In Ink Review

Inkmas Day 7 – Laura’s 2025 Top Inks

Author AnaPosted on 3 Comments
Inkmas Day 7 – Laura’s 2025 Top Inks

As I have been thinking about this post for the past several days, I realized that I am no where near as organized as Thien Kim was about her review. I ended up going more by gut feel, which means I probably have some recency bias (more inclination towards what I have been using more recently). I also discovered a flaw in my re-inking notes – I don’t always mark the pen as re-inked if I refill it with the same ink. That said there are a few inks I put the same pen repeatedly, or multiple pens this year.

Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin

This is one of the first inks that I reviewed for the Desk way back in 2018. I re-discovered it this year when I pulled out my Pilot Metropolitans and wanted to go matchy matchy. I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about this green! It’s the perfect springy limey green, with just a hint of yellow/chartreuse. It’s not just that it matches my pen, it’s that it makes me happy to see full pages of text in it. You can tell it’s gotta be good because the bottle is almost half gone!

Dominant Industry Periwinkle Twinkle

This was an ink I discovered back in 2022, during the Veri Peri Pantone Color of the Year reviews (we’re still not talking about the new Pantone color of the year yet – I have feelings!). With this ink it’s definitely a combo of the ink and the pen I have it in . The pen is a Jinhao 82 and there is something I ABSOLUTELY love about the wet nib + this ink. The Twinkle is supposed to have a bit of silvery pearl and I don’t always get that, but the blue just has a hint of lavender that I love. I don’t think this pen had any other ink in it this year!

Diamine 150th Anniversary Purple Dream

Apparently this one was another Pantone acquisition in 2018 (the year of Ultra Violet). Ultra violet it is not, but I swear it went into almost every pen I wanted to fill with a purple ink this year. And it’s not like I don’t have other purple inks. Something about it is rich and regal, with just a hit of red at the end.

So somehow I ended up at the cool end of the rainbow, revisiting lovely inks from years past. So what inks were new (or new to me) in 2025?

Again I end up back at Pantone. This year was my Brown Year (sorry, my Mocha Mousse year!). The ink that intrigued me the most out of all of them was the Vinta Sepia Isabella. This ink has so many beautiful colors in it that it’s amazing. Except that when I put it into a pen to use it, I just didn’t get what I wanted. It came out looking vaguely brown/pink. I need to try a few more pens.

The rest of the browns? They were lovely, but I just don’t find myself reaching for brown inks that often. So I know they’ll get into the rotation eventually, but I can’t give them a top spot.

What were your favorite inks of 2025?

DISCLAIMER: Some of the inks shown here have been purchased with my own funds, others were received as review samples. Please see the About page for more details.

In feature

Inkmas Day 6: Taccia Roughna Sketch Ink – Earth Green

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Inkmas Day 6: Taccia Roughna Sketch Ink – Earth Green

Taccia makes some unique inks, very much influenced by Japanese history and culture with deep, complex colors. Their line of Roughna Sketch Inks are no different. I picked up a sample of the Earth Green ($32 for a 40ml bottle) which is a sheening olive-y green. And if you’ve been around this site for very long, you’ll know that yellow-y greens are some of my favorite colors and the most difficult to find a usable ink that keeps its yellowy tones while being visible to the human eye.

It appears that the Roughna Sketch Ink collection includes four colors: Woody Brown, Earth Blue, Rose Pink and the aforementioned Earth Green. The naming is a little odd, I think there could have been a whole elements concept here with earth, air, fire and water or something like that but instead there are two “earth” colors and Woody Brown and Rose Pink. Maybe its a translation issue. Anyway, back to the topic at hand….

As a sketch ink, the description said that this ink had “medium” water resistance. I am not sure how useful that will be for mixed media drawing but I was willing to give it a try.

Nope. On Col-0-ring paper, that dried for over 24 hours, the ink was not water resistant. On Tomoe River, the ink was slightly resistant but not enough to use it for drawing and then painting over it with other materials.

If you consider it a standard water-soluble fountain pen ink, the color is fabulous. I love it and I think its a great shading ink in fine nibs. It gives enough shading and even a little sheening in fine and extra fine in ways that other medium range yellow greens do.

I thought for sure that Earth Green would be similar to my beloved PenBBS greens (no longer available so I won’t even tempt you with swatches of them) but I discovered that Earth Green is closer to Pennonia Zoldike Greenfinch and Colorverse #56 Redwood Forest. The Sailor 50 States Wyoming is more yellowy and lighter as well as the J. Herbin Vert Olive. I love how Vert Olive and Wyoming look but it can be too light for fine nibs.

The slight reddish sheen on Green Earth makes it so unique. It has the density for finer nibs while keeping the pleasing mossy quality.

