Toga

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Scottish JW
🖋 Stationery lover (esp. fountain pens & inks!)
📷 Photographer (amateur)
🎙 Voice Actor (very amateur)
🎸 Musician (super amateur)
🎧 Audiophile
🤟 Prog Metal fan
🖥 PC gaming enthusiast

Blog: https://blog.stationeryvagaries.com
Swatches: https://swatches.stationeryvagaries.com
PFC Inks: http://www.fpc.ink/users/45344
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stationeryvagaries/

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Last Notes

2026-04-14 17:58:46 UTC

Oh, hey! I've finally published another blog! This time I'm looking at the Sailor 1911 Large Casual, with a comparison to the rest of the 1911 family.
https://blog.stationeryvagaries.com/a-largely-casual-review-of-the-sailor-1911-large-casual/
#FountainPens
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2026-04-02 15:54:04 UTC

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I hadn't checked my total in a while, and I kinda wish I hadn't now. I broke well into the 300 threshold at some point this year, and I still have a bunch in transit. I don't think I should be in control of my wallet any more... 😬

2026-03-17 12:45:41 UTC

Just booked the hotel for my first pen show! Going to the London Autumn show in October & I cannot wait. Taking the train down the day before and heading back Sunday afternoon. Hopefully that'll be far less draining & stressful than flying down & back on the same day. Foolishly did that the last time I went to London pre-pandemic. Doing that in a wheelchair was rouuuuuugh.
Now all I need to do is make sure I have money to spend at it 😅
#FountainPens #PenShow

2026-03-15 14:09:50 UTC

1/2
For any regular shoppers of Cult Pens, they're changing their loyalty points system on April 1st in order to "make it even better, for our favourite customers." Yeah, I'm sure it does...🤦
You'll still get 1 point for every £1 spent, but they're getting rid of the 20% discount, leaving us with just the 10% and 15% options. 10% currently costs 50 points, 15% is 100 points, & 20% is 150 points. From April, it will instead be 10% for 100 points & 15% for 150 points.
#FountainPens #CultPens

2026-03-04 21:24:47 UTC

Interesting news from Sailor (via Endless Pens) that they're changing the gold content of many #FountainPen nibs in response to increasing gold pricing.
Professional Gear models will primarily feature 21K gold nibs moving forward
Several 1911 models will transition from 21K nibs to 18K nibs, including the Realo, King of Pen, & Sterling Silver
Some existing versions will be discontinued and replaced with updated models
These changes are part of a broader refresh of Sailor’s catalogue.

2026-02-28 11:08:38 UTC

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Their Dualis inks are tough to get here, unfortunately. There are some nice ones in the Encore line available here which I think would work pretty well. I've got a bottle of Wearingeul's The Glass Bead Game that I'm considering. It looks great in swatches & matches well with it, but is VERY light in use. Might swap the fine nib in this with the medium from the Infrared to give it a fighting chance, but if it doesn't work well then I'll put in a VD order.

2026-02-27 20:41:22 UTC

Got my Iridescent Pearl Perkeo today! The material appears to be a bit more matte than the Sport version, but it still looks great! The only branding is the "Kaweco" name logo embossed on the cap, which is unusual. No silver "Kaweco Collection" logo in silver.
Now to figure out what to ink it with... The Sport had been filled with Dominant Industry Sunset which matched the material pretty well, but I want to go with something different here.
#FountainPnes
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2026-02-22 20:24:48 UTC

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Yeah they'll fit on Col-o-ring cards, but they take up too much space for me. The Bantham Blue swatch is using one of her mini stamps, the Yuki-Usagi is an InkyConverters stamp. I wanted a different bottle for calligraphy-only inks and this one works perfectly. Gives a really clean impression.
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/116/116/125/086/026/987/original/37706cf835b741c1.png
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/116/116/129/589/937/437/original/c5711913590f22ad.webp

2026-02-22 09:39:41 UTC

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I've got a few of her stamps & they work really well. She even made mini ones for me that fit better with the way I use them on Col-o-ring cards.
The Platinum one could also be the original Van Dieman's bottle, unless it's to scale then it's def Platinum. FWP is correct, Visconti 30ml & new Van Dieman's look correct too. Jacques Herbin bottles have a round cap, so I'd say Sailor 50ml is right. Wearingeul almost looks right, but they don't have the chamfered edge at the top of the cap.

2026-02-19 16:41:54 UTC

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Interesting, I wonder why they've been putting the brakes on colabs?

2026-02-18 17:11:37 UTC

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Yeah, I can unfortunately see this one being astronomically expensive when they end up on the secondary market since it's not just a normal colour.

