INK REVIEW: De Atramentis Orchids (Scented)

Yes, you read that right! A scented ink! De Atramentis Orchids. It is supposed to smell like Orchids. Continue to read on to find out more!

Ink Brand: De Atramentis
Inks Color: Orchids
Other: Scented
Color tones: Pink; Magenta
Pen Used: Pilot Vanishing Point 18k Gold Medium Nib
Price: $12.95 for 35ml glass bottle (.37 cents per ML)

Information

This ink is honestly the first of De Atramentis brand that I have tried and like! In most of the De Atramentis inks that I have tried, they are usually too dry for my taste and have issues in my Lamy pens. This ink, so far, has performed wonderfully.

I would rate it at a 7 out of 10 (10 being heavy flow/very wet ink) for wetness/moisture/level of flow.  It is not as wet as some of the Noodler's inks I have run through some of my pens.

The color and shading is beautiful! It has some shading, but not much. It;s pretty much the same color on down strokes or any way you write with it. I think I will be definitely be looking at purchasing a bottle of ink! Very good performer.

Mid Week Links

I am hoping to start doing this every Wednesday or Thursday of each week. Look out for your post! You may just possibly wind up here!

• Lots and lots of notebooks! Pens!Paper!Pencils!
• Great ink review! Almost like a blue-gray color. Diamine Prussian Blue - Peninkicillin
• Cute little Halloween candy Jars by eighteen25!
• Great review of the Platinum 3776 Sai by Modern Stationer
• Review and Giveaway!! Marvy LePen set. - The Well Appointed Desk
• Another wonderful review of a Pilot Pen (Petit) by the Pen Addict
• Lamy Pico Pocket fountain pen review by Pen Paper Ink Letter!

What's to come!

Photo taken by: Your very own blog author, Ashley!

Fall is nearly here! The leaves are starting to change and the temperature starting to drop! It is starting to get chilly up here in Idaho. Break out the wood stove and the hot cocoa...because winter is right around the corner!

I apologize in the time gap between reviews. I have a list of ink that I need to do some reviews on (including some pens and paper as well). However, when you have two kids and a job, it gets very difficult to keep up on such things. Fear not, though, I will have some reviews coming up in the very near future. Here is what you can expect:

• Pen Review: Pilot Vanishing Point 18K gold 'M' point nib
• Ink Review: De Atramentis Orchids (scented)
• Ink Review: De Atramentis Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle
• Ink Review: Pelikan Edelstein Jade
• Pen Review: Lamy Studio Brushed Stainless Steel 'F' point

and much, much more!

I am also looking into doing some posts about the fall season and writing letters. I have been writing letters to my family recently, and since the holidays are right around the corner, it will be time to send out those Christmas Cards to friends and family and let everyone know how us and the kids are doing. I will also be doing a link post (where I share links to posts that I have read and enjoy) once a week.

Have a wonderful and beautiful week everyone!

Review: Monteverde Jewelria Brown Swirl

The time has come to finally review my Monteverde Jewelria in Brown Swirl 1.1mm stub! After getting the chance to play around with the pen and see how it performs, it is at last time to share the information and experience with my fellow readers...

Information

Pen Brand: Monteverde
Pen Model: Jewelria
Nib Info: 1.1mm stub/italic stainless steel (also takes Goulet Nibs #6)
Color: Brown Swirl
Filling System: Cartridge or Converter
Price Tag: $56.00 at "Goulet Pen Co."
Other: Hand turned resin and finished with chrome trim

 

Performance

This pen is a decent performer. I had it inked up with Stipula Sepia (which is an ink brand I am unfamiliar with in performance and such). In this pen it seemed to perform fairly well. The nib seems to have a little bit of flex to it. In regards to consistent performance, 97% of the time the pen writes just fine; without any skips or hard starts. On the rare occasion - generally after sitting for a while - it won't start writing immediately. That is easily fixed simply by doing some quick lines to get the ink flowing or by turning the piston and getting some more ink flowing down in the feed. I have written with other Monteverde pens (with normal nibs such as a fine/medium) and have not had problems.

 

Issues/Concerns

It wasn't until I finished writing my "rough draft" for this review that I noticed an issue with the nib (or ink possibly). The nib tines started acting funny. One ended up higher than the other. I am not sure if this was due to a clot in the ink (since I am unfamiliar with this brand and it's performance) or if it has to do with the quality of the nib. That would be my only serious concern I have in regards to this pen. It may be as simple as flushing the pen out and putting new ink in it.

There is only one other thing that kind of irks me about this pen. And that is the fact that the pen cap screws off and does not just pull/snap off. It is definitely something that takes getting used to. If it is not a big deal breaker for you, then  I would say not to worry.

Overview

If you can get over the minor stitch that the cap screws off than this would be a great pen to look at investing at. Over all for the price of $56, I think it is a bit steep. Especially since I can rely better on my work horse pens (Lamy Safari and Al-Star's) which are more affordable as well as more reliable. However, I do enjoy the excitement of having a different brand in the bunch (and a beautiful one at that too!).