Inks for your Special Valentine

At some point, I may have mentioned I'm not really a pink ink person. I don't know if it's the bashfulness of using such a bright ink, or that it's too girly, but at this time of year, you've got to pull out the scarlet and the fuchsia.

J. Herbin Rose Cyclamen is, of course, the first one that comes to mind. It's a bright, happy, vibrant, pink pink pink (with a hint of puple). It's a keep you going and keep you awake type of pink.  I think everyone has to try this ink at least once, and this is the best time of year to pull it off. 

For those that are a little less exuberant, Noodler's Burgundy is a serious dark burgundy. Since I used a dip pen, it's quite wet, so you can't see too much shading at all. If you have a wet fountain pen, this is even a good for the workplace if you can swing it, since it's dark enough to almost pass for a black - though of course, you can get a hint of the burgundy if you look closely enough.

J. Herbin Rouge Caroubier is truly a cinnamon heart red, a real red without too much else in it. A good pick for a "teacher's red", and also popular for editing or margin notes. This is also my pick for your Valentine's Day writing, and it also very nicely doubles up for upcoming Lunar/Chinese New year!

You can also try Pilot Iroshizuku's Yama-Budo. This ink has certainly taken me by surprise - before we began carrying Iroshizuku inks, this was one of our most requested special order Pilot inks, and it continues to be one of our most popular Iroshizuku inks. A pinkish burgundy? Not quite sure how to describe it, but it has that special something. In fact, when people come into the shop, sometimes we end up discussing inks, and I've heard so much about this ink through customers, that I felt obligated to fill up a pen with it and test it out.  This Valentine's season is the perfect opportunity, and I'll let you know how it does. Interestingly, I've never noticed anyone telling Jon he needs to fill up a pen with this Yama-Budo, so maybe I'll have to fill one of his for him.

For these writing samples, I used a nib holder and a Brause Blue Pumpkin/Steno nib - you can probably tell from the blobs and inconsistencies that I need a little more practice with it. I have a few of these kicking around, and they're great to see what a shade of ink will look like. However, the nib will give a little more ink onto the page, so if you're using a drier pen, or a thinner nib, the colour might be a bit lighter - and you will probably get more shading as well. The Iroshizuku Yama-Budo was in a Platinum 3776 Broad, another wet pen. You can also check out a writing sample of Rohrer & Klingner's Fernambuk in a TWSBI broad nib from the last post on Valentine's Day Inspiration. Even if you're not writing Valentine's to leave in your classmates' desks anymore, consider using a bright ink on February 14th at the office, just to spice things up. What could be more fun than signing a contract or a writing out a prescription with pink ink?