Thistle - Ink Powder - Blue Black

[dcwaites]

DCWaites is blushing

[lovemy51]

hi all. thanx for the review, amberleadvis.

 

i still have 12.5fl.oz of this ink (a full bottle of VOSS water) and 3 full packets in store.....

 

great ink!

[amberleadavis]

hi all. thanx for the review, amberleadvis.

 

i still have 12.5fl.oz of this ink (a full bottle of VOSS water) and 3 full packets in store.....

 

great ink!

 

Does this mean you are selling?

[Tas]

 

Does this mean you are selling?

 

Ha!

[amberleadavis]

So I offered the review "art work" to DCWAITES first, but he turned it down. It will cost $15 to ship to anywhere other than CONUS. It's 18"x24" (big enough to be a poster). Anyway, first one who wants to pay for shipping, can have the cool Amber original.

[scully012]

So I recently received a small sample of concentrated (~5x) ink from Amber and I wanted to share my impressions of the ink with you! I diluted the 1ml sample with 6ml of water to be somewhat close to the intended concentration of the ink (possibly a little less saturated). This yielded a very nice blue that exhibits a lot of shading potential on nicer papers and behaves very well on a variety of paper from cheap to fairly nice. In all, this is a very fun ink and I like the way it works!

 

(excuse the poor cell phone pictures!)

 

http://i1369.photobucket.com/albums/ag222/brendanscully94/Thistle1_zps537bb19b.jpg

 

 

http://i1369.photobucket.com/albums/ag222/brendanscully94/Thistle3_zpse9cee256.jpg

 

 

http://i1369.photobucket.com/albums/ag222/brendanscully94/Thistle2_zps0a75e05d.jpg

 

The second and third pictures have been color adjusted to give a good impression of the color of the ink as well as the shading properties it exhibits.

 

Thanks for reading!

[amberleadavis]

Wow, it is still pretty even diluted as per the instructions.

[scully012]

Wow, it is still pretty even diluted as per the instructions.

 

Yes it is, I'm definitely taking a liking to it!

[Tas]

Can't wait. I thought it was going to look like Prussian Blue but your dilution makes it look like the lovely China Blue which attika has recently made me put on my shopping list . . .

[Alexandra]

The color is GORGEOUS!

[Alexandra]

After drooling over this blue I saw a review of Diamine Twilight and thought It looked similar enough to satisfy my want of this particular color.

[whichwatch]

So, Amber, what do I do with the sample of liquid you sent me? Use it straight? Or dilute it?

 

I tried tasting it, but that wasn't right!

[dcwaites]

So, Amber, what do I do with the sample of liquid you sent me? Use it straight? Or dilute it?

 

I tried tasting it, but that wasn't right!

 

Assuming Amber has sent you a 5x original strength sample,

I would dilute some of it with equal parts of water, which will give you 2.5 x, which is ideal for FP use.

Diluting the rest to give you 1x strength gives you an ink that is ideal for dip pen writing, not calligraphy, which is what it is designed for.

[dcwaites]

So I offered the review "art work" to DCWAITES first, but he turned it down. It will cost $15 to ship to anywhere other than CONUS. It's 18"x24" (big enough to be a poster). Anyway, first one who wants to pay for shipping, can have the cool Amber original.

 

My dear lady, I hope I didn't offend you. As I was able to print out the file you sent me at work, I have a copy on my desk.

Anyway, put it to good use, get a writing dip pen (like a Hunt 512) and send me a letter.

The idea is to learn what it was like to use these inks in normal writing.

As you have young'uns, get them to use the dip pen and dippin' ink. It's what I and countless children before me learnt to write with in 3rd grade.

[recluse]

I've received the ink in the yesterday's mail. No remarks on the envelope regarding the postage.

 

Amberlea, thank you very much!