2026-02-18 15:55:57 UTC

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Ah man, I feel that. As far as I'm aware they only allow one per person, so it's difficult to get extras out there.

2026-02-18 14:59:31 UTC

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There's a list of currently participating stores here: https://kaweco-pen.com/media/pdf/b5/d9/d8/DIY_Participating_Retailers.pdf
But it's worth asking your nearest retailer as they may not have signed up yet.

2026-02-18 13:01:50 UTC

Kaweco's DIY Sport this year has me VERY interested! I'm hoping Libraries & Archive Paper does the event again this year as there's nowhere else even remotely near to me. Glad to see they're making it a bit more unique this time.
I'm looking forward to the iridescent pearl Perkeo as well. I love the Sport version from a few years back & happy the Perkeo is getting the same treatment. Perkeo's are hugely underrated, imo.
#FountainPens
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2026-02-06 14:11:00 UTC

Still very sick, but better enough to speak a bit about 2 new pens.
In front is a special edition Jinaho 82 that's more akin to smaller 1911 Profit models. Sadly, the finials aren't swappable like on the standard 82, so it's not as customisable.
The rear pen is the Sailor 1911 Large Casual with their new steel nib that they've designed to feel like their gold nibs. I've still to test on rougher paper, but I struggled to feel the difference between it & the 21k nib on TR.
#FountainPens
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2026-02-06 13:34:23 UTC

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Man, I love Sneakers! Had the VHS as a kid & we wore that sucker out. Really need to give it a watch again.

2026-01-31 19:27:20 UTC

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Much prefer these to last years ink choices!

2026-01-31 13:04:23 UTC

A very, VERY late wrap-up of my stationery habits in 2025.
blog.stationeryvagaries.com/a-belated-2025-wrap-up/
#FountainPens #FountainPenInks #Stationery
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2025-12-31 21:40:11 UTC

Last #SwatchWednesday of the year with the last Cult Ink Subscription box (RIP). Sadly, half of this month were dupes.
I've also completed the Cult Iridescink set after getting an email asking for a swatch of Becky. Not sure why I hadn't picked these up sooner, but I'm liking Becky a lot.
See you all in the new year!
#FountainPenInks
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2025-12-03 21:24:10 UTC

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Ooh, Erebus Crater looks so good! Why did the Colorverse box have to be so expensive 😩

2025-12-03 18:40:01 UTC

For #SwatchWednesday today we have the penultimate Cult Ink Subscription box. Sadly, it will be coming to an end after the December box. I've really enjoyed these boxes, even when I end up with dupes—something that happened far less often than you'd think given the size of my collection.
November's box was filled with some lovely inks, with Old Gold, Silver Dawn & Silver Fox being the standouts for me. I already had Molten Bronze, hence the lack of chromatography for that one.
#FountainPenInks
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2025-11-15 10:43:24 UTC

TIL that Imgur is no longer accessible in the UK. I don't use it often, especially now that I don't use reddit, but it was still handy for quickly hosting an image now and then.

2025-11-14 18:14:46 UTC

New Blog Post!
Majohn/Moonman don't hide the fact that they take heavy "inspiration" from other brands, with none more obvious than their P-Series fountain pens. Are they any good? And which Montblanc's homework did they copy for each of these designs? Let's have a gander!
https://blog.stationeryvagaries.com/the-montblanc-alikes/
#FountainPens #Stationery
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2025-11-12 23:31:57 UTC

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Not a great photo (or writing sample), but this was with a somewhat dry PVD coated medium nib on original TR. It's showing off the shading reasonably well. Don't see all that much of the chromashading though, only in some of the wetter areas.
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/115/539/279/500/782/375/original/5aa0803b5c7d21ed.jpeg

2025-11-12 21:28:28 UTC

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Ooh, I really like the look of Life on Mars!

2025-11-12 21:21:18 UTC

Small #SwatchWednesday today. My (maybe) last ink purchases for the year—Cult ink sub boxes not included—are Wearingeul - The Ugly Duckling & Diamine × r/fountainpens - Lady Grey. I think I'm liking Lady Grey a little more as it's a tad more legible while writing, but they both dry into really lovely shades.
I forgot to take photos of them after swatching, so here are the scans of the swatch cards & chromatograms instead.
#FountainPenInks
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2025-11-01 20:11:43 UTC

