Ink Flight #74 Reveal, March 2023
Drawing inspiration from classic literature, Wearingeul reinterprets novels and poetry into beautiful, expressive ink colors. Last year, we explored Wearingeul's Korean literature ink collections. On this flight, you'll find a concentration of Western works. Inks are imported from Korea.
Revisiting classical literature is a 1,000 IQ move on the part of Wearingeul The theme that can be explored with many books I (didn't want to) read in high school. The genius part is, since these titles are now public domain, there are no copyright lawsuits to worry about (take that, Shakespeare's ghost!).
March 2023 Ink Flight Box #74 "Currently Inked" Color Selection
Wearingeul White Rabbit
From Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. Take a tumble down the rabbit hole with this shading light orange-pink color.
Wearingeul Wayfarer
by Natsume Soseki. The color of blooming human suspicion. This aqua-green base color has a vivid red sheen and violet shimmer.
Wearingeul Jane Eyre
by Charlotte Bronte. This pastel violet shading ink represents the last scene of the novel - the reunion.
Wearingeul King Lear
by William Shakespeare. This ink illustrates the madness of King Lear showing tragical red glitter on a greenish-gray base.
Wearingeul Pride and Prejudice
by Jane Austen. This ink symbolizes the confrontation between love and wealth. Vivid pink represents love while the golden sheen is wealth.
Wearingeul The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This saturated, navy violet ink with golden sheen represents the eroding morality of social stratification.
Wearingeul Metamorphosis
by Franz Kafka. Focusing on the sudden transformation into a bug, this ink is a deep, burgundy red with a copper-colored sheen.
Tasting Notes: The first ink that immediately attracted me in this Flight was the "Wayfarer." It reminds me of a less saturated version of J. Herbin's Emerald of Chivor. It shimmers, shades, and sheens! I inked it in my Kaweco Sport B nib using the piston converter. Unlike other shimmering inks, Wayfarer did not clog the nib and flowed nicely. Instead of gold shimmer you would see in Chivor, "Wayfarer" has marine blue shimmer, which looks spectacular, especially when you get a load of it on a particular word or swatch.
Another ink that impressed me was "Pride and Prejudice." This is a bright, magenta purple that has electric greenish-gold sheen. I inked it in my Lamy Safari with a 1.1mm stub nib. It has an intense saturation and rich flow. The sheen is beautiful and it doesn't seem to have much of a problem with smearing unless you run your hand right over it the moment you finish writing.
White Rabbit, Jane Eyre, and King Lear are the high-shading inks that are lower in saturation. I had high hopes for the Rabbit, but it was too light to read, especially when it's wet. Jane Eyre is quite pleasing on the eye and has some blueish undertones. I didn't spend as much time with King Lear, but the rose shimmer looks fun!
The Great Gatsby and Metamorphosis round out the set with a couple of rich, saturated hues. I was hoping that Gatsby would be like Dark Lilac and give me some of the sheeny sheen. While it has some black sheen, it doesn't have the extreme sheen I was hoping for. Metamorphosis looks rich, stunning, and fitting for a cockroach's carapace.
Box Extras: Compoco "Written in the Stars" Pocket Notebook Set, Rickshaw Bagworks "Got Ink?" Solo Pen Sleeve
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves.” - William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
These softcover, saddle-stitched pocket notebooks are elegantly adorned with out-of-this-world "nib" illustrations accented with gold foil. The eggplant purple covers contain 64 lined pages of 3.54" x 4.72" size. Although these notebooks use ecological paper, the 80gsm thickness can handle saturated inks and nib sizes thinner than (B) broad.
Founded by two sisters who share a passion for inspiring design, Compoco imagines stationery that communicates the idea: anything is possible.
Use these pocket notebooks to collect lists of new inks to sample, pens to put on your wishlist, nibs you'd like to have ground, and new stationery podcasts to listen to. Or, take them with you to write whenever inspiration may find you.
While you're on the go with your Compoco notebooks, be sure to protect your accompanying pen in the comfort of luxurious plush. Rickshaw Bagworks of San Francisco provided the long, solo pen sleeves with a new, tongue-in-cheek graphic exterior.
The Rickshaw Solo Pen Sleeve has the reputation of being one of the softest cases to protect your finest pens. The colorful inner plush lining keeps our pens snug and scratch-free while not in use. The nylon outer layer is tough enough to withstand the rigors of everyday carry.
As a bonus, Rickshaw included a bunch of assorted stickers to decorate your notebook, laptop, cubicle, tackle box, or whatever!
In honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday (and National Read Across America Day), we included a Seuss-topus sticker illustrated by Eric (@e_bear_ink on Instagram). Fun fact: the blue color in the inkwell is the Robert Oster x InkJournal exclusive Marathon Blue ink.
This sticker nearly made it this month. It was the first time that our sticker supplier was inexplicably delayed that pushed us near the brink. We got as far as packing all the boxes when the stickers finally arrived! We're so excited to include these this month, as the design is amazing and the timing is just right!
What are your thoughts on March's Ink Flight? Please feel to share them on social media by tagging me @inkjournal or send me a quick e-mail to provide your feedback.
See the contents of all our previous Ink Flight Boxes here. We hope to see you next month to continue our journey into the world of fountain pen inks.