It’s New Ink Day once again, and this time it’s all about shimmer! The holidays are over but this ink line from Manuscript recalls the sparkle of tinsel and fairy lights.
This ink comes in a lightweight, plastic 25 ml bottle that is spill-proof when the black cap is closed securely. The bottle opening is wide enough to accommodate dipping with calligraphy nibs, as well as filling up fountain pens.
Fizzy Orange is a bright and saturated ink with loads of delicate, golden shimmer. The ink looks richly metallic as it swirls within the bottle. That's how miniscule and dense the particles are. It is a wet ink, flowing freely from the pen that I used. There is some ghosting on MD paper, and some bleed-through on 52 gsm Tomoe River paper where the ink pools. Drying time is about 40 seconds on Tomoe, but just about 20 seconds on MD paper. It has no water resistance, and blends readily with water. Paper-towel chromatography shows mostly orange, with a touch of yellow.
Fizzy Orange is an energetic and vibrant colour; but it’s too playful for work. I think this ink would be great to use for calligraphy and sketching because of its dense shimmer and high saturation. Its properties can be best showcased in pens designed for calligraphy, or those with broader or flex nibs with good flow. Another recommendation would be to use pens that could be disassembled easily and cleaned thoroughly; as the shimmer particles might cause clogging. I loaded this ink into a TWSBI GO with a 1.1 mm stub nib.
Shimmer inks like this would be a great, expressive medium for arts and crafts. However, care should be taken when using them in your pens; as they can jam up the nib and feed if left too long unused or uncleaned. If you’d like to try this type of ink just for fun, this series is a good place to start.
Use the code LEKZ10 to get a 10% discount!
* Not applicable for HopDrop, Clearance, On Sale items, and select brands.
Written by @lekzumali
Check out her musings on Instagram!