INKVENT SPOILERS
For those interested in the 2025 Diamine Inkvent calendar but are still on the fence, I've added swatches of them all to my site so you can have a look & see if they're up your alley.
6 standard, 1 sheen, 3 extreme sheen, 3 shimmer, 5 chameleon, 1 shimmer + sheen, 1 scented, 3 pigment, 1 pigment + shimmer, & 1 pigment + chameleon.
I've also done chromatography for each ink for the first time to show their makeup.
https://swatches.stationeryvagaries.com/inkvent-teal
#FountainPenInks
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2025-10-29 22:14:38 UTC

A wee #SwatchWednesday this week.
Now that my Inkvent has arrived (no spoilers!), I've decided to dig out my #Chromatography strips to get a more accurate idea of how they're made up compared to my usual paper towel pseudo-chromatography. You can see how limited the latter is compared to the chromatograms.
The inks here are Tono & Lims Rainy Winter & Space Sunset. They're both chromashading inks with some similar notes but very different end results.
#FountainPenInks
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2025-10-22 21:26:46 UTC

Slightly different #SwatchWednesday with some dip pen inks. Got a bottle of Winsor & Newton Sunshine Yellow in a Cult pens box a few months ago, so I decided to do separate swatches for my dip inks, including a bunch of vintage bottles my mither gave me from the late 60s. Among them were 2 bottles of Black Indian Ink, but as you can see from the swatch they look VERY different. 1 seems to have almost completely degraded. The rest are still great.
None of these should be used with #FountainPens
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/115/419/794/117/008/720/original/fec0ee79c0852a70.jpeg

2025-10-17 18:53:49 UTC

I'd been very interested in the new blue Kaweco Sport Piston, as all the promo material portrayed it as a lovely dark blue-grey. But then I saw what looks to be its true colour & lost interest. Don't get me wrong, it's still a good looking pen, but the navy colouring isn't as interesting to me. I'll wait to see it in person.
The Titan looks great. I collect the "RAW" material Sports, but for £200 when the Majohn RS1 exists with a 14k nib for under £100 I can't justify it.
#FountainPens #Kaweco
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2025-10-17 09:58:36 UTC

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Man, that's a crazy wait! The seal on mine has been excellent. Far, far better than the C2000.

2025-10-02 20:49:34 UTC

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*looks nervously at my GPi*

2025-10-02 20:37:45 UTC

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Yeah, they've gone back down to the RRP on amazon again, so I should be grand. I'm half tempted to give this a try when I get one... https://hothardware.com/news/lego-game-boy-modded-into-a-retro-gaming-handheld

2025-10-02 10:11:05 UTC

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I held off on ordering one since I’m out of town for the next week. Prices have already skyrocketed 😢

2025-09-28 18:25:26 UTC

Pleasantly surprised to see Sailor put their new steel nib in a 1911 L sized body! The material doesn't look quite as good as the gold nib ones, but I'm still really liking the look of them. Of the 4 "muted" translucent colours, Muted Green is my favourite. Comes in EF/F/MF/M/B, but sadly no Music or Zoom options. Maybe we'll see them in the future...
They'll be available in about 42 days for around £120 / €140.
https://www.stiloestile.com/en/75-coming-soon/s-1/series-sailor_1911_casual_l/
#FountainPens #Sailor
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2025-09-19 17:21:38 UTC

It's been a while since my last post, so I thought I'd take part in #12PenPersonQuestions from @npub1yx5…g5n0
She had many questions I'd never asked myself before, so it was fun to think about over these past couple weeks.
Also a special appearance in the audio version for those who prefer to listen!
https://blog.stationeryvagaries.com/12penpersonquestions/
#FountainPens
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2025-09-07 20:19:09 UTC

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That's a great colour even without the fluorescence! That feed is so good, too. It turns the Hocoro from a good dip pen to a great one.

2025-09-06 08:41:21 UTC

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Yup, it stands for "Luxury Silent" and was designed for board meetings & the like so that you don't distract everyone when you click it. I've never tried one, but I do have one of these A3's. It's the most comfortable to hold of all the "A" pens, but the mechanism backweights it so horrendously that the tip is always trying to lift, meaning you have to hold it tighter, fatiguing my hand much faster. The clip also sucks donkey ass. It frustrated me so much that I started a blog 😂

2025-09-03 15:41:24 UTC

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2/3 I still liked the idea of the 404 text in the main swatch, so I used a masking fluid pen to write it on before swatching, then peeling it off again once the ink dried.
My 1st attempt worked perfectly, but when I tried to take the photos a few days later the difference in fluorescence between the paper and the ink had decreased significantly. It was still very visible to the eye, but the camera struggled to see it so I knew I needed to take the photos straight after the swatch.