This is definitely a candidate for “full bottle status” in my collection for 2026. Have any samples you’ve purchased reached “full bottle status” for you?

DISCLAIMER: Some items included in this review were provided free of charge by Vanness Pen Shop for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In feature

Giveaway Winner: Hobonichi Techo 2026

Author AnaPosted on Leave a comment
Giveaway Winner: Hobonichi Techo 2026

Big shout out to new reader, Kate, and winner of our Hobonichi Techo 2026 giveaway! I have emailed you directly to get the planner mailed out to you. Please let me know if you have not received it.

I hope the folks at Creative Kindness are excited to get your generous gift. Desk readers are some of the nicest, most generous people on the internet! You never disappoint.

In Ink Review

Inkmas Day 5: Robert Oster Melbourne Pen Show 2025 – Kelp Forest

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Inkmas Day 5: Robert Oster Melbourne Pen Show 2025 – Kelp Forest

Robert Oster Kelp Forest (50ml for $ 19) was created for the Melbourne Pen Show 2025  and is kind of a dual-shading mossy green. When its lightly applied to paper with a fine nib, the color is a shading low saturated yellowy green. When there is heavy coverage on the rright kinds of paper, there is a golden sheen maybe even reddish looking. It feels like looking into the murky depths of a pond, murky, musty green.

This might not sound appealing but it is really fun if you appreciate these sorts of earthy greens.

In writing, the nib you choose will make a big difference with this ink. I tested a variety of Sailor Hocoro nibs to quickly try a variety of nib widths. The fine nib is a bit fine for this low saturation ink. It is still legible but quite light. I think a medium nib, similar to the Dominant Industry glass nib on the Ink Muddler shows the variation of color while still be usable for day-to-day writing. Wider nibs like a Fude or 1.0mm or above shows even more variation but my handwriting looks terrible!

Compared with other murky yellow-greens in my collection (of which there are MANY) Taccia Uguisa is the closest though it does have amore reddish sheen. Robert Oster Avocado is darker than Kelp Forest but is a similar hue. I threw in a swatch of Lennon Tool Bar Pomelo which is lighter and more yellow-y but also features an unusual sheen.

While I am enamored with the color of Kelp Forest and the unusual sheen, I am not sure how useful it will be for everyday use. Oh ye of wider nibs, go forth and embrace the murky depths!

Tools:

DISCLAIMER: The items included in this review were provided free of charge by Vanness Pen Shop for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.

In Pen Review

Inkmas Day 4: My 2025 Top Inks

Author Thien-Kim LamPosted on 2 Comments
Inkmas Day 4: My 2025 Top Inks

I know it’s only mid-December, but I’ve probably re-inked my pens for the last time this year so it’s recap time! This is the first year I’ve put all my data into a spreadsheet to figure out what inks I used the most. But we’ll get to that later.

My 2025 Ink Intentions

In 2024, my ink collection grew by. . . a lot thanks to generous members of the DC Metro Pen Club. Someone was making a big move and didn’t want to take their bottles of inks with them. I initially only grabbed two bottles so other members could partake. Two hours later, many bottles remained on the freebie table and we were encouraged to take more. How could I say no?

My main intention in 2025 was to use a wider variety of inks, including the samples I’d received in various swaps with the lovely people in the fountain pen community. I think I only purchased a handful of bottles for personal use this year. (I bought many bottles for the classes I taught at the DC Pen Show.)

I also wanted to use up samples in which I only had a couple of mL or less. Which was quite a bit.

Did I succeed? Let’s find out!

I make a 3×5 Index card every time I re-ink my pens

2025 Inks by the Numbers

According to my notes, I used 64 different inks this year! Not bad for someone who only keeps 10-12ish pens inked at a time.

I didn’t track how many sample vials of inks I used up but my conservative guess is at least 10 vials. I don’t think I emptied any bottles of ink. (Cries) At the rate I’m acquiring ink, I doubt I’ve made a dent in my collection. 

I also refuse to count how many bottles of ink I own. It’s better that way. Plausible deniability and all.

2025 Most Used Inks

#1 De Atramentis Document Black & #2 De Atramentis Document Grey (my own mix)

I’m not surprised that these are my most used inks. I keep a bottle of D.A. Document Black in a drawer next to my desk and a vial of grey I mixed myself using the black and De Atramentis Dilution Solution.

Why these inks? They’re 99.99% waterproof. The black is dark but not Anish Kapoor black. I use this ink in my illustrated journal because I can use watercolors over them, in my bullet journal for drawing/tracing spreads, and in my commonplace notebook. For the last two, I frequently use mildliners over my notes and the ink won’t smear.

#3 De Atramentis Document Violet

This is my second favorite D.A. Document Ink. It’s a dark blue-leaning violet. I use this color so much, I bought a bottle years ago instead of mixing it myself. It’s nice to be able to add some color to my commonplace notebook and not worry about losing my notes if I spill my coffee or water. 

