Trusting my friends all the way to ten inked pens
My friend Jo extended their brother’s offer to bring inks back from where he lives in Japan last December. Jo was particularly interested in a line of three limited Pilot inks from Tokyo: Shimbashi-iro, Edo-Murasaki, and Fukugawa-nezu. Two bottles of each; six in total.
Shimbashi is a shock of icy blue with noticeable shading and rarified pink sheen. Edo-Murasaki is a true purple with minimal shading or sheen. And Fukugawa-nezu is a grey. A graphite grey with some shading. Sweet.
We waited two months for local COVID numbers to drop before gathering in person on Saturday. Our first get-together in a season. The stated purpose of meeting up was to split up the inks into vials. The unstated purpose: to share new pens and inks and — in the case of our amateur brewer — new drinks. Each of us also brought a box of inks for the group to try. Winning.
A rare stationery cyclone sighting
Having us all in the same room brought tears to my eyes. And led to hollered, eager advice on which empty pens should leave inked with which inks. Good people. We’re calling it: the Great Decanting of 2022.
I brought seven empty pens. A collection of new pens and new nibs that they had yet to see in person. All are now inked and listed below.
So: I roll into this week without a pre-meditated plan. Planless. The challenge is retroactively finding a use for each combo. Especially since half of this week’s nibs are EF. The Zoom and Pelikan F are going to see plenty of action to contrast all those narrow lines.
A fun challenge. One that reminds me to trust my friends — because, this week, they were spot on.
Grey/Black
Pelikan m805 Stresemann Anthracite (F CSI, by Custom Nib Studio). Sailor Ink Studio 223. A return from last week. Wide, dark lines with a professional black and silver look. My primary meeting pairing. The italic nib is also suited to headings in lesson plans and lecture notes. Further, the nib is simply fun to write with: and so lends the combo well to longer writing tasks like journaling.
Franklin-Christoph 46 Philly Show ‘20 (EF SIG, by Franklin-Christoph). Bungubox Melancholic Gray. A gift sample from Jo. The wet EF keeps Melancholic Gray dark and murky — if minimal on shading. The wet feed makes the SIG grind more forgiving, while protecting a narrow EF line. My daily driver for the week. Task management, lesson plans, lecture notes, and reading notes (direct quotes).
Blue/Teal
Pilot Custom 74 Forest Green (EF). Diamine Hudson River. Upon inking, I handed the combo to Jo with the worry that the stingy EF nib may result in dry, scratchy writing. A few words of scribbling disavowed me of that worry. The narrow, light lines make for excellent manuscript editing, detailed notes on soft recycled book paper, and marking. Also: reading notes.
Karas Kustoms Decograph Winter Wonderland (EF). Pilot Iroshizuku Shimbashi-Iro. My friend, S, suggested the Decograph for Shimbashi as both the white acrylic and ice-blue ink are cool-toned. Wild success. The M-width lines from the Karas’ generous nib result in haloing and shading. A pairing that is suited to accent notes of all kinds: lesson plans, lecture notes, reading notes, meeting notes and some journaling.
Earth Tones
Loft Highworth Teal Ocean (EF). Lamy Crystal Peridot. Saturday was the Loft’s first day out. I fit it with the EF nib it shipped with. M and J steered me towards the bottles of Lamy Crystal inks that M brought to the gathering. Peridot won out as it matches the Highworth’s colorway. A wet ink and a disciplined EF line. The round nib is smooth and forgiving — excellent for quick jottings and scratching out ideas. Scratch notes, outlining, teaching notes.
Narwhal Schuylkill Chromis Teal (F, by Platinum). Birmingham Stormwater Runoff. I shared this pen with the group as it’s a frankenpen comprising parts almost everyone in the group already has. They can make one for themselves if they so wish. A disciplined F line that allows for Stormwater Runoff to shade and halo noticeably. And quick drying. Excellent for lesson plans, reading notes, and marking students’ papers. Also: journaling.
Sailor Pro Gear Graphite Lighthouse (Z). Diamine Ancient Copper. The second of three survivors from last week’s currently inked. The Zoom nib stands out amidst this week’s forest of EF and F nibs. Reverse writing with a Zoom nib offers an additional EF line. Combined, this is a great meeting pen. Wide lines, Ancient Copper’s pop of orange, and a multitasker nib allow me to accent detail notes and highlight tasks that need to be migrated into my weekly spread. As well as reading notes and journaling.
Wild Cards
Conklin Mark Twain Rose Gold (F CI, by Mike Masuyama). Papier Plume Bootlegger’s Sacrament. The third combo continuing on into this week. Sacrament is a murky, purple-black with infrequent gold sheen. Too dark to work well for accent notes. Instead, slow-writing tasks afford me opportunities to enjoy the lovely CI grind: journaling, end-of-day teaching reflections, and reading notes.
TWSBI Vac700R Iris (F CSI, by Pen Realm). Pilot Iroshizuku Edo-Murasaki. Murasaki strikes a balance. Bright enough to serve as a skimmable accent color, and dark enough to work for meetings. The Iris is best suited for personal writing and meetings with colleagues. Additionally, lesson plans, lecture notes, reading notes and journaling.
Kaweco Sport Fox (EF). Platinum Classic Cassis Black. M slid a box of Cassis towards me at the end of our get-together. He pointed at my Kaweco and said that I wouldn’t be sorry. Correct, friend! Cassis dries quickly, while growing darker in color. The Kaweco’s EF nib ensure lines are crisp, accelerating drying. Together, this combo makes a strong pocket carry. I can scratch notes down and return my pocket notebook to my pocket straight away without smears. Pocket notes, scratch notes, the odd unplanned meeting note.