2025-09-03 15:41:24 UTC

1/3 #SwatchWednesday When I realised I'd got into the 400-range of inks, I was compelled to make a "404 - Page Not Found" pun. My first thought was to use a blunt tool to impress "404 - Ink Not Found" onto a swatch and then do a pencil rubbing, but after some thought I realised a UV ink would work better. I plumped for Banmi's "Secrets in the Light" UV ink mostly because I liked the jellyfish on the bottle 😂 More details to follow:
#FountainPenInk #UltraViolet
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2025-09-03 15:41:24 UTC

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3/3 The 2nd attempt showed up much, much better, but the masking fluid didn't come off as cleanly & pulled away some of the fibres. The whole thing took a few hours waiting for each part of the process to fully dry before doing the next, so by this point I was done & decided to just go with it.
It's annoying the swatch card itself fluoresces so much even with a visible light filter on the 365nm torch, so the ink works far better on papers that don't do that, like Tomoe River or Life.

2025-09-03 10:43:54 UTC

NND! Libraries & Archive Paper Co had a sale on their notebooks, so I picked up 2 (& a notepad). I love Life Noble Note notebooks, so I got one of the special Kleid versions with 2mm grid to replace my current one once it's eventually done. I also got a Life Bank Paper pad and a KateJo Onion Skin notebook as I've been wanting to try them for ages. The bank paper was a lot thicker than I expected, so maybe it's different from the Yamamoto bank paper? All FP friendly 😍
#Notebooks #FountainPens
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2025-08-13 09:26:08 UTC

Bonus #SwatchWednesday time! Diamine Forever Coral Blaze didn't quite hit the mark for me, as I was hoping for a more vibrant orange-red similar to Blaze Orange. So I thought I would try mixing my own! I started off mixing Magenta & Yellow at different ratios, with swatch D being my favourite with some nice shading. It still wasn't quite there though, so I decided to try adding Yellow to Coral Blaze instead which worked great! I've inked up D & F to see which I prefer over time.
#FountainPenInks
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2025-08-13 08:46:54 UTC

#SwatchWednesday today! It's been a while since I've posted these so I had a bit of a backlog. We have the Jun/Jul/Aug Cult sub boxes, some bottles I bought, & some samples I generously got from @npub19t5…qnld 🧡 June was mostly calligraphy inks, so I plan on doing a separate swatch book for them. July was a belter with a full set of the Cult "Wonder's of the World" inks. I also picked up the CMY equivalent Diamine Forever inks so that I can play with mixing. More on that later...
#FountainPenInks
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2025-08-09 09:11:50 UTC

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My first thought is this John Garnham JG8 in Conway Stewart Stardust Red acrylic. John gifted me the pen (sans nib) last year, & a few months ago I finally made it whole with a #8 Bock steel nib with a fine cursive italic grind, sandblasted & engraved with my logo. I absolutely adore writing with it, especially since I can write nice & small with it while still having that CI look.
#FountainPens
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2025-07-30 13:09:58 UTC

I think it might be time for me to finally get a Liliput. The new Kaweco Collection Kolibri (hummingbird) is looking pretty gorgeous! I think I still somewhat prefer the look of the Fireblue, but this one is cheaper & has a prettier nib. I _really_ like how the logo on the nib has been left untreated.
Photo from Stilo & Stile (https://www.stiloestile.com/en/fountain-pens/special-limited-edition/kaweco-liliput-collection-fountain-pen-kolibri-2025-limited-edition)
#FountainPens
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2025-07-22 11:54:50 UTC

The Pelikan Hub page has finally been updated to reflect that the 2025 hubs will be happening! The registration page is up... kind of. It's there, but there's nowhere to actually register on it yet. Should be all up & running by the 24th, but this makes it a bit more real that it's definitely going ahead!
https://pelikan.miovent.com/registration-hubs-2025/
#FountainPens #PelikanHub #PelikanHubs2025

2025-07-22 11:48:07 UTC

Pelikan Hub 2025 registration is now open!!
https://pelikan.miovent.com/registration-hubs-2025/
#FountainPens #PelikanHub

2025-07-07 11:11:52 UTC

While doing more copying from the book "Stationery Fever", currently near the end of the Pencil section in a piece about The Erasable Podcast, I came across a familiar name-drop @npub198q…5fmg 😆
Ink for this page is Kobe #57 Himeajisai in a medium nib Majohn P140. I looooove this ink & I'm not sure why I haven't been using it more often. Notebook is a Midori MD A5 lined. I don't tend to ever buy lined notebooks, but it felt appropriate for book copying.
#PenAddict #FountainPenInk #Stationery
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2025-06-12 19:11:15 UTC

