Perle Noir is one of the most recommended and well reviewed black inks out there. When I bought this ink a few years ago, I was disappointed. It is not the blackest, not the smoothest, not the fastest drying ink, not an archival ink, not the cheapest. I decided to give it a second chance so I eyedropped a Preppy with it and filled a Lamy All-star. Over the past few days I have written many pages of work notes with the ink. Perle Noir is a well behaving black ink that is sold at a reasonable price, but it doesn't excel in anything. Below some writing samples, followed by drying times and test in water resistance. Drying times are about average to slow, 45 secs with a broad nib on Tomoe River 52g paper. The ink is certainly not water resistant, but it can handle an accidental drop. The full characteristics: Feathering none Shading hardly any Show through negligible
Arguably, one of the most interesting new ink brands is South-Korean Wearingeul. With their series of ink, based on literary themes, they are certainly making a name for themselves. Recently, I bought a few of their inks and tested them. The first one is Path, from The Color of Literature Project No. 4. A delightful olive green ink, in a beautiful, simple glass bottle. Perfect for personal notes and correspondence. The shimmer makes it less suitable for office in my opinion.When using at least a medium nib, the color and shading come out best. I have tried the ink on both Tomoe River and Clairefontaine (Triomphe) paper. Stephen King quotes. The ink behaved flawlessly, with a wonderful flow. Tomoe River 52g Clairefontaine Triomph Drying time is a bit slow, 40 seconds on the Clairefontaine and roughly a minute on the Tomoe River. Water will ruin your writing, but the ink will remain somewhat legible. The full characteristics: Featherin