#4 Wearingeul Dracula

Shimmer inks are my kryptonite! I love how this ink works in my flex nibs and had to force myself to use a different inks in order to stick with my intentions above. I love red and deep/hot pink inks. Add shimmer and I’m a goner. Also, how could I resist a name like Dracula?

2025 Favorite New to Me Inks

In no particular order:

The CoffeeMonsterz Co Forgotten Iced Coffee

I got caught in the Esterbrook x TCMC collab hype because Pen Boutique (my local pen store) held a launch party for it. I attended the party and restrained myself to purchasing the blotting papers and the ink. The shading in this ink is super fun.

Diamine Fortune’s Gold

I used up my tiny sample of Pelikan Edelstein Golden Beryl earlier this year. It’s a gorgeous ink and I’m sad I missed out on it. The ink performed incredibly well in my Stylosuite flex nib. I asked around for a dupe and Fortune’s Gold was one of the many suggestions. While it’s not close to Golden Beryl, I enjoyed this ink very much. I’m not sure if I’ll buy a bottle once my sample is gone though. waves at my ink collection

Wearingeul Persephone

Yes, another shimmer ink. What did I tell you? I’m glad I bought a bottle of it. Another fantastic ink for my flex nib. I have no qualms about pushing how much shimmer that nib can take. Spoiler: it’s a lot.

Final Thoughts

I don’t have numbers for my 2024 inks used, but I’m happy with how I was able to use so many different inks this year. We’re all creatures of habit. I found myself reaching to some of my go-tos quite often but managed to stop myself most of the time.

I’m not sure what my 2026 ink intentions will be yet. I want it to be something that feels attainable so I won’t say things like, “Use up all my sample vials first.” 

How about you? Were you happy with your fountain pen ink usage in 2025?

Tools:

In Link Love

Link Love: We’e Not Gonna Talk About Pantone

Author AnaPosted on 1 Comment
Link Love: We’e Not Gonna Talk About Pantone

This week my social media apps exploded in outrage and skepticism around the announcement of the Pantone Color of the Year for 2026. There is sooooo much to say about the choice of color, a white they are calling “Cloud Dancer” and the outrage pouring from every source on the internet.

Laura and I plan to spend a good deal of time talking about color in January so put this outrage on your back burner until then. We have the entirety of 2026 to rail against Pantone as well as to make some recommendations for other colors that could be considered as the color for 2026 — whether you are hoping to feel optimistic or pessimistic about the year will bring. So right now, we’re not talking about Pantone, but you can in the comments!

Color of the Year (We Are Not Talking About):

It’s Inkvent/Ink Advent/Inkmas Season (potential spoilers):

Pens:

Ink:

Notebooks & Paper:

Art & Creativity:

Other Interesting Things:

And lastly, if you live in the Kansas City area and would like to shop for Well-Appointed Desk and Skylab products this weekend (along with lots of other cool art and craft makers), consider stopping by the Unity Temple on the Plaza on Saturday or Sunday. Say hi, buy some stuff and enjoy the holiday vibes on the Plaza!

We offer lots of cool stuff that is exclusively available to Patrons.  Maybe this is the year you join our Patreon and get to hear my journey with digital detox firsthand, or maybe you want free printables and downloaable files? Patrons get that and more! Patrons supports this site. Without them, and without you, we could not continue to do what we do. Thank you!

In Ink Review

Inkmas Day 3: Sailor Manyo Ukikusa

Author Laura CameronPosted on
Inkmas Day 3: Sailor Manyo Ukikusa

I couldn’t kick my contributions to Inkmas off without a green? I actually bought a bottle of Sailor Manyo Ukikusa (50mL for $24) a few months ago, but then decided to hold onto it for a little Inkmas fun.

The Sailor Manyo line is a collection of inks inspired by the leaves and flowers of Japan. Manyo sort of translates into “Ten Thousand Leaves.”

And Ukikusa is the perfect green leaf color. Bright, springy, with lots of beautiful shading.

I thought I had some similar options in my ink stash, but I really don’t. I always think of Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku Rin (bamboo) but it’s definitely yellower. Robert Oster Sublime is a great green, but not as blue as Ukikusa. And even Pennonia Almazold (Apple Green) isn’t quite right.

(Side note – how crazy is it that the Chiku Rin card has faded like that? I’m not sure if it’s sun exposure or what. I need to reswatch!)

Sailor inks are lovely to work with. Sort of a Goldilocks ink – not too wet, not too dry, dries on the page fairly quickly. This one’s a keeper!

DISCLAIMER: Special thanks to Jet Pens who sent us the ink sample for the purposes of review. Other items may have been received for review, or purchased with our own funds. Please see the About page for more details.