Yazeh Ink Reviews

  Zerkon — n° 76 - Crushed into Dust - 碾作尘   Ink Review # 270   Ink:  #76 Crushed into Dust - 碾作尘 Brand:  Zerkon Country:  China Availability:  5 ml sample vials, 50 ml bottles. Pens Used:  Jinhao Centennial (EEF Mahjon flex, fude) Kaweco (EF/F/M/B/ stub 1.1) Description The ink’s name is inspired by Lu You’s (1125–1210) famous poem  卜算子 · 咏梅  — “Ode to the Plum Blossom.” Beside the broken bridge, beyond the relay station, Lonely she blooms. At dusk she grieves; then come wind and rain. Heedless of envious flowers, with no desire to compete, Her blooms ravaged and trampled in mud, ground to dust, only her fragrance lingers unchanged. After browsing through their ink catalogue, I chose this one which looked most promising as a chromo-shading ink. It came in a classic ink vial filled to the rim with no identification. The ink has a dry flow. When wet, it’s a green-grey and then it transforms into a dusky purple. The ink disliked the Majohn...

  Ostrich — Purple Snowflakes (严凝 /Yánníng)   Ink Review # 264   Ink:  Purple Snowflakes (严凝 /Yánníng) Series:  24 Solar Terms Brand:  Ostrich Country:  Manual check needed Availability:  Unknown Pens Used:  Platinum Preppy EF, Kaweco Sport (EF/F/M/B/BB stub 1.1), Jinhao 450 fude, Noodler’s Ahab with an FPR ultra-flex nib. Description All the inks in this series are based on Chinese poetry and the 24 seasonal markers in the Chinese calendar. The bottle’s text comes from Lu You’s (1125–1210) “Heavy Snow.” Here is an adapted translation by me and ChatGPT. Deep freeze—Jiangnan has never seen such snow. Flakes traverse the curtain; the treetops bow beneath their weight. Dice tumble in felt tents; a sleepless night. The bridled horse is ready at dawn; the rider hesitates. Too late to reclaim the lost north, in vain I dream of the Yellow River frozen to its depths. This is a wet, gorgeous, dark, muted purple. Ink has excellent lubrication. It was u...

Colorverse - Delicious Sleep   Ink Review # 257   --- 🧾 Description   Ink:  Delicious Sleep Series:  Joy in the Ordinary Brand:  Colorverse Country:  South Korea Bottle size:  30 mL Pens Used:  Pilot F3A EF semi-flex, Lamy Safari (EF, F, M, B, stub 1.1)   I got a sample on a whim. I’m very particular with purples and this one is not for me.    The ink is wet, has slightly below-average lubrication, and shows subtle shading on most papers, with excellent shading on Iroful.   The ink doesn’t like copy paper and even had a bit of show-through on Rhodia.    It will survive a few drops of water but not a flood.    Apart from the label on the ink bottle, this ink is a pass for me. I prefer my purples muted, or darker.  --- 🧪 Chroma   --- ✍️ Writing Samples (photos LED and daylight)   Translations from language are provided for reference only and may differ from published versions.   JEF ...