I'm not a particularly big Eco fan, but man this one looks so good!
More photos on Cult's listing here: https://cultpens.com/products/twsbi-eco-fountain-pen-serpentine-with-bronze (Not Sponsored, just where I saw it first.)
#FountainPen
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2025-05-31 18:09:29 UTC

When Diamine announced their new pigment ink line, I thought it'd be highly likely for pigment to be the new ink type in this years Inkvent. I was partially right, I just wasn't thinking big enough. They're not only be pigment inks, but also pigment shimmer & pigment chameleon! AFAIK no company has ever released a pigment ink with shimmer before, so I'm looking forward to seeing them.
Full list of ink types (no names yet): https://www.stiloestile.com/en/inks/sets/diamine-2025-inkvent-calendar-teal-edition
#FountainPenInks
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2025-05-31 18:09:29 UTC

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I'm sad to see there's no Starbright shimmer this year as I really liked those, & I'm sure there are more than a few of you disappointed to see Scented is still a thing as well. Chromashading was never really an official ink type but I'm hoping there will still be a few of them again this year.
Also, why is this out so early?! It's barely even summer!!

2025-05-02 08:35:50 UTC

Opus 88 have released 2 new pens based on the 2025 Pantone colour "Mocha Mousse". The Demo model I can completely see as being based on it, but I don't see the connection on the Harmony model whatsoever. That being said, I *REALLY* like the Harmony version. It's such a pretty colour!
#FountainPens #Pantone
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2025-04-19 18:57:54 UTC

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I imagine it'd be possible. I've no idea how to go about something like that though 🫤

2025-04-19 17:45:29 UTC

I'm so happy that Sailor are continuing to invest in the Hocoro line! They've now released a brush tip which interestingly has a connector for the Sailor cleaning kit, which is essentially just a cartridge connected to a syringe, meaning you should be able to stick any Sailor cartridge/converter in & use it like a pen. Granted there's no cap so you'd need to use it all in one go, but interesting potential nonetheless.
They've also released a new Dipton line of opaque pastel pigment dip inks!
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/114/365/828/002/966/391/original/9106dba594c62fc0.jpg
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2025-04-09 16:02:17 UTC

#SwatchWednesday Just 2 inks this week, but they're bangers. Yuki-Usagi & Tsurubami from Sailor's Shikiori range. Yuki-Usagi is my favourite so far & may well end up in my favourite inks of the year.
Both of these inks have proven almost impossible to get the colour fully accurate on screen. The scans on my swatch site are closer, but even they're not quite there.
#FountainPenInks
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2025-03-19 16:59:06 UTC

#SwatchWednesday time! This time we have the Cult Pens ink box for March with the theme "Reds & Oranges" (Endless × Cult Spectral Orange not pictured as I already had it) plus 3 brand new inks, 1 recent ink, & 1 older one.
I was disappointed with The Glass Bead Game as it's just too pale to write with. I'm liking Amamoyoi, Allegory, & FoFoF a lot. Tiverton Rust & Infra Red are my faves from the Cult box.
All swatches have been scanned, edited, & uploaded to my swatch site.
#FountainPenInks
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2025-03-18 11:47:29 UTC

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I'm hoping it's just been something up with the sample I have, maybe it'd been contaminated or something, I dunno. It's a very strange reaction.

2025-03-17 14:56:20 UTC

So this was a first.
The feed & part of the housing on this Jinhao 82 has broken down to the point that the feed became soft & stretchy before part of it broke off inside the converter. I've used this pen a few times already without issue, so I'm inclined to believe that it had some kind of reaction with the J. Herbin Parfum Citron I had it inked with. The ink has a weird consistency to it compared to normal inks, but it's a good colour & smells lovely (if you like lemon).
#FountainPens
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2025-03-12 20:43:54 UTC

#NewPenDay I was phenomenally lucky & won the @npub198q…5fmg members giveaway for last month. I had never wanted to win a giveaway more than this one, as the Mermaid Tears material on this Carolina Pen Co. Charleston made for the Cali Pen Show is absolutely gorgeous! Thank you once again to Brad for such a beautiful pen, as well as the Rickshaw sleeve & Nock co Hightower. I can still barely believe I won it! 😍
#FountainPen
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2025-03-12 16:02:46 UTC

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Welcome to the server! Don't forget to use hashtags like #FountainPenInk (& #FountainPens when applicable) on your posts so that pen nerds across the fediverse can see them.

