Wearingeul - Mad Hatter

[Yojimbo]

I've noticed there are very few reviews for this ink, so here's my humble contribution. I hope this is helpful for someone.

 

Wearingeul inks are made in Korea and are often themed around literary works. Mad Hatter is from their "Alice in Wonderland" series and features a lenticular printed label that shifts between the ink name and an image of the eponymous Mad Hatter depending on viewing angle. The bottle contains 30mL of ink.

 

 

Description: The ink is a fairly unsaturated shade somewhere between olive-green and gray-green. On heavier applications of ink, the ink shows some yellow undertones.

 

Flow: My bottle of ink was quite "watery." On most of my pens, Mad Hatter had a dry, inconsistent flow. The ink seems to "cling to itself" at times, sometimes causing my stub nibs to write thinner lines than expected. Most likely a surface tension issue.

 

Dry Time: Fairly fast, about 25 seconds on Midori MD paper with a "fine" point glass dip pen.

 

Shading: Provided the ink flows in a controlled manner, there is some shading present on high quality papers. With high saturation, the ink becomes a near-black dark green; with low saturation the ink is a paler olive green or light green.

 

Sheen: None observed on a variety of papers

 

Feathering: On cheaper, absorbent paper there is quite a bit of feathering (easily visible).

 

Ghosting / Bleeding: Ghosting and bleeding seem to be about average (see images for reference).

 

Maintenance: Low. Washed out of my pen with standard soak/flushing. No staining observed on converter/cartridge.

 

 

Water Resistance:

 

Test #1 (top sheet): Used a syringe to spray water droplets onto Midori MD paper. Droplets left for 30 seconds, then dried off carefully with a paper towel.

 

Test #2 (bottom sheet): Fully submerged paper into a sink filled with water, gave the sheet a gentle shake or two, then left submerged for 30 seconds. Removed paper and allowed to air dry.

 

 

Depending on ink saturation, most of the green color will wash away, but a grey/black layer remains affixed and legible.

 

General Thoughts:

The experience with this ink will probably depend heavily on which tool/paper is used. Wet, brush-like tools on high quality paper will likely bring out the most of this ink with shading and yellow colors poking out from the dark green. Thin, dry writers will probably experience scratchiness or uncontrolled ink flow, and poor papers will show a flat, muted gray-green. On a positive note, water resistance is quite functional for daily writing; you'll likely be able to recover your text after a spill or rain soak. Probably best to try a sample before buying.

[inkstainedruth]

Interesting.  The color reminds me of the recent ink "shootout" between Robert Oster Muddy Swamp and Papier Plume Bayou Nightfall.

I've seen the Wearingeul inks on the Vanness website (not just the "Alice in Wonderland" line) but haven't tried any of them.  Thanks for the review.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[amberleadavis]

Thank you!  Great review.

[amberleadavis]

Thank you!  Great review.

[LizEF]

Thank you, @Yojimbo!  A very thorough review and an interesting color.   I may have to try it one year.

[JulieParadise]

Thank you! (I had this ink in my shopping cart at papierundstift.de several times, but never actually bought it. Maybe I should ...)

[namrehsnoom]

Thank you @Yojimbo for this very informative review. I’ve had my eye on these inks as well, but decided to pass this series because I’ve already too many inks in my cabinet that need a try-out. Also… there are quite a lot of these Wearingeul inks to choose from. Nice to see a review to satisfy my curiosity.  I like the colour of the ink, not so much the writing performance you describe. But I expect it would be great to draw with. 

Okay… I’m undecided about this one. I might add a bottle with a next purchase, just to try it out.

[yazeh]

Great review @Yojimbo  Love the detailed explanations. 

I was hoping that bad flow was not a common theme, but it seems this ink is as bad as Dox Quixote in terms of flow

 

 

[TheseAreMyPens]

Thank you for review. The line of inks is very attractive, but I do read reports of dry flow or inconsistent behaviour. And though several of the shimmer inks (‘Path’, ‘I am a Cat’) look spectacular in reviews, the practicality for me is not great. I worry about the health of my fountain pens! I appreciate these detailed and intelligent reviews very much. 

[nibtip]

I am sorry to disagree with the above. I have been using this ink for weeks now without encountering the slightest flow Problem.

Then, i only use "very good paper": Rhodia clairefontaine mnemosine kokuyo soft ring tombe river.

One of my favorite greens pretty close to Vert empire from Herbin.

[TheseAreMyPens]

Dear Nibtip, I haven’t used or purchased that particular ink yet. So I’m not saying there are flow problems, just that I’ve read about them re certain DI inks. And I only use very good paper likewise - TR, Cosmo Air, MD paper, Mnemosyne. I’m delighted to hear it flows very well for you. I was just thanking @Yojimbofor his thoughtful review.

[nibtip]

Thank you for your Kind reply Emmarichler.

My General subjective impression is that dryness/wetness is more related to paper and pen than ink. Also room Température and humidity, And writing pressure + nib flexibility.

By the Way, i was not commenting your intervention, but Yojimbo's which i thank very much for his very entertraining and very informative review. 

 

[TheseAreMyPens]

Ah now I understand! Yes, and I look forward to trying this ink myself.