September's 30 Inks 30 Days Challenge

Back by popular demand, September will be the 2nd #30inks30days challenge.

30 inks? 30 days? What is this? Read on, young padawan, I shall explain.

The goal of #30inks30days is to expand the horizons of fountain pen ink usage. Some fountain pen enthusiasts have so much ink that they will never use in a lifetime. For those who are in the sample game (like our Ink Flight subscribers), this means dozens, if not hundreds, of vials sit forgotten, collecting dust.

For every day in September, the challenge is to use a different ink each day of the calendar month. The trick is to only have one pen inked per day.

At the end of each day, clean out the pen and change it up. Ink a different one with a different color. Go through 30 ink colors in 30 days, but only using one pen per day to accomplish it.

What you would need to accomplish this challenge are at least 30 ink colors. If you're short on variety, expand your collection by grabbing samples instead of costly full bottles.

To join others in this challenge, post your daily pen and ink combinations on Instagram or Twitter. Mention @inkjournal and use the #30inks30days hashtag on your post and to find others who are posting about the same challenge. 

Some FAQ's about the challenge answered:

Do I have to use the same pen throughout the 30 days?
No, but extra kudos if you do. To make it easier on yourself, rotate out the pens each day, cleaning one and inking another. That way, you always have at least one pen that is clean and ready to be inked.

Will there be a prize if I finish the challenge?
If you finish all 30 days in September, tag us on instagram with the appropriate hashtag, you will be entered for a chance to win great items from Rickshaw Bagworks and InkJournal. There are a limited number of prizes, so we will randomly pick from those that completed the challenge. 

Do I have to start the challenge on September 1st?
It's a 30-day challenge, so you can technically start at any time and end up 30 days later.

Which fountain pens are best for doing this challenge?
Pens that are easy to clean out, like cartridge/converter filling pens, tend to be the easiest to clean out routinely. I'd stay away from lever fills, vacuum fills, eyedropper fills and other high-capacity filling mechanisms.

What if all I have are piston-filling pens? How can I prevent wasting ink?
Only partially fill your converters and piston-fills with a tiny bit of ink to last you through the. You'll be amazed at how much ink a pen actually needs in a day. It's not much!

Looking forward to seeing the awesome colors you all are going to write with!