INK REVIEW: Caran d’Ache Sunset

Caran d’Ache Sunset is such a pretty color. Before you fall in love with it, though, you should know something. 
It’s been discontinued.
In fact, the entire line is being refreshed. Here’s a post about it from back in February on Ink Nouveau. The new ink names amuse me. The new price does not. At 40 bucks a bottle, it better be some impressssive ink, right?
But that’s not what we’re talking about today.  This is…

It’s a good ink. I liked it a lot. After writing with it for a week, I no longer thought it was  true red – too many pink-ish tones for that, but it is a beautiful color.

Have you ever had a favorite ink end up discontinued? I have not – yet.

INK REVIEW: Caran D’Ache – Amazon

Nice!  I love this Amazon from Caran D’Ache. Remember, Caran D’Ache is not a person!
Anyway – the ink is a true green. It wrote beautifully – though a little wet/smudgy – I’m willing to believe (hope) that had something to do with the pen I was using and allow myself to fall in love with the ink. Not too yellow – not too blue – just green. 
Tiny bit of feathering, but again, that could be linked to the pen. I’m willing to take that bet.
A little shading, too. Not loads, but a nice little bonus.
But the biggest bonus is the big in-your-face color – and we all know how I like that.

All of this goodness has to come at a price, hm?  Amazon’s water test is a total fail. The droplet of water test (in the word “from” below) completely took over the ink – and, sadly,  the smudge test didn’t fair much better.

That bloop of ink on the bottom of the water test isn’t Amazon – it’s Invincible Black – but that’s a story for another day!

If there’s another green out there with this sort of color, but more permanency, I wish you’d post a comment and tell me all about it. For now, though, me and Caran – we’re BFFs.

xo

INK REVIEW: Caran D’Ache – Carbon

Did you know that Caran D’Ache means pencil? (There’s probably more to it, but that’s my understanding.) Here’s how I learned….

A long time ago at pen show far far away, I marched right up to a dealer and exclaimed, “Oh! You have Caran D’Ache! I love her pens!!”

Ug.

Put me right back to high school when someone asked me if I like Def Leppard. Trying to sound like I knew what he was asking while still staying non-committal, I replied, “Yeah. He’s ok. I mean, some of his stuff is alright.”  Oops..Def Leppard is a “them.”

So, anyway. Check out that black. Pretttttttty?  Nice and dark – totally saturated. And it wrote beautifully from the very first stroke of the pen.

No feathering. No shading isn’t a surprise.

Beatiful.

The water test? Well. Not so beautiful. Not a total fail, but definitely a surprise.
Here’s my bottom line – if I had a bottle of it, I’d use it.  I’d rather have Noodler’s Black, though – all of the color, and water-resistance.

Read what others are saying..

Fountain Pen Network (a comparison of blacks..er…an unrealistic comparison)

Goulet Pens is selling for $19.50
and Amazon has it for $20

SF Pen Show is this weekend!! Who’s going?