Ink Testing

Every now and again, I purchase samples of inks that I am interested in.  When I do, I prepare ink swatches so that even if I use up the sample, I have a record for the future.  There are many websites which offer their own "swatches", but I prefer to do my own so that I also can keep track of how the ink behaves in a particular pen.  

Not all inks work well for all fountain pens. Some inks are very watery and do not work well in a fountain pen that has a nib that lets out a lot of ink (a wet nib).  Conversely a thicker ink may not be that great for a fountain pen nib that lays down only a small amount of ink (a dry nib).  

One of the reasons why I like fountain pens is that each pen has its own characteristics and preferences.  For example, I have three fountain pens that are the same brand, same model and same nib size (medium) and each performs differently.  And a particular ink will perform differently in each one.  

What some fountain pen fanatics do is find the perfect ink for a specific fountain pen - and never change.  They may have 200 fountain pens, and 200 accompanying inks.  Yes, there are people who have even more.  

For me, I am not that exacting.  I am content with the fountain pens I have but like to play around with the inks a bit.  

And on a day like today, there is nothing more soothing like playing some quiet music, enjoying a glass of wine and making ink swatches. 

Stitches came out today.  Yeah!