Friday Drops: New Platinum Preppy Wa Edo-Monogatami, Colorverse Colorvent Top 3, and More Viarco!

This week’s Drops post is a bit late, and it’s because I had to spend yesterday listing a bunch of new inventory as it arrived. New arrivals include the latest Platinum Preppy Wa “Modern Maki-e” series, dubbed “Edo-Monogatami” and themed around various aspects of life during Japan’s Edo period. (You may recall that the Taccia Ukiyo-e fountain pen inks reflect Edo period art, so consider whether these pens and inks might be a good match!)

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After a somewhat lengthy wait, we also have the much-anticipated Colorverse “Top 3” inks from the 2024 Colorvent Calendar, and the three colors chosen were Christmas Star, Pulsar Pulse, and Milky Way. You can purchase a set containing three 15ml bottles (one of each color) plus four complementary washi tapes, or you can purchase a standard 65ml bottle of individual colors. Finally, we have the new Lamy AL-Star pens and pencils highlighted in Tuesday’s post, as well as a full Viarco pencil restock.

Another reason why it’s been a bit quiet here recently - in addition to Pen Show travel - is that we are expanding our store! Next week we will be taking over a larger showroom to create dedicated viewing and shopping space (though we will still have our current location as our warehouse, office, and event space, and it will likely be some time before the new space is open.) Come see us this week on Thursday and Friday from 1-6pm, as well as Saturday from 10am-6pm, so you can see all of these and more in-person!

1. Platinum Preppy Wa “Modern Maki-e” Edo-Monogatami Special Editions. All of the most recent Platinum “Modern Maki-e” releases are now available, themed around life in Japan’s Edo period.

2. Colorverse Colorvent “Top 3” Ink Sets and Bottles. We knew it was coming, but Colorverse has finally released the Top 3 inks from the Colorvent Calendar, available either in a set of three 15ml ink bottles with matching washi tape, or as individual 65ml bottles.

3. Lamy AL-Star Dark Dusk and Mint Special Editions. The latest Lamy AL-Star pens and pencils have landed, in two new green and blue colorways.

4. Laurett’s Ebonite Ballpoint Pens and Mechanical Pencils. I picked up several of these Laurett’s machined ebonite ballpoints and mechanical pencils at the D.C. Pen Show after visiting the Laurett’s table. The combination of precision knurling and ebonite is unlike anything I’ve seen before.

5. Archer & Olive Traveler-sized Notebooks. These A5 Slim hardcover notebooks have proven popular so we are likely going to bring in additional sizes, as well as more of the Traveler’s-size notebooks.

6. Viarco Pencil Restock! We spent most of yesterday afternoon listing a half-dozen different varieties of Viarco pencils and accessories, including all of the standard office pencils in HB and B hardnesses as well as the vintage series. Oh, and…

7. Viarco Pencil Caps. Pencil caps are back! These simple metal spring-style pencil caps protect your long-point-sharpened wood pencils in transit. Available in the boxes of 8 or larger packs of 20.

8. Blackwing Volume 140 Pencils. We have some remaining stock of the latest Blackwing Volumes release, inspired by stainless steel cookware and the Maillard Reaction. These are very nice looking pencils, and there are also high-quality recipe cards to pair with the release.

9. Faber-Castell Perfect Pencil. The Perfect Pencil is back! We have the more reasonably priced version, which you won’t be afraid to carry and use as intended, as an everyday sharpener and pencil extender.

10. Faber-Castell Grip Trio Sharpener in New Colors. The Grip Trio pencil sharpener allows you to sharpen standard, jumbo, and colored pencils, and now comes in three new colors.

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And yes, we’ve added to our selection of Bicolor annotation pencils!

So Who Won 2024? Final Thoughts on Inkvent vs. Colorvent

This “Inkvent Season” was the first year that Diamine and Colorverse went head to head with their respective “Inkvent” and “Colorvent” ink advent calendars. So who did it better? In my opinion, Colorverse, and it wasn’t even particularly close. This was a bit of a reversal, where I thought Inkvent was leading for the first 10 days. Colorverse not only grew on me over time, but ran away with the victory starting about halfway through the month.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Diamine Ink, but primarily their standard colors. I’m partial to more subdued, muted shades - even if I do enjoy a subtle shimmer ink on occasion - and this past year’s Inkvent focused too much on “extreme sheen”, which might be my least favorite ink property. I found these inks slow to dry, and they often featured so much gold or green sheen that you couldn’t even see the base color once the ink was on the page.

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Yep, the sheen on this ink led to smearing weeks later.

Of all the Colorverse Colorvent Inks, however, there were only a handful that I couldn’t see myself using on a regular basis. The Colorvent Calendar went heavy on the blues, reds, and multi-shading greys, and while many of these colors aren’t particularly “festive”, I personally appreciate the fact that I can use them year-round, especially after shelling out close to $200 for the Colorvent. It’s a lot of ink, and I actually plan to keep most of it!

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Diamine Wishing Tree was my favorite of the 2024 Inkvent Inks. You can check out my overall favorites from the first half of the two calendars here.

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I REALLY want Colorverse to add this particular ink to their permanent collection. This was prominently featured in my recap of Inkvent/Colorvent, Part II.

Grab Some Select Inkvent Samples, While Supplies Last!

I can’t keep everything, so I’ve dropped this year’s Inkvent samples and some remaining from prior years into the “Gently Used/Clearance” section of the shop. Patreon Members already have had first crack at these, but there’s still a lot of ink left to go out the door. Also, please be sure to check out the rest of our brands, as we’ve recently brought in several new lines including Teranishi, Taccia, Diamine 150th Anniversary, and more!

Our brick and mortar shop is typically open for regular hours Thursday through Saturday, and otherwise by appointment. For directions and specific hours keep an eye on this page, which will reflect any changes due to anticipated inclement weather later this week.

Inkvent and Colorvent 2024: Recapping Days 11-20

I’ve been pleasantly surprised with the reaction to how I’ve handled Inkvent/Colorvent season this year, as everyone seems to enjoy the daily Instagram polls. I personally enjoy seeing which inks people prefer, and the poll results have definitely included some surprises. Without further ado, here are the top three inks from both the Colorverse Colorvent and Diamine Inkvent calendars, respectively. Note that these polls are not at all scientific, and depend entirely on how many people responded to the Instagram stories poll as of the date of this post. If your favorite ink isn’t included here, go vote! (And if you missed the recap of the first 10 days, you can check it out here.)

Top Three Colorverse “Colorvent” Inks from Days 11-20: NGC 2264, PUlsar pulse, and brinicles/milky Way (tie)

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Easily my favorite ink from both Colorvent and Inkvent. This dark green should be a frontrunner to be added to regular Colorverse lineup next year. Poll results were near-unanimous.

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It came as no surprise to me that Pulsar Pulse was a favorite.

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Ok, so the "third place” Colorvent ink was actually a tie between “Brinicles” and “Milky Way” (shown below). I enjoyed both inks so I decided to include both in the top “three”!

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Given the connection people have long drawn between the “Advent Calendar inks” and shimmer, I’m surprised that the Colorvent Calendar hasn’t included more shimmer inks. That said, those that have appeared in the calendar are very good.

Top Three Diamine “Inkvent” Inks from Days 11-20

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Snow Glob surprised me with how popular it was, yet it’s sort of understandable since it’s one of the more “usable” Inkvent inks from this year.

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Winterberry, with it’s deep red hue and pink shimmer, is probably my own favorite from this year’s Diamine shimmer inks.

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Blue inks with red sheen are always popular. No exceptions.

Overall Takeaways from Inkvent/Colorvent, Part II

My personal takeaways from the first ten days hold true: the Colorverse Colorvent calendar contains more inks that I would use as everyday writers, whereas the Diamine Inkvent calendar features inks that are more traditionally “festive” and associated with winter and the holiday season. Given how much I’ve enjoyed the Colorverse inks, I’m strongly considering adding Colorverse to the shop as a standard brand in 2025. The dark green NGC 2264 is my favorite ink so far from both calendars, and it’s not even close. Stay tuned for the final five days and a general wrap up next week!

We have exactly ONE Diamine Inkvent calendar left. It’s not too late to grab samples of all the inks! Even though the inky advent calendars are mostly sold out, we still have plenty of ink available in our shop, including lots of recently added brands! If you’d like to peruse ink in person, we have extended holiday hours Saturday through Monday before taking a long-awaited break for Christmas. Come see us!

Inkvent and Colorvent 2024: Recapping the First 10 Days of December

There’s pretty much an Advent calendar for every interest these days. Tea, coffee, beer, wine, chocolate, pencils, art supplies, and - of course - fountain pen ink! Believe it or not, there are now three different fountain pen ink advent calendars on the market: the Diamine Inkvent Calendar (the original); the Colorverse “Colorvent” Calendar (new this year); and the Enigma Stationery Inkvent Calendar (put together in-store, and which collects different brands).