2025-02-14 11:52:02 UTC

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Yeah, the cork mat really needs to be much thicker with a deeper hole to act the way they think it should. It's an awkward shape for storage, too, so I just keep mine out along with the Akkerman bottles.

2025-01-29 22:11:53 UTC

Just like my pens in 2023, my inks have been multiplying at an alarming rate during 2024. In this post I take a look at some of my favourite inks from last year, as well as a brief look at my top pens from that year.
https://blog.stationeryvagaries.com/how-many-inks/
#FountainPenInks #FountainPens #Stationery
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2025-01-20 08:58:36 UTC

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I think they mean inks that have either oxidised or broken down in some way so that it's now a different colour than it should be.
I've had quite a few that have done this in the pen, but I don't believe I have any that have changed in the bottle, afaik.

2025-01-09 13:29:52 UTC

A late #SwatchWednesday with my first #FountainPenInks of 2025, and of course they're chromashaders because I don't already have enough of those 😅
2 more inks from the Diamine × Cult Pens Summer series: A Toe in the Ocean, & Grey Skies No More. The photo doesn't really show the pinks coming through in both inks, & even the scan struggled with Grey Skies No More. Both inks have been uploaded to my swatch site.
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/113/798/510/853/709/650/original/3f40d520839f8543.jpg

2024-12-31 18:17:58 UTC

An early #SwatchWednesday for the last inks of 2024. Some ink samples from a new pen friend I met at the Pelikan Hub, & the very seasonal Cult Pens ink sub for December. There've been so many awesome #FountainPenInks this year, I can't wait to see what neat stuff is in store for us in 2025!
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/113/748/610/233/512/587/original/40adad91210a8302.jpg

2024-12-31 14:20:14 UTC

I decided to use a proxy shipping service to order some items from the Sailor Pen Guild, since they only shipped to the U.S., as well as some #FountainPenDay items since they're the same. They arrived yesterday, & while the FPD items were fine, the Sailor items were completely mullered. The pins & black sticker had some damage but should be useable. Unfortunately the nib stickers are wrecked 😭
#FountainPens #SailorPenGuild #Stickers
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2024-12-24 17:12:56 UTC

Hard to beat this view for morning writing sessions! I'm missing it already, but it's good to be back home.
#FountainPens #MorningWriting #WinterSun #Tenerife
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2024-11-20 19:20:38 UTC

It's been a while, so here's a post about how I keep track of all my inks while also letting you know about v2 of my swatch site.
https://blog.stationeryvagaries.com/how-i-manage-my-ink-collection/
#FountainPenInk #Swatches #FountainPenCompanion
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2024-11-10 21:10:18 UTC

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I think I want it to be fairly broad. The more specific the colours, the harder it becomes to categorise them. Even with Teal & Turquoise it's difficult as some inks really straddle the line between them.

2024-11-10 20:43:42 UTC

I'm working on a 2.0 version of my swatch site as I'm not completely happy with it as is. Part of it will have a section grouping inks by their colour, but I'm not sure how specific I should get. Currently, I have these groups in mind:
Black
Blue Black
Blue
Brown
Burgundy
Green
Grey
Lilac
Orange
Pink
Purple
Red
Teal
Turquoise
White (might just roll that into Grey)
Yellow
Are any of these too specific? Are there any colour groups I've missed out? Thanks!
#FountainPenInks #FountainPens

2024-11-07 19:09:34 UTC

My main #FountainPenDay pen arrived yesterday, which was pretty good going considering it came from across the pond! A Lamy 2000 Stainless Steel with a BB nib. It was only £20 more than the Makrolon, so why not?
I decided to go with a BB instead of my usual F since I wanted this to be a platform for a future grind. Not sure what that'll be yet, but there's a whole lot of tipping on there for them to work with. Still fun to write with in its current state.
#FountainPenPics #FountainPen
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2024-11-06 12:58:16 UTC

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It's a similar price to an Eco, so I don't think it's too overpriced.

