheel” in an online image search to see a visual) to find a close complementary color. It will be the color on the opposite side of the color wheel.
First, whatever you do, do your experiments in a separate bowl, tray or container and not directly in your ink bottles in case contamination occurs. I would recommend one of those divided trays used for watercolor. Maybe like this one from Dick Blick.
For my example, I’m going to choose a deep dark blue. It’s complement is a yellow orange. So, if the deep dark blue is Kaweco Midnight Black, then yellow orange ink could be Papier Plume Sazerac (It’s what I had handy).
So, to put this to the test, using pipettes or a large blunt syringe, add ink approximately 10 drops of the color you want to mute (in this case the Kaweco Midnight Blue) in to one of the wells. Then add one drop of the Papier Plue Sazerac (my chosen complement) to the ink. I gave it a little swirl and then swabbed it on the paper. Then in the next well, drop 10 drops of the blue and two drops of orange and swab that to see the results. Be sure to label your swab if you want to replicate your results later.
By experimenting with a ratio of 10-to-1, 10-to-2 and 10-to-3, I was able to mute the color. This same method would work with other colors as well. YMMV and results could be unpredictable depending on the ink brands and composition. If you’re willing to experiment with small quantities (in separate containers so you are not contaminating your original ink supplies) you might get some interesting and subtle results.
I tested these inks using a Col-o-ring Oversize, cotton swabs and a dip pen to label my results. If you decide to fill a fountain pen with your inky experiments, I would recommend using a less expensive pen until you know how your new ink behaves.
Your safest options would be to use colors within the same brand however companies like Noodlers have different formulas across their range (like their Eel range, the Bulletproof range, etc) and Birmingham use different companies (check the labels to see “Made in England” or “Made in Germany”) for their inks so there may still be some discrepancies.
While I think color experimentation is a good thing, I cannot guarantee what every ink brand cross mixed with every other ink brand might do. So, proceed with caution and be ready for happy accidents.
Kiera asks:
I’ve been using diamine marine in my hobonichi cousin, but I want to take advantage of the hobonichi’s paper more. Marine is a lovely color, but not a very interesting ink otherwise. Can you recommend some sheening or shading inks that are similar in color? Thank you!
Kiera, most sheening inks tend to sheen because the pigment-to-liquid ratio is considerably higher. As a result, most sheening inks are darker than the lovely aqua Marine because all that pigment doesn’t allow the color to be as translucent. In the fountain pen world, we think of this as an ink’s ability to shade. So, the more pigment, the more sheen, and the less shading.
At least, up until this point. Someone will figure out how to circumvent this at some point, I’m sure.
That said, there are a few aqua/turquoise inks that have more sheen than Diamine Marine.
As you will see in the photo above, the four other ink colors I found that were in the same color family but had more sheen, are Diamine Aurora Borealis, Colorverse Gravity Wave, Robert Oster Marine and Kaweco Paradise Blue. Some of these colors are considerably darker but will have a red, pink or magenta sheen. The sheen will be more or less noticeable depending on how broad your nib is.
Colorverse Gravity Wave probably has the most sheen and I was able to catch the sheen highlights in the photo above.
There are many other sheening ink options available but they are not necessarily in the turquoise or teal color range. I pulled a few for you to consider.
The classic Organics Studio Nitrogen is the first “super sheener” and it will potentially smudge but if you’re looking for lots of sheen, you can’t go wrong with this one. I would recommend a finer nib for less smudging.
Diamine has created many amazing sheening inks. Some were created as exclusives for European pen shops but others are now available directly from Diamine. The colors are not as smudge-y as the Organics Studio and have some unusual sheening. Robert (and the Pen Gallery Exclusive Manggis) is a purple that sheens green. Skull & Roses is a deep vibrant blue that sheens red. Communication Breakdown is a rust red that sheens green. November Rain is a deep teal green that sheensred-violet.
There are many other sheening inks that will pop up in places you might not expect it like this Lamy Crystal Azurite or even in the most unsuspecting inks like Waterman. I often surprise people when I show them the sheen from Waterman inks, particularly Tender Purple and Inspired Blue. Blows their mind.
I decided to swatch the Waterman inks (and some of the inks on some Tomoe River paper) at the last minute just to show more of the sheen. It’s not all the colors mentioned above, but a lot of them.
This morning it’s overcast so I was able to get the sheen better. The Waterman Audacious Red didn’t show but on some papers, it sheens gold.
Kiera, did I give you enough options?
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