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Scented Inks — Encre Parfumée

This is the fourth of five reviews I'll be posting today and tomorrow, for one of six new inks about to be available from Just Write Pens / Blackstone Inks - so I'll keep it brief! The 'Scents of Australia' inks are made from similar components to the already-available 'Colours of Australia' line, and share their properties, with one key difference: all six inks are scented, with odours evocative of the Australian 'aromascape'. Here's a visual of the bottles that arrived last week (minus Australian Bush): http://i.imgur.com/LE5ZB3E.jpg Red Kunzea is formulated to resemble the flowers of the Kunzea ambigua plant - a tall shrub round in cool coastal areas of Australia. I'll let you read the hand-written reviews for more information - suffice to say this is a dark, saturated red - maybe half-a-shade lighter than Diamine Red Dragon. Its flow characteristics are great, and I haven't had problems with feathering and blessing - at least on the photocopier paper I used for the review. It doesn't appear to sheen, at least on the papers I've tried it on. A scan and photo of the review sheet: http://i.imgur.com/dShTykH.jpg http://i.imgur.com/4VcGHAT.jpg And a 'live' photo of the Water Test: http://i.imgur.com/QeOfsw5.jpg

De Atramentis BOOKWORM scented ink Is it an Ink or is it a Stink? http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/Ink%20Bottle%202%20FPN_zpszy5wrsrs.jpg Dear FPN Friends I am a great fan of De Atramentis http://www.de atramentis.comthe small family run business of the utterly passionate and friendly Dr.Franz- Josef Jansen. This company produces over 255 hand inks.... HANDMADE in GERMANY Until now I was not really a fan of scented inks... But er that has changed abruptly now.... why... Well as some of you might know from my profile I am a READING ADDICT and an INKOHOLIC.... De Atramentis has made a lovely dark green ink with the smell of OLD BOOKS AND ANCIENT LIBRARIES... that is like heroine to a drug addict http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/reading%20room%20and%20book%20worm_zpsts0ik79k.jpg Our little reading room and a detail picture of one of our bookshelfs ( a bit of a language mess books are in Dutch, German and English ) De Atramentis Bookworm Ink http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/Bookworm%20drawing%20FPN_zpscwojim6y.jpg Sorry I am not a great artist my Bookworm at the bottom looks more like the kind of " worm" that gets women pregnant and produces children The text on the book does neither express my personal believes nor my political views... In my humble opinion there is no room for that here. It is also NOT meant to offend people in anyway... I saw it merely as a practical joke But maybe it inspires people to read more books and may be it inspires people to do some more critical thinking and helps people to looks at hings from different angles and perspectives.... Welll that is a good thing after all I guess http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/Bookworm%20sampler%20FPN_zpszp6fuqly.jpg own here are some of the technical specs (as suggested by Ann Finley 2007) (not copied in but for this ink) points 1-5 1 = 5= Fountain Pens: Online Best Writer 0,8 italic nib, Kaweco Calligrapy Classic Sport 1,5 Italic Paper: Vleveka Classic Line Paperand ordinary copying paper Drying time: EXTREMELY FAST nib points 5 Flow: very smooth even in both the cheap and potenitally scratchy Dip Pens points: 5 Lubrication: wet points: 5 Feathering : None points 5 Bleeding: nada points 5 Shading: AWESOME points: % Waterproof: goof points: 4 Package: only i glass bottles Availabilty: De Atramentis http://www.de-atramentis .com For the Sake of Humanity I ho e that these inks will be available all over the world and it's surroundings SOON! Maybe I write the always friendly Rik and Dennis of http://la.couronneducomte.nl an E-mail..... They are always willing to help us FPN-ers Rik told me no problem what you need we can almost always order it The Colour Deep dark green. I would call it pine forest green or moss green... Just lke i called the green of the De Atramentis Jane Austen Ink https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/262586-lovely-liquids-de-atramentis-jane-austen-green/ Ink Vomit on a normal paper with a bit of a blowjob http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/Ink%20vomit%202%20FPN_zpsriq10u0y.jpg Ink vomit on kitchen paper http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/ink%20vomit%20FPN_zpsvik14vw2.jpgWaterproof Comparion of D-A Bookworm and D-A Jane Austen http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/comp%20jane%20bookworm%20FPN_zpsmx3ttipd.jpg It appears to me that the basis of the Jane Austen and the Bookworm is similar.... Colours are very much a like... But beautiful in my opinion The Scent Does this ink has a nice smell.... In my opinion YES!!! OLD BOOKS!!!. I can Imagine that this is not to everyones liking. The scent is very decent though. After a few days there is only as smell left if your nose is close to the paper.... This make it suitable for everyday work.... Only the Connaisseur will know Ink Behaviour http://i1286.photobucket.com/albums/a617/Morbus_Curiositas/De%20Atramentis%20Bookworm/Bookworm%20Handtest%20FPN_zpsikfisqfs.jpg The ink behaves excellently.... No feathering at all. Showthrough is very little and is even acceptable withbroader nibs The inks is very wet and smoot but very quickly drying.... Maybe this is an ink you should consider if you are a lefthand writer.... Because of it's wetness and excellent lubrication the writng experience is very smooth... Even in potentially scratchy (0.8 italic) nibs Waterproof This ink had a 1-hour Jacques Cousteau diving experience in a bowl of water.... Although the colour and the scent have vanished..... The words are completely and utterly legible.... Another reason why this ink is excellent for work Verdict This is my first scented ink and I like it. As a reading addict it is sort of a musthave . The colour is very much a like of that of the De Atramentis Jane Austen.... (but with a little extra haha) A lovely dark green..... I it Regards Peter