2024-11-06 11:20:54 UTC

In surprising news, Kaweco have released the Classic Sport Piston Filler, a plastic version of the aluminium Sport Piston from earlier this year at a much easier to digest price of £55 against the £130 of the AL version.
https://cultpens.com/products/kaweco-classic-sport-piston-filler-black-and-gold?
#FountainPens

2024-11-02 19:58:10 UTC

Need a little advice from any pen repairers here.
A friend somehow got an empty cartridge lodged into the back of his MB Starwalker. I was able to get it out without too much trouble, but when he initially brought it to me we discovered a more troubling issue. The ferrule that allows the section & cap to screw onto the barrel had come unglued. Would normal superglue be safe to use to re-glue since it appears to be metal on metal, or is there a better option?
#FountainPens #FountainPenRepair
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2024-11-01 19:22:16 UTC

So the Sailor Pen Guild has launched, and it's $20 a year for a forum, discount codes, merch, & voting on special edition designs. From the looks of things, there might be exclusive inks as well. I think I'll join purely out of curiosity.
https://www.sailorpenguild.com
#FountainPens

2024-11-01 15:37:47 UTC

Just a heads-up, Endless Pens have some crazy discounts today if you use the code BLITZVIP for another 25% off on top of the 20% off they have on some items. I just bought a L2K Stainless Steel for £125!?! 😲 They have some pretty huge discounts on Sailor pens as well.

2024-10-31 19:04:07 UTC

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!!
SKULLS FOR THE SKULL THRONE!!
#FountainPenInk #Warhammer #Skulls
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2024-10-30 11:02:47 UTC

#SwatchWednesday time! My quest to complete the 2019 Inkvent Blue samples is finally over, thanks to Pick n Mix Samples on eBay & a friend of @npub1zeu…r0vf! Ho Ho Ho, Enkindle, & Petrichor were from eBay, while Purple Bow was from FPLover's friend. She also kindly included a bunch of other inks, including 2 brands that were new to me: Cally Nero & Shanghai Stationery. Many, many thanks for all the help!
The swatches have all been scanned, edited, & uploaded to my swatch site.
#FountainPenInks
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2024-10-28 16:01:50 UTC

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That looks brilliant! Is it the large Muji trays they fit into?

2024-10-26 14:12:24 UTC

Oh, Endless Pens. Why do you tempt me so?! 😍
An Endless Pens exclusive (with matching ink) in collaboration with Leonardo, Mckenzie Penworks, Troublemaker Inks and @scientificallyengineered
#FountainPens #FountainPenInks
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2024-10-25 17:43:35 UTC

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Yeah, you don't tend to find parts for many Chinese pens, unfortunately.

2024-10-25 17:36:13 UTC

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Ouch! The ink makes the cracks look kinda neat, though!

2024-10-20 18:37:31 UTC

For those that don't care about spoilers from this years #Inkvent, or that want to see what the inks are like before purchasing, I've uploaded the scans to my swatch site.
I'm really happy with the inks this year. Quite a few have some level of chromashading to them, which is something I've been hoping for more of from Diamine.
https://swatches.stationeryvagaries.com/Inkvent-2024-Black-SPOILERS-ee58adfba4f7452fac1f1ca95224f88f
#FountainPenInk

2024-10-18 15:42:38 UTC

Got a delivery from Art from the Heart today with was was supposed to be the new Sailor Hocoro items. Unfortunately, they sent the normal clear curved body instead of the new straight stria body. The stand did come, though. It does the job well enough, but it's a bit lightweight & easily knocked over. I've dropped the clear body 1 too many times & the end cap keeps popping off, so I was looking forward to this new one.
Oh... what's that in the background....?
#FountainPens
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2024-10-17 18:31:55 UTC

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Quite true 😂

2024-10-17 18:23:45 UTC

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That wouldn't be particularly innovative since it's already been done, so hopefully it's something more advanced/unique. But you're right, that's something I'm wanting more info on since the Creator didn't do a good job on that front.
That being said, the Ensso system has worked pretty well for me.

2024-10-17 18:00:17 UTC

Endless are giving the retractable fountain pen another try with the Phantom. It's a much more streamlined outing this time, looking kinda like a melding of the Creator & a vintage VP. Kickstarter coming soon (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/madebyendless/phantom-retractable-fountain-pen-from-endless).
It certainly looks nicer than the Creator, hopefully it'll perform much better, too. I'm very interested in seeing what this "innovative anti-drying mechanism" is.
#FountainPens
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2024-10-16 20:34:47 UTC

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I was very surprised by how light it was, too. I'd assumed I just mis-remembered how dark it was. I'm wondering if maybe the person I got it from had mis-labelled it?

