A change-up in threes
My latest currently inked is a study of triplets. A change-up to six new pen-and-ink combinations.
Three ground nibs each offer generous line variation: a F cursive italic, a F cursive smooth italic, and a B architect.
Three EF nib options ensure I will always have an accessible pathway to making detailed notes in my small handwriting. The Safari and Homo Sapiens offer a dark and light option, respectively.
Three accent-plausible inks balance the other three muted, driving ink colors. Celadon Cat and Murasaki offer cool tones that pop off the page aside this week’s calm palette.
I also chose five white or clear colorways to ensure my daily driver, the Lamy Safari, stands out within my pen case. The goal is to keep my grey-inked EF line maker easily spotted within my pen case and atop my desk.
Grey/Black
Lamy Safari Blue Macaron (EF). Colorverse Anti-Matter. Anti-Matter offers a light purple-heavy grey. The pairing lays down crisp, neat lines due to this particular Lamy’s moderate ink flow. A combination well-suited to quick-drying and legible task management. Also: margin notes and reading notes. A partial daily driver in an easy-to-remove pop cap — everything but meeting notes due to the Macaron’s bright, possibly-distracting pastel.
Blue/Teal
Pelikan m805 Souverän Demonsatrator (F CI, by Custom Nib Studio). Taccia Ukiyo-e Hiroshige-Ainezu. Ainezu produces a river flow of ink in the generous Pelikan feed. Ocean-deep blues with subtle strands of mid-toned blue in the middle of long writing strokes make for a fun dynamic. The dark ink color and clear pen fit well into serious administrative meetings and the true-to-size F nib suits detailed notetaking.
Visconti Homo Sapiens Blizzard (EF). Diamine Celadon Cat. A dry writing combination, which surprises me. Whisps of icy-teal shade darkly, lending a ghostly accent color to my meeting notes and reading notes. Celadon Cat stands out easily against both Anti-Matter’s grey and Ainezu’s blue-black. Intentional accenting writing when at work with an option for journaling if I feel compelled to start up an analytic journal entry.
Earth Tones
Pilot Custom Heritage 92 Clear (B). Robert Oster Shake ‘n’ Shimmy Schwarz Rose. The Pilot 92 is easily pocketable. Pilot makes an excellent clip that rests securely on folders, paper, and in pockets. This pair is my pocket carry for that reason. The B nib is a moderate partner that writes a dry, stingy line without pressure — perfect for quick-drying scratch notes in my pocket notebook. Pilot’s soft gold #5 nib lets me use gentle pressure to increase Rose’s ink flow in ways that show off the ink’s fun shading and rose-pink shimmer. Enjoyable additions during slow-moving writing like lesson plans, longform journal entries and reflective reading notes.
Wild Cards
Franklin-Christoph 03 Ghost (Utility Nib, Monty Winnfield). Colorverse New Horizons Pioneer Container. Pioneer Container has risen rapidly within my collection to become one of my favorite mid-toned purples. Reliable performance in every feed and nib size. I swapped my Monty Winnfield Utility nib into the 03 to take advantage of Pioneer’s versatility: EF and B lines that shade and remain easily mid-toned purple in both line widths. Lesson plans, notes during creative meetings, teaching notes with students (using the B side of the nib grind), journaling, and D&D notes.
TWSBI Vac700R Iris (F CI, by Nibgrinder). Taccia Ukiyo-e Ume Murasaki. Murasaki is a wet writer in the Iris’s feed; wet enough to keep the cursive italic’s crisp edges writing smoothly at even generous angles. The shouty colorway is best reserved for personal tasks like journaling, annotating reading, and manuscript drafting. The lovely narrow F line widths of this grind offer easily legible detailed notes for lesson plans and for lecture notes. Shouty and constructive.
