Pilot Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo - Written Review

[TheVintagelife]

Below is a written review of Pilot Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo. The name stands for 'Moonlight' and is a teal leaning deep blue. I quite like this pen for work related writing (little though that is); but it is a tad unsaturated in quite a few of my pen, so not quite a favorite - I'd rather it was a tad darker - the Krishna Sea at night is a similar teal leaning blue, but one with lot more sheen and leans the other way on the saturation spectrum - the color is dense! I find it works best in a wet fine nib, though for this review I used a Sailor Sapporo with a B nib, to highlight the beautiful shading.

 

[OCArt]

Thanks for doing this review. I think mine is a little more blue-black but I got it recently and only used it once.

[Eclipse157]

Thank you for sharing, I like your handwriting!

[chromantic]

I, too, wanted/expected it to be darker and yours seems much "blue-er", as well, much nicer than the rather dull blue/grey I remember.

[inkstainedruth]

Thanks for the review. I had tried a sample of this a few years ago after getting a letter someone had written (trading inks) and hadn't liked it because it ran more green-teal (it did however look splendid on the ivory paper when written in a Spenserian hand on the letter I got...).

I may now have to revisit this or try a newer sample -- because on my screen yours definitely looks bluer than I remembered -- to the point of me thinking now that this may be the substitute for MB Leo Tolstoy I've been looking for (KWZI Walks Over Vistula was close but a little too green).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

ETA: Are there any comparisons out there between this and either (or both) of those that I can be pointed to?

Edited March 11, 2020 by inkstainedruth

[namrehsnoom]

Thanks for the review. I quite like the slightly off-blue character of this ink. It has a bit of a green undertone, that becomes most visible when you place it next to a true blue. It’s been a while since I used it - this review made be pull out the bottle again, and fill a pen with it.

[Erik Dalton]

Nice review. One of my favorite everyday inks...

[Intensity]

It's probably the scanner, but what I see on my multiple devices from this one is too blue for the real thing. Mine is more teal and a bit more murky.

[TheVintagelife]

Thanks for doing this review. I think mine is a little more blue-black but I got it recently and only used it once.

 

It's probably the scanner, but what I see on my multiple devices from this one is too blue for the real thing. Mine is more teal and a bit more murky.

 

Thanks for the review. I had tried a sample of this a few years ago after getting a letter someone had written (trading inks) and hadn't liked it because it ran more green-teal (it did however look splendid on the ivory paper when written in a Spenserian hand on the letter I got...).

I may now have to revisit this or try a newer sample -- because on my screen yours definitely looks bluer than I remembered -- to the point of me thinking now that this may be the substitute for MB Leo Tolstoy I've been looking for (KWZI Walks Over Vistula was close but a little too green).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

ETA: Are there any comparisons out there between this and either (or both) of those that I can be pointed to?

 

I, too, wanted/expected it to be darker and yours seems much "blue-er", as well, much nicer than the rather dull blue/grey I remember.

 

Thanks for these comments. Having noted the consistent point that my review pic looks bluer than the real thing, I took another picture in direct sunlight. I think the problem was caused by the artificial LED light in which the original picture was taken. While I did white balance my camera to 4000K (the LED temperature) and further white balanced on the PC with reference to my paper - i think there were two problems - (a) LED lights are notorious for not being able to emit the full spectrum of light (about CRI 80 I think), and hence some colors become more prominent than others; and ( I think setting the white balance to the paper was a mistake since maybe the paper was not pure white (atleast as the Lightroom software understands it). So, I took another picture in noon sunlight with sunlight white balance and no further adjustments in PC. I think this is more accurate. This pic also shows some faint sheen on the color blob (though there is still none in the writing sample). It is a little more teal now, but still predominantly blue in my opinion.

 

 

Do feel this is a more accurate interpretation of the color - main difference is probably the paper color being more accurately reflected; and the full spectrum of light falling on the page.

[TheVintagelife]

Thank you for sharing, I like your handwriting!

Thank you very much, though I personally think this is a poor effort. Thing is, my handwriting is usually quite compressed, and hence I find writing with anything broader than a medium very unnatural - with my natural hand 'a's, 'e's and 'o's would get opaque in a broad nib so I have try and enlarge all the letters, and then I find it difficult to keep the sizing consistent. I much prefer fines (XF in some European nibs; MFs for Japanese)

[TheVintagelife]

Thanks for the review. I had tried a sample of this a few years ago after getting a letter someone had written (trading inks) and hadn't liked it because it ran more green-teal (it did however look splendid on the ivory paper when written in a Spenserian hand on the letter I got...).

I may now have to revisit this or try a newer sample -- because on my screen yours definitely looks bluer than I remembered -- to the point of me thinking now that this may be the substitute for MB Leo Tolstoy I've been looking for (KWZI Walks Over Vistula was close but a little too green).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

ETA: Are there any comparisons out there between this and either (or both) of those that I can be pointed to?

 

Hi Ruth, I think (from what I remember seeing in real life but from another pen-guy in my locality) the Walk over Vistula is quite a bit more saturated and has a very pronounced sheen. I think it is similar to the Krishna Sea at Night (another sheening teal-leaning blue-black that I do have); though the Krishna might lean more to green and is probably far denser in saturation. I am putting a writing sample of the Sea at night here (apologies this wasn't written on the same paper as the PI-TY- its an older entry). I have Walk Over Vistula undertaking a very long walk from Warsaw to my shelf right now. Will update when I do receive it.

 

Edited March 12, 2020 by TheVintagelife

[chromantic]

Thanks for taking the time to re-do the pic, that's the Tsuki-yo I remember.

[KaB]

As a Tsukiyonist, I'll welcome all positive reviews

Edited March 12, 2020 by KaB

[Intensity]

Indeed the second photograph shows off the ink more accuratelythank you for taking your time to add it!

[inkstainedruth]

Interestingly enough, the new photo still looks bluer than the sample I got.

Starting to wonder whether it's a case of the cr@ppy absorbent paper in the Piccadilly sketchbooks I use for testing inks out -- it does very weird things to ink colors at times. Maybe I should give the ink another chance (one of my plans for while my husband is away is to reorganize the sample vial trays, so I will look and see if I still have the vial of Tsuki-yo, and if so, to try it again -- maybe in a different pen, and certainly on better paper).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Intensity]

Here's my earlier review, shows the ink against other inks:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/350963-mini-review-pilot-iroshizuku-tsuki-yo/

[RoyalBlueNotebooks]

Thank you for the review, I really like your handwriting! Consistent angle and shapes, makes me want to practice mine asap.

[DrDebG]

Excellent review! Thank you for taking all the time to do this review! I really enjoy the color and may just have to spring for a bottle.

[inkstainedruth]

Here's my earlier review, shows the ink against other inks:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/350963-mini-review-pilot-iroshizuku-tsuki-yo/

 

Yeah, that's more the color of Tsuki-yo that I remembered from my sample. That's why I was so surprised at how much bluer it looked in this review.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Linger]

As a Tsukiyonist, I'll welcome all positive reviews

 

Haha, same here. Although I am also a Shinkaist, a Konpekeist, an Asagaoist, not so much an Amairoist, and only recently an Ajisaist. I guess that makes me an Iroshizukuist - all the blues and blueblacks.