2024-10-16 18:03:59 UTC

Bumper #SwatchWednesday today! First off is an order from Cult, plus a few samples from pensharing.com plus the pseudo-chromatography paper towel. Then we have the October Cult ink subscription & a couple more samples, & finally, the remainder of Inkvent '19 samples I've been able to get. Found a potential source for a Ho Ho Ho sample, but still looking for Purple Bow. *Hint hint*
Scans have been edited & uploaded to my swatch site.
#FountainPenInks
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2024-10-07 17:29:54 UTC

Hi folks! Looking to ask a bit of an inky favour.
I'm trying to complete my 2019 Inkvent swatches, & I've been able to track down all but 2 — "Ho Ho Ho" from day 6, & "Purple Bow" from day 24. Is there anyone with one or both of these inks that would be willing to trade samples with me? I'd be willing to trade any of my inks (http://www.fpc.ink/users/45344) that are in a 10 ml bottle or larger.
UK/EU preferred, but I'd be okay with trades from further afield.
Thanks!
#FountainPenInk

2024-10-02 14:51:22 UTC

Just saw on Instagram that Sailor are releasing a new Hocoro Straight Stria dip pen body, as well as a stand/nib storage! Not sure if I'd make use of the stand, but I'm very much into this straight striped body.
The Hocoro with the fude nib & feed is my go-to pen for all #FountainPenInk swatching, so I'm happy to see that Sailor are continuing to develop them.
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/113/238/365/131/282/467/original/ad57333cbaefb194.jpg
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2024-10-02 14:11:20 UTC

#SwatchWednesday time! Got the #FountainPenInk samples I received at the #PelikanHub plus the bottle of Golden Lapis swatched. The organiser had just received a large shipment of Birmingham inks & was extremely generous with the samples.
Interestingly, Birmingham Jupiter Vortex Twinkle turned into this fluorescent yellow-green when I was cleaning the dip pen, which was surprising.
The swatches have all been scanned & uploaded to my swatch site.
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/113/238/170/206/101/535/original/150854614ebeaad6.jpeg
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2024-09-29 14:03:13 UTC

Friday's #PelikanHub was not only my 1st Hub, but my 1st #FountainPen meet of any kind! It was awesome being around so many people who were as down bad about pens & ink as me 🤣
I hadn't taken any photos until the hub master showed me her 843 that'd been urushi'd up by Bokumondoh (I realise I mangled the name when I wrote it), and then had CY make the FA nib even flexier while adding an overfeed & giving it a hammered finish, plus a FNF feed.
It's stunning & wrote like an absolute dream! 😍
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/113/221/107/435/407/311/original/04279a1b741a825b.jpeg
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/113/221/108/095/042/214/original/3d396c0389d3c8e6.jpeg

2024-09-27 13:25:38 UTC

All set for tonight's #PelikanHub! Pipettor's make sample filling so much easier (& more fun!)
#FountainPens #FountainPenInks #PipettorGang
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2024-09-25 14:06:13 UTC

A few weeks ago, I uploaded all my ink swatches to my blog for #SwatchWednesday so that people could use them for reference. However, its usefulness was limited in that regard, as it was impossible to just search for an ink.
I'm happy to announce a new version that has the inks not only listed by book, but also by brand. And, more importantly, it is fully searchable, making it actually useful!
https://swatches.stationeryvagaries.com
Please let me know if you come across any issues 🧡
#FountainPenInks

2024-09-19 14:12:47 UTC

I've had a few new #FountainPens over the past few weeks that I haven't shared with you all yet.
From L-R:
Moonman Trianglo (Pineider Modern Times clone), a very strangely shaped Dami Wonka TY001, Majohn RS1 (non-riveted, Kaweco Sport spite-clone) with a 14k nib, Jun Lai (Wing Sung) 630 flat-top demonstrator with a #8 architect grind from Bobby Pen, & a Riimoo 502.
I may review a few of these in the coming months, especially the Trianglo & TY001 as they're very... weird.
https://penfount.social/system/media_attachments/files/113/164/358/354/647/600/original/1d6e14b167528a7c.jpeg
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2024-09-13 09:48:57 UTC

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Perpanep! One of the best versions of the Preppy.

2024-09-13 09:34:56 UTC

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For us in the UK, Cult Pens (cultpens.com) are my favourite thanks to their massive range, good prices, & helpful support. Art from the Heart (afth.co.uk) would be my 2nd choice. They have a smaller range, but often stock things not found in other UK retailers. They also have some of the best names for their Diamine exclusives.
Bonus shoutout to Pure Pens (purepens.co.uk), Libraries & Archives Paper Co. (librariesandarchives.com), & Hamilton Pen Co. (hamiltonpens.com).

2024-09-13 09:34:56 UTC

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Outside of the UK, Stilo & Stile (stiloestile.com/en/) for most EU pen needs, AliExpress (aliexpress.com) for Chinese pens/inks, The Pen World (thepenworld.com) or FPR (gb-fprevolutionusa.glopalstore.com) for Indian pens/inks, & Endless Pens (endlesspens.com) in the US for their ridiculous sales.