This is the second of five reviews I'll be posting today and tomorrow - for one of six new inks about to be available from Just Write Pens / Blackstone Inks. These inks arrived last week - an unexpected birthday present! The 'Scents of Australia' inks are made from similar components to the already-available 'Colours of Australia' line, and share their properties, with one key difference: all six inks are scented, with odours evocative of the Australian 'aromascape'! Here's a visual of the bottles that arrived last week (minus Australian Bush): http://i.imgur.com/LE5ZB3E.jpg An additional five inks were slated for release - and as of mid-June (the time I'm posting these reviews), the inks are ready to be released. Kevin kindly sent me full 30ml bottles of the five new inks - with permission both to test and to post reviews. I want to be up-front in acknowledging I haven't paid for these inks - but as with his previous releases, I've been really impressed with their colour, saturation and performance. Thus far, none of the 6 new inks show the problems I encountered early on with Uluru and, to a lesser extent, Daintree - both of which showed a tendency to become 'stringy' due to problems with the lubricant. These inks are well-behaved, smooth-flowing, richly coloured, and beautifully scented - and, in the case of the blue inks, are prone to produce a wonderful reddish sheen. Blue Cypress is on the same colour spectrum as Blue Gum - but whereas Blue Gum is a dark blue-green, Blue Cypress sits closer to the green end of the spectrum. The following are a scan and a photo - the 'true' colour probably sits somewhere in the middle (at last on my screen!). http://i.imgur.com/MeoPw7C.jpg http://i.imgur.com/MeoPw7C.jpg The sheen on Blue Cypress is pretty impressive - though I think Blue Gum may have a slight edge, based on my experience thus far? http://i.imgur.com/1cJLhCk.jpg Thanks to Kevin for providing these inks for free - I'll certainly be purchasing bottles down the track, when these are empty!

This is the third of five reviews I'll be posting today and tomorrow - for one of six new inks about to be available from Just Write Pens / Blackstone Inks. These inks arrived last week - an unexpected birthday present! The 'Scents of Australia' inks are made from similar components to the already-available 'Colours of Australia' line, and share their properties, with one key difference: all six inks are scented, with odours evocative of the Australian 'aromascape'. Here's a visual of the bottles that arrived last week (minus Australian Bush): http://i.imgur.com/LE5ZB3E.jpg The 'Colours of Australia' inks are available in 30 and 60 ml bottles (reusable polypropylene) which I've found to be non-reactive and airtight. For the enthusiast, they're also available in 250 and 1000 ml bottles. Right now, I'm only aware of the smaller bottles for the 'Scents of Australia' line, but I guess we'll soon see! Wild Orange is a darker, deeper shade of orange, as you'll see from the scan and photo below. I wouldn't call it a 'classic' orange - it ranges from a brownish orange in pens with less generous ink flow, to a dark burnt red. I really like the deep dark shade I get from my Fountain Pen Revolution flex pens! Thus far I haven't noticed any nib crud forming on my pens - but I haven't been using it for long enough, or in a wide enough range of pens, to be sure that won't be a problem. OK, here's the scan and photo: http://i.imgur.com/5rKCRJJ.jpg http://i.imgur.com/sqejSLB.jpg And here's the ink lifting off the page in the water test: http://i.imgur.com/c7WNgrU.jpg

A few months ago now, I received a surprise parcel in the mail - a set of ink samples from Kevin Watson of Just Write Pens / Blackstone Inks. Kevin explained that he was creating a new range of inks - 'Scents of Australia' - to supplement the existing 'Colours of Australia' line. Only one of the prototypes made it unchanged into the final lineup, and Kevin gave me permission to post a (p)review of the ink on FPN: Blackstone Australian Bush, a kind of eucalyptusy dark green with yellow overtones (check it out at https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/321420-blackstone-australian-bush-a-preview/). Here's a visual of the bottles (minus Australian Bush): http://i.imgur.com/LE5ZB3E.jpg An additional five inks were slated for release - and as of mid-June (the time I'm posting these reviews), the inks are ready to be released. Kevin kindly sent me full 30ml bottles of the five new inks - with permission both to test and to post reviews. I want to be up-front in acknowledging I haven't paid for these inks - but as with his previous releases, I've been really impressed with their colour, saturation and performance. Thus far, none of the 6 new inks show the problems I encountered early on with Uluru and, to a lesser extent, Daintree - both of which showed a tendency to become 'stringy' due to problems with the lubricant. These inks are well-behaved, smooth-flowing, richly coloured, and beautifully scented - and, in the case of the blue inks, are prone to produce a wonderful reddish sheen. Without further ado, here's a scan and photo of the first of these inks - Blue Gum: http://i.imgur.com/7UEJ00L.jpg http://i.imgur.com/VrjLe0J.jpg These inks aren't particularly waterfast - here's a 'live' photo of the water test: http://i.imgur.com/kKSeAAF.jpg And here's a visual of four of the inks on Tomoe River paper - note the sheen on the blue/green inks: http://i.imgur.com/1cJLhCk.jpg I'm really pleased with how these inks have turned out, and wish Kevin every success in producing and distributing them. Any questions you'd like to ask about the inks, I'm more than happy to answer!

This is the sixth and final ink in the soon-to-be-released 'Scents of Australia' series from Blackstone Inks / Just Write Pens - with thanks to Kevin Watson for providing me with these inks to sample and review! I try to be as impartial as I can in reviewing these products, but want to again acknowledge up-front that these were provided free - and that I really appreciate what Just Write / Blackstone are trying to do (especially) for the Australian fountain pen market. http://i.imgur.com/LE5ZB3E.jpg When Kevin first sent me three prototype samples, this ink was one of them - though it had a different scent at the time, and a different suggested name. He asked me to hold off on writing a review till I received the ready-for-market product, but the only thing that's changed is the scent. I've had this ink in one pen or another since April, and can confirm that it's consistent in its performance, has no unexpected crudding, drying, slow-starting or other issues - it's just a very reliable, well-lubricated, moderately-saturated ink. This won't be everyone's cup of tea (or mocha?) - it's a brown ink, and not everyone is keen on brown for starters! I'd characterise it as a yellow-gold leaning brown, whereas most of my other browns (Visconti Brown excepted) lean towards red. From the comparisons available to me, I'd say it's closest to KWZ Honey, though a little darker and less yellow. Please forgive the scrawled lettering of this scan - I'm back to work for the week (Mondays are my regular day off), so had to put this together in a hurry... Scan and photo of the review sheet: http://i.imgur.com/sKgJaJH.jpg http://i.imgur.com/3GdXX9Y.jpg Water test, showing the ink lifting off the page into the water droplets: http://i.imgur.com/lvlAyb8.jpg And lastly, Brown Boronia on Tomoe River paper - beautiful colour, but no sheen, no-how... http://i.imgur.com/0e4xY26.jpg As always, comments and/or questions are welcome - let me know if I've failed to mention anything important!