This year, I purchased a Diamine Inkvent and Colorverse Colorvent calendar, and have been walking through each of the inks on the T.G.S. Instagram Account (check out the stories). As a bit of a twist, this year I added a highly scientific poll to each Instagram Story that allowed readers to vote Yay, Nay, or “Blah” for each ink. Here are the top three inks for each calendar, by vote:

Top Three Diamine Inkvent Inks So Far

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Diamine Inkvent, Day One: Baltic Breeze. This one surprised me a bit with it’s popularity, but I guess it appeals to a lot of people.

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Day 8: Marley. A bit of a multi-shader and subtle color, so no surprises this one was a favorite.

Again, this one was not one of my top three, but these icy cool shimmer inks are always favorites.

Top Three Colorverse Colorvent Inks So Far

Cool color, but not my personal favorite. I think people were just happy to see something other than red, taupe, or navy blue.

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It will not surprise anyone that Red Horizon is my personal favorite of all the inks to date. Colorverse indicated they might add a few of the more popular Colorvent inks to the standard line, and I hope this one makes it as I’ll want a giant bottle.

It only took two days for a typo! I was kind of surprised that this was one of the more popular Colorvent inks. It’s a great color - don’t get me wrong - but not as festive as some of the other calendar options.

Takeaways and General Observations on Each Calendar as a Whole

I don’t have a clear “favorite” in terms of Inkvent vs. Colorvent. The two calendars are VERY different, and will appeal to different people. I’ll share my own thoughts on each, as well as one ink I felt was unfairly maligned at the polls.

• Overall Festiveness. Diamine Inkvent wins by a long shot. Nearly all of the inks are winter and holiday-themed, and of the first 10, a whopping six are shimmer inks, compared to one for the Colorvent.

• Usability. Of the two calendars, the Colorverse Colorvent calendar has more inks that I would use for everyday writing. There are fewer shimmer inks and bright holiday-themed colors, and as a whole - at least through the first 10 days - the colors are more muted, understated tones which I appreciate. So far, purchasing the Colorvent calendar would give you a very nice collection of inks that are usable year-round.

• Value. Here, I’ll probably give the slight edge to Diamine, mainly due to a greater ink variety and a much lower price, but it’s close. While neither calendar is inexpensive, with Diamine Inkvent priced at $120 and the Colorvent Calendar at $180, Diamine is 30% less. Diamine gives you 24 12ml bottles of ink and one larger 30ml for the last day. Colorverse gives you 24 15ml bottles. I will add that the Colorvent Calendar makes a more impressive gift - Colorverse uses its signature glass bottles (making for a substantial-feeling package), and also went above and beyond on the packaging design, including a short blurb “behind the door” that describes the inspiration for each ink.

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And finally, here’s the one ink that shocked me with how poorly it did in the polling. Diamine “Wishing Tree” doesn’t photograph very well because there’s a lot of subtle color-shifting and understated shimmer going on. I’ll have to post some additional photos later, because I’m probably keeping this one.

The Colorverse Colorvent Calendar and the Enigma Inkvent Calendars sold out long ago, so you’re probably too late to pick one up unless you can convince someone to sell you a calendar on the secondary market. It’s not too late to play along with Inkvent, however! Diamine makes a LOT of Inkvent Calendars, and they are still available at many retailers (including us). We only have one or two left at the time of publication.

If you missed out on the inky Advent calendar that you wanted, we still have plenty of ink available in our shop, including lots of recently added brands! If you’d like to peruse ink in person, we have extended holiday hours Thursday through Sunday. Come see us!

New Arrivals: Get Ready for Inkvent/Colorvent with Col-o-ring Books and Swatching Supplies!

Confession: I opened my Colorverse Colorvent Calendar yesterday. Starting December 1, I plan to post each day’s ink from both the Colorvent and the Diamine Inkvent Calendars, just as I did last year. Most of these mini-reviews will probably go to Instagram and to YouTube (you can check out my recap of last year’s Inkvent here), but I’ll definitely do summaries as well. Typically, what I’ve done in the past is swatch each ink on a standard Col-or-ring card (which shows off ink properties like sheen and shading), and then also compare the inks side-by-side on Midori MD Cotton paper, which to me offers excellent color reproduction and is also one of my favorite papers for my personal writing, so I get a sense of how the inks will work in the real world.

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While Colorvent Calendars are sold out, we still have a few Diamine Inkvent Calendars available, in addition to all the gear you can use for working your way through “Inkvent,” such as Col-o-ring Ink Testing Books and dip nibs from Kakimori and Tom’s Studio. Stay tuned as the holiday season kicks off in about two weeks!

This week our brick-and-mortar shop returns to regular hours: Thursday 1-6pm; Friday 1-7pm; and Saturday 10-7pm. We are considering adding additional hours for the holiday shopping season after Thanksgiving. Stay tuned!

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