Troublemaker Inks Petrichor Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

There are so many combination black inks available today — blue-black, blue-green, etc. — but gray combination inks are actually more exciting for my preferences. Mixing a gray ink with another color has potential for creating some really interesting shading effects if the formula is right. Today, we're looking at a gray-purple (or gray-green?) ink from Troublemaker Inks, who are based in the Philippines.

Petrichor is from Troublemaker's Shading collection, which features inks with (you guessed it) pronounced shading characteristics. Petrichor is a gray ink with a slight purple or green hue in some light. It's described as a gray-purple, but I don't think there's enough purple in this ink to really do the description justice. In most of my samples, it looks like a dusty gray that leans more toward green than purple. I really enjoy the color of this ink; it just isn't purple.

Since this ink is part of a collection that focuses on shading, it comes as no surprise that this ink has loads of shading. Even in small nibs, this ink shades easily. The color variation goes from a light semi-translucent gray-green to a darker gray with green and purple/blue tones. When it comes to shading, this ink does not disappoint.

Dry time is on the fairly slow side of the scale for this ink. In a medium nib, the ink was dry and smudge-resistant by 30 seconds. It smudges and smears easily under the 30-second mark, so this isn't a good choice for lefties or if you need to write and close your notebook quickly/frequently.

The characteristic of this ink that makes me hesitate the most when picking it up to use is the ink flow and lubrication. More than 90% of the inks I use are either in the middle of the scale for flow and lubrication, and I tend to like inks better if they are well-lubricated and flow easily. With Petrichor, it feels like ink supply is constricted even on pens that usually have no problem delivering lots of ink to the page. This also makes the nib feel a little dry when writing, which constantly makes me stop and think that I might have an ink flow problem. No, the ink is flowing just fine; it's just the ink formula is on the dry side and doesn't provide the amount of lubrication I like for writing. That's not to say it's a bad characteristic, but it is one that you should be aware of. If you want a dry ink with very controlled flow, this is great. If you want easy flow and a glossy feel when writing, this isn't for you.

The ink behaves well on paper. I haven't noticed any feathering or bleeding, and it starts right away. It's also easy to clean out of pens with just a water flush. I haven't experienced any weirdness with long-term storage in a pen either (meaning, no weird crusty build-up or other residue on the nib after it isn't used for a few days).

I've enjoyed the inks I've tried from Troublemaker Inks so far. This isn't my favorite by any stretch, but I still enjoy the color and shading that it offers. The dry flow takes some getting used to, but once I dialed in my writing speed and expectations, it keeps up just fine.

Petrichor is available in a 60ml bottle for $16.50, or as a 4ml sample vial for just $4. This is one of those inks where I'd really recommend going for the sample first. Given the color variation and dry flow, you need to be sure you like it before committing to such a large bottle. But, if you want the bottle, it's a great deal! Looking forward to trying more inks from Troublemaker Inks in the future.

(Vanness Pens provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Currently Inked Christmas

(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)

Thought I’d keep it simple and (relatively) short for this Christmas week post and write out the poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas”, more commonly known as “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas” by Clement Clarke Moore. I used my 48 currently inked pens to write out the 56 lines on 52gsm Thin Paper by Kokuyo.

A Visit from St. Nicholas, by Clement Clarke Moore

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds;

While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,

Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow,

Gave a lustre of midday to objects below,

When what to my wondering eyes did appear,

But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny rein-deer,

With a little old driver so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment he must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:

"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now Prancer and Vixen!

On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!

To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!

Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;

So up to the housetop the coursers they flew

With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too—

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;

A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,

And he looked like a pedler just opening his pack.

His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples, how merry!

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,

And the smoke, it encircled his head like a wreath;

He had a broad face and a little round belly

That shook when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight—

“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

Here are all the inks that were used to write out this poem:

— Montblanc Antoine de Saint-Exupery Encre du Desert

— Diamine, Flowers, Burgundy Rose

— Diamine Matador

— KWZ x UK Pen Shows, Beefeater Red

— Robert Oster x Endless Pens, New Year New Hue

— Pelikan Edelstein Turmaline

— Vanness Pens Hissy Fit

— Pelikan Edelstein Rose Quartz

— Wearingeul x Atlas Stationers Twelfth Night

— J Herbin Rouille d’Ancre

— Sailor Ink Studio 273

— Iroshizuku Yu-yake

— Pelikan Edelstein Mandarin Orange

— TWSBI Tangerine

— Robert Oster x Pen Chalet Antelope Canyon

— KWZ x Fontoplumo, Monarch

— Bungubox Mikkabi Mandarin Orange

— Robert Oster 1980s Honey Bee

— Wearingeul Stonecutter’s Song

— Robert Oster Caffe Crema

— Sailor 50 States, Texas

— Robert Oster x Cult Pens Dartmoor Brown

— Papier Plume Bad, Bad Leroy Brown

— Robert Oster x Vanness Pens Venom

— J Herbin Vert Olive

— Wearingeul The Secret Garden

— Anderillium Cephalopod, Spirula Green

— Diamine Music, Beethoven

— Kobe #34 Sorakuen Tea Green

— Pelikan Edelstein Apatite

— Bungubox June Bridge Something Blue

— Robert Oster Australis Hydra

— KWZ Walk Over Vistula

— Robert Oster Lake of Fire

— Kobe #50 Kyomachi Legend Blue

— Diamine 150th Anniversary, Blue Velvet

— