Diamine Shimmertastic Night Sky is a black ink with silver particles. I’ve used Night Sky in vintage Pelikans and a Parker Reflex. It stays dark and silvery with all of them.
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Author: Laura
First Look: Diamine Shimmertastic Magical Forest
Fountain Pen Favorites for September 2015
It is hard to believe that this is already the last day of September. But I guess it’s sinking in. Chicago’s weather just turned from summery to frosty, too. To console myself about summer’s end, here are a few pen and ink favorites from this month
1. The Pink Pelikan. I still can’t help marveling at my luck. Pelikan made a pink M600 fountain pen. And I have one.
2. All of the Shimmer Inks. I am so impressed by every one of the ten Diamine Shimmertastic inks, all of which I tried in September. And those came right on the heels of J. Herbin’s 1670 Emerald of Chivor, another new favorite. I never would have thought I’d like these so much.
3. Postcards! That vintage postcard of the old Chicago Stadium really made my day. I wish I had time to learn more about vintage postcards. With the photography, the history and the occasional kitschy appeal, these are right up my alley.
4. The Never-Ending Story. Try this. Take a pen with a Japanese extra-fine nib, insert a large ink cartridge, and see how long it takes you to empty. I inked my Platinium Carbon Desk Pen with Carbon Black ink before Labor Day, and it still looks three-quarters full. I won’t be shocked if I am still writing with it on Halloween. Oh heck, I won’t be shocked if I’m writing my Christmas list with it.
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Photo by Dafne Cholet, Flickr, used under Creative Commons license.
First Look: Diamine Shimmertastic Sparkling Shadows
First Look: Diamine Shimmertastic Blue Pearl
Monday Morning Quarterback, September 28, 2015
Looking back on the previous week, having learned a few things.
1. Biggest Challenge. I am not the world’s biggest fan of the color purple. So deciding to make last week “purple ink week” was daunting. Did I even own more than two purple inks? Would I start to loathe purple? Could anyone last seven days using purple ink every single day?
2. Biggest Relief. Using purple ink turned out to be not just doable, but very nice. Purple ink was good for editing and cheery in letters. My daughters liked it. Both iron gall Gummiberry and Sailor Kobe Tamon Purple Grey were dark enough to be perfectly acceptable for work. I liked using these inks.
3. Biggest Reminder. It’s good to to keep trying new things. Life’s more fun that way.
4. Biggest Lesson. Nothing to do with pens or inks. Did anyone see Pope Francis stopping to bless and embrace a boy with cerebral palsy in Philadelphia? I happened to see this, and I hope I always remember it.
KWZ Gummiberry: Iron Gall Versus Regular
Ink Review: KWZ Gummiberry Ink
KWZ Gummiberry Ink. This ink color comes in both iron gall and regular versions. The iron gall version is a dark purple with very good water-resistance. The regular Gummiberry discussed here is a dye-based ink in a lighter, cheerful purple.
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Pen of the Day: Lamy Vista
Lamy Vista with extra-fine nib. This is the demonstrator version of the Safari. I use an extra-fine nib by far the most of any nib on my Lamy pens. It’s the best size for my cramped writing.
Despite my love for Safari pens, I resisted the Vista for years. Having a converter in a demonstrator pen seemed to defeat the purpose. But the minute I actually saw one, my opinion turned around. The converter only enhances the industrial syle of the pen, and I really like seeing it in there. Bonus points for the red knob.
The ink is Waterman Purple, since this is, after all, purple week. It’s a nice, easy-to-read purple color. I’ve actually used it a lot this week to mark up documents, and the combination of pen and ink has been perfect for that. Purple has been good luck, as promised.
Fountain Pen Follies 