 

I've tried the ink as it was in the pipette (lines 1 on Staples Sustainable Earth and Staples Multipurpose below), then diluted it 1:1, tried and diluted a bit more. Now it's 1:1.5 and, I think, I'd prefer it this way. The ink behaves surprisingly good, even with regular paper it's practically trouble-free. There's some bleeding through (or about to be bleeding through) on Staples Multipurpose 20# paper but no problems on better papers.

Below is a series of scans of how the ink performs on different papers, back and front. Unfortunately the color reproduction is only approximate. There's a hint of turquoise in the line, which is completely missed in the scans. Color-wise Thistle ink is close to a simple concoction: 3 parts of Noodler's Ottoman Azure, 1 part of Noodler's Black, 2 parts of water (it's Blue-Black #2 in my internal records). The flows are different, however, so maybe further dilution of BB #2 would bring them even closer. I believe, the color of Thistle ink can be matched quite close playing with a turquoise ink, black ink and water.

 

What cannot be matched that easily, however, is the sheen that is apparent at high concentration (scans don't really show) and can be seen at being diluted at 1:1.5 level. The sheen reminds that of Namiki Blue in wet nibs and some Sailor inks. In other words, I've seen it in some of my inks but don't remember which one.

 

At 1:1.5 dilution level, which I'm trying in fountain pens, Thistle ink seems of normal wetness but it will need more time to come to the final conclusion.

 

Overall, it's a nice ink and I could see it being one of my staples if it were readily available. It should be said, however, that besides the sheen the ink doesn't appear to posses truly unique features (this is a quick impression, though). If I'll happen to see it I'll definitely buy some but won't hunt for it.

 

I'm thankful to Amber for giving the opportunity to try the ink and to get a feeling of a part of history.

 

Now go the scans.

 

Edited June 15, 2014 by recluse

[amberleadavis]

 

My dear lady, I hope I didn't offend you. As I was able to print out the file you sent me at work, I have a copy on my desk.

Anyway, put it to good use, get a writing dip pen (like a Hunt 512) and send me a letter.

The idea is to learn what it was like to use these inks in normal writing.

As you have young'uns, get them to use the dip pen and dippin' ink. It's what I and countless children before me learnt to write with in 3rd grade.

 

 

You did not offend me at all. I wanted to make it clear that you as the gifter of the Thistle, had the rights of first refusal. By now you should have received a letter from me written with Thistle. I'm sorry my photos did not do justice to how pretty this ink really is.

[amberleadavis]

I've received the ink in the yesterday's mail. No remarks on the envelope regarding the postage.

 

Amberlea, thank you very much!

 

I believe, the color of Thistle ink can be matched quite close playing with a turquoise ink, black ink and water.

 

What cannot be matched that easily, however, is the sheen that is apparent at high concentration (scans don't really show) and can be seen at being diluted at 1:1.5 level. The sheen reminds that of Namiki Blue in wet nibs and some Sailor inks. In other words, I've seen it in some of my inks but don't remember which one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I could not capture the sheen in any of my photos. It is really remarkable. I'd like to give the poster to someone who can actually photograph it. It is so pretty. I'm glad you like it.

[amberleadavis]

http://sheismylawyer.com/She_Thinks_In_Ink/Inked_Today/slides/20140615_144750.jpg

[dcwaites]

 

 

You did not offend me at all. I wanted to make it clear that you as the gifter of the Thistle, had the rights of first refusal. By now you should have received a letter from me written with Thistle. I'm sorry my photos did not do justice to how pretty this ink really is.

 

Sadly, our Post is running slow at the moment. I await with anticipation, but not bated breath as I would have expired of asphyxiation by the time it arrived.

 

It's interesting about the sheen. I get the same sheen in the threads of ink bottles filled with Thistle Blue-Black and thosed filled with Parker Quink Blue-Black with Solv-X (vintage). I see some experimentation coming on. (Still working on the Dry ink vs Quick Dry ink and Feathering/Bleeding. I keep on getting inconsistent results.)

[amberleadavis]

Oh, btw, that photo had the really left over few grains of Thistle as the background that made the blue.