The Well-Appointed Desk

Inkmas day 9 is an ink I have a tough time showing in a way that brings out its true beauty. Sailor Shikiori Kasasagi.

Kasasagi came out in the Shikiori line recently but never to much fanfare. It is a dark blue-teal that leans towards a dark gray with a understated black sheen.

Kasasagi is hard to show well unless you are in person – the color is very close to Teranishi Guitar Smoky Navy or Montegrappa Ravenclaw Blue. In writing, it looks dark gray or black until suddenly… it doesn’t. Suddenly you stop and admire that there is… something… different about the ink.

The shading properties of Kasasagi show up particularly well in a finer nib or a pen that tends to feel dry. The ink will shade from black to a light gray, going through a range of teals in-between.

Using Kasasagi at a recent pen show to test pens, I saw the huge color range of this ink and the number of times someone asked for a bottle to be added to their order. I chose Kasasagi as today’s Inkmas in appreciation of the understated hidden gem that has gone unnoticed.

You can buy Kasasagi at any retailer that carries Sailor inks for $18 for a 20mL bottle.

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were paid for by me for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In Ink Review

Inkmas 8: Vinta Tabuan Purple Sea Star 2022

AnaDecember 18, 2024December 18, 2024Leave a comment

Today for Inkmas, we are taking a look at a rare beauty: Vinta Tabuan Purple Sea Star (2022) ($18 for 30ml bottle) , an exclusive ink from Enigma Stationery. Sadly, this ink is currently unavailable. I don’t know if the ink will be reproduced but I thought I’d share it just to show this unique, shading ink.

On Tomoe River paper, Tabaun Purple Sea Star is a good writer. It works well in a wide variety of pen widths. The color is vivid and unique. The watered down sample in the lower right shows some of the undertones which are notably more purply and bluish than I would have guessed from the solid sample.

When comparing Vinta Tabaun to other inks, Monteverde Purple Mist is probably the closest in color. I included a few others that are similar in value (lightness) but lean a little more reddish-purple or bluish violet. I also wanted to compare Tabaun to Maskara and Tabaun is darker with less pink undertones. So, if you’re a fan of Vinta inks its worth searching for or requesting a reorder of Tabaun since its different and a standout color.

Though Monteverde Purple Mist looks similar in hue overall, I think in finer writing, Purple Mist appears a little lighter.

Close-up comparison of Tabaun (top) and Maskara (bottom)

When compared with Maskara, Tabaun is more of a shading than a multi-chromatic ink.

Overall, I really like Tabaun and I hope it will be available again soon.

Tools:

Paper: blank Tomoe River 52gsm with Ink Swatch Guidesheet
Pens: Tachikawa T-40 dip nib holder with Zebra G titanium nib, Sailor Hocoro Dip Nib Pens (in various sizes with additional feed units), Pilot Iro-Utsushi Dip Pen (F)
Swatches: Col-o-Ring Ink Testing Book ($10) & Col-o-dex Rotary Cards ($15)

In Link Love

Link Love: Inkmas Paused While We Inkvent

AnaDecember 18, 2024December 18, 20241 Comment

Today’s Link Love is full of folks’ review and reveal from the various Inkvent and Ink Advent calendars so we will take a little break from Inkmas this morning — our own holiday ink review spectacular — to give you a chance to read some other recaps, reviews and ink dumps.

Enjoy and Inkmas will continue this afternoon!

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In Ink Review

Inkmas 7: Reds, Rudolph’s Nose to Mulled Wine

AnaDecember 17, 2024December 16, 20242 Comments

I started with greens, but of course the next candidate for a holiday ink overview is reds right? Whether you want something as bright and cheery as Rudolph’s red, red nose to something as delicious as mulled wine, I’ve got the range!

Tomo & Lims Kaleidoscope Maboroshi is that bright delightful red, along with some sparkle and sheen. Monteverde Ruby and Pilot Iroshizuku Momiji lean just the slighted bit red, orange. Pelikan Star Ruby and Colorverese Lights on Ceres add a little bit of pink to the show. And Pennonia Mustvoros, Colorverse Red Shift and DeAtramentis Deepwater Obsession Red/Black stray into full on mulled wine territory. Which screams Christmas to you?

Birmingham Pen Co Dusquense Incline Station Red leans sort of brick red/brown, and Mont Blanc William Shakespeare and Corn Poppy Red are intense dark reds.

3 Oysters Dancheong and Colorverse Kepler’s Law veer into the browns again, while Kyo-No-Oto Adzukiro leans wine. Ferris Wheel Press Wondrous Winterberry might be your perfect holiday shade – deep dark red, with gold sparkle.

So which wonderful reds did I miss?

DISCLAIMER: Some of the items included in this review were provided to us free of charge for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In feature

Inkmas 6: Top Inks for 2024

AnaDecember 16, 2024December 16, 2024Leave a comment

Over the course of 2024, I ended up using a few inks more than other and they were not all inks I would have said were my favorites or most-used previously.

Since I have been trying a more seasonal theme for my planner/journal this year, I used a lot of warm browns and orange-y colors in the latter half of the year that I would not have normally chosen.

My fall-focused inks were the Robert Oster Campfire (limited edition, no longer available) and Kaweco Caramel Brown which were used in my journal in September and October. Callifolio Andrinople was my go-to for February. Monteverde Birthday Cake has unexpectedly become my everyday ink. Sailor Chu-Shu is one of my favorite not-black inks that I use whenever I want a dark natural color but don’t want to go all the way to black.

The last three colors are, of course, shades of green. The Pen BBS No. 342 is no longer available but is one of my favorite yellow-green inks. I used it for Spring as well as for the holidays. Vinta Karnival is such a joyous, ocean inspired blue green. And Diamine Olive Swirl is the ink that has lived in my TWSBI Eco that I use to sign invoices. The dark yellowy olive green has iridescent blue sparkles and give its such charm!

With the exception of the Diamine Olive Swirl, all these inks worked extremely well in my fine Japanese nib pens. The shimmer in the Diamine Olive Swirl is used in a 1.1mm TWSBI only and has worked all year without a clog or hard start issue, even in the hot dry months of late Summer.

If you want to watch me painting these swatches, enjoy the video below!

In feature

Special Offer: Free Shipping!

AnaDecember 16, 2024December 13, 2024Leave a comment

To celebrate our first Christmas as a full-time stationery business, I wanted to offer a special deal to all my loyal readers and supporters.

From now through Dec. 31, 2024, get free shipping on any order over $40 with the code FREESHIP40.

Coupon will only be valid in our Big Cartel shop.

Happy Holidays to you all! Thanks so much!

(Reminder: The USPS says that all packages must be shipped by 12/18/24 in order to arrive in time for Christmas. For more info, check their guide here.)

In Ink Review

Inkmas 5: Pelikan Edelstein Rose Quartz

AnaDecember 13, 2024December 13, 2024Leave a comment

Technically, Pelikan Edelstein Rose Quartz ($33.50 for 50ml bottle) was the Pelikan Ink of the Year for 2023. However, I didn’t acquire a bottle until this year and then I forgot where I put it. Despite Rose Quartz being a limited edition ink, there are still bottles floating around in various online pen shops. If you want to grab a bottle, I recommend doing it now before the only ones left are double the price on the secondhand market.

The photos of Rose Quartz are deceptively vivid. The color is much more complex and subtler in person. Having looked at various other web sites, I realize I am not the only person who had trouble catching the subtleties. This ink photographs much differently than it appears in person. I really do recommend grabbing a sample or bottle to get a true sense of this color for yourself.

That said, this is a surprisingly subtle, sophisticated pink. In my research, I saw various ink swatches online that do not do the color justice. Some looked washed out, others were glaringly bright. The actual color is a smoky pink with a multichromatic halo that is purple and coral. I notice the purply hints more on Col-o-ring paper. On Tomoe River, the ink shows a bit more orangey-coral hues. In the swatch, the granulating color is quite noticeable but when writing, especially with finer nibs, that granulation is less noticeable. For such a light color, even with a fine nib, the color is visible and actually dries a bit lighter than when wet which is a bit different than a lot of inks (J. Herbin’s lighter colors often write very light wet and darken as they dry. Rose Quartz is different which is great for anyone like me who uses more fine nibs but still likes lighter ink colors.)

When compared with other inks, Monteverde Rose Pink is probably the closest but its considerably brighter.In natural light, Robert Oster Australian Opal Pink looks the closest in hue though finer nibs write much lighter. The Sailor and J. Herbin inks are more reddish in hue making them feel more like dusty roses.

I definitely recommend that if you like pink inks, you should try to grab a bottle or sample of this ink. It photographs so differently than it appears in person. I wish I could find a good example that shows the color accurately but I couldn’t get my photo edited in a way that showed the color accurately nor could i find anyone else who could do it. It’s like it doesn’t want anyone to know how lovely it really is.

Tools:

Year End Wrap Ups:

Pens:

Ink:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

Other Interesting Things:

Happy Holidays to you all! Thanks so much!