The Indian Marmalade Company

Today I’m looking at three inks from three of the best manufacturers; Diamine, Dominant Industry and Ferris Wheel Press.

I chose these inks simply because of the pile of inks sitting on the desk for review these three have been waiting the longest. All of the reviews were carried out using Muji Planting Tree Paper and a Jinhao X159 with a Fine nib.

First for review is Red Robin from the Diamine Inkvent Red Edition currently retailing at £8.78 for 50ml from Cult Pens.

Red Robin is a nice bright red with just a hint of orange; it is well saturated giving a good colour even when using a fine nib. I experience no skipping and no hard starts even when the pen was left deliberately uncapped for a few minutes. I found the drying time a little quicker than I anticipated but that was possibly the result of room temperature.

So, is it worth your pennies?

Yes.

It’s a wonderful ink that is excellent value for money and comes in the Inkvent bottle and box which looks good on the shelf or makes an ideal gift.

Next up is Dominant Industry’s Dominant Blue currently retailing at £7.60 for 25ml from Cult Pens.

Dominant Blue, like all Dominant inks, is very nicely presented in a drawstring pouch in a sealed box; the bottle is shaped like an inverted light bulb with a black plastic cap bearing the Dominant logo.

Before discussing the ink, I should pass comment on how well sealed the bottle was; it was very difficult to open. I appreciate I might have been unlucky and received an over tightened cap but just in case I’m not my advice is be prepared.

Dominant Blue is a well saturated medium blue ink which had a hint of red sheen on the edges of the brush strokes when creating the swatch.

It flowed well and drying times were quite quick at approximately ten seconds in a moderately warm room using a fine nib. I experienced no skipping nor, in normal use could I cause a hard start.

I was very pleased with the text test giving a nice even colour which could be used in any setting.

So, is it worth your pennies?

It is and not just for the nice blue ink but the unusual bottle and presentation  make it one to add to your collection or an ideal little gift for the pen and ink addict in your life.

Finally the last ink in this review, Ferris Wheel Press’ Wondrous Winterberry, currently retailing at £22.00 for 38ml from Cult Pens.

Whilst this is the most expensive of the inks being reviewed it is also the one you could easily describe as something special; from the packaging to the bottle to the cap, I could go on but you get the idea.

Wondrous Winterberry is the perfect Christmas ink either as a gift for someone or as your sparkling Christmas ink. What makes it a Christmas ink is the packaging; Ferris Wheel Press have created a wonderful predominantly red festive red box with gold foil images. The bottle is circular but not spherical and has their signature brass hexagon nut cap.

The ink itself is a deep red wine red that sparkles when the light catches it; it flowed well giving a nice even colour in the text test.

It didn’t skip or hard start and despite being a sparkling ink did not clog the nib. In a moderately warm room the ink dried in around ten seconds.

So the final question is as the most expensive of this reviews inks, is it worth your pennies?

It is because if it’s a gift the recipient will like it and if it’s for yourself it’s nice to have a treat once in a while.

In Conclusion

As a final question I decided to ask myself if I could only have one of the inks, which one would it be?

Tough choice but I think I would opt for the Dominant Blue simply because it is a very nice blue you could use anywhere.

Disclaimer: The inks were purchased at retail price. The opinions expressed in this review are my own; and I am not connected with either the retailers or manufacturers in any way.

These days finding a good and preferably independent stationers is nigh on impossible; so, I decided that when I come across one I would post a few lines and store details so if you are ever nearby you could drop in. Continue reading “Occasional Recommendations Part 1” →

The other day whilst strolling around Amazon I came across the Stabilo Grow; a fountain pen with almost impeccable eco credentials built using recycled materials, FSC approved wood with barrels in three different woods. Continue reading “The Almost Eco Fountain Pen –  A Review Of The Stabilo Grow” →

The past may be another country; a place we cannot visit and only know fragments about it based upon what has been left behind. And it was just such a fragment that came into my possession a couple of weeks ago in a thrift shop.

Back in the days of Jeeves and Bertie Wooster ladies and gentlemen of refinement carried their cigarettes in silver cigarette cases and those of us for whom silver cases were unattainable we carried them in the original packets until a bright spark hit upon the idea of making a chrome plated version of the silver case that would be less expensive and therefore would be available to a wider (aspirational) customer base.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago and you find me in a thrift store holding said case and handing over a few pounds and leaving as the proud owner of one of these cases; who had no idea what to do with it.

Then it struck me. Whenever I have been travelling with notebooks, pens et cetera the one thing that always seems to end up rolling around in my bag is the spare cartridges and the occasional converter and this little case might be the solution.

So I decided to try out various cartridges from my collection to see what fitted and what did not; and here are the results:

Empty

Full

So there you have it, what could have ended up as no more than a novelty from the past now has a new lease of life as a cartridge caddy.

So next time you are in a thrift shop don’t pass over things until you’ve thought twice about it; remember if you buy it you are doing two good things; giving money to a charity or helping a small trader and you are recycling aka repurposing something.