Monarca Cardona

[dragondazd]

I bought a sample of this ink recently. It seems to have All The Things. Shading, shimmer, sheen. Well I was interested.

 

The keyword for this ink is "assertive". It is highly saturated but still has shading potential. it has quite the sheen. The shimmer gives a little extra sparkle but is primarily a sheen backup.

 

 

I was a little overwhelmed by this ink at first, but it has grown on me. It is a rich, dark red. It can be a nice fruity pink shade with a touch of dilution.

 

Here it is, showing off on Cosmo Air Light.

 

Midori MD with a piece of Rhodia 90gsm on top.

 

This ink will sheen almost anywhere, even with my Lamy EF.

 

This ink is impractical but I keep wanting to use it to liven up the pages! It's cheerful for such a dark red. 

 

The one caution I have is I am not looking forward to cleaning this. My syringe took an extra long time to clean out. 

 

Will definitely have to try more Monarca inks.

[InesF]

Thank you for this review, @dragondazd.

Indeed, such an ink may not be that useful for daily routine. Those types of inks are great for drawing paragraph initials, for example, but can have use for headlines and for ornaments. If it has a lot of shimmer particles, it may preferably be written with dip nibs anyways.

I love to have at least one of those crazy overdone inks from each colour family.

[PithyProlix]

Thank you for showing us this very interesting ink.

I'm not sure but I think that color might be Carmine, yes?

It does look quite rich and, as a color itself, I think it's beautiful. As an ink? Not so much. 😉 But chacun son goût (thank goodness!).

[txomsy]

What  a wonderful ink! I'll have to find out the best way to get it here (maybe order more than one at once?).

[dragondazd]

@InesF Stop! You're enabling me

 

I love it as a header and for checking things off my list!

 

@PithyProlix In shaded areas it does look like carmine. Otherwise, it's a much cooler-leaning, pinker color. It was based off the cardona cactus fruit and I think they did a good job of capturing the look of a ripe one.

 

@txomsy I think Monarca's based out of Mexico so it's possible it is easier to get it from there.

 

 

[Licue]

Thanks for the review 🙂 I had never heard of that brand before.

 

Impressive that the sheen overwhelms the glitter - with the glitter inks I know it's usually the other way around. Does the glitter have the same/similar color as the sheen (=greengold, if I see it right)?

 

And does the ink smudge after drying?

[LizEF]

Thanks for the review, @dragondazd!  Nice that this new (to us) brand is getting more attention!  And I agree - the occasional bold ink is a good thing!  Maybe by the time I'm done reviewing everything I already have, a US FP shop will carry this brand...

[dragondazd]

27 minutes ago, LizEF said:

Thanks for the review, @dragondazd!  Nice that this new (to us) brand is getting more attention!  And I agree - the occasional bold ink is a good thing!  Maybe by the time I'm done reviewing everything I already have, a US FP shop will carry this brand...

I got it from Vanness.

[dragondazd]

2 hours ago, Licue said:

Thanks for the review 🙂 I had never heard of that brand before.

 

Impressive that the sheen overwhelms the glitter - with the glitter inks I know it's usually the other way around. Does the glitter have the same/similar color as the sheen (=greengold, if I see it right)?

 

And does the ink smudge after drying?

Yeah the sheen is greenish-gold and the glitter is golden. You can see the fourth square in the Midori shot how there is a yellower glitter in the middle and the greener sheen around it.

 

It does not seem to smudge, only where it is thickly laid down. It also doesn't shed a lot of glitter either. 

[LizEF]

47 minutes ago, dragondazd said:

I got it from Vanness.

I must be blind!  I'll add this to my list of inks to sample and note that Vanness have it.  Thanks!

 

ETA: The brand name is out of alphabetical order - at the end of the brand list!

[yazeh]

Thanks for another delightful review. While I am neither a fan of sheen and even less of shimmer, I enjoyed your review, as much as a lovely cake with edible gold leaves...  

[dragondazd]

@yazeh ty

[amberleadavis]

Great review as always!

[dragondazd]

The more I use this ink, the more I love it. I continue to be surprised by how well behaved it is within my carefully controlled FP paradise. I don't know if I'll put it in my ef pilot (maybe without the glitter), but other than that, it just works. Even my first pen cleaning wasn't that bad. A bottle is quite likely in my future.

 

@amberleadavis ty

 

 

[amberleadavis]

I think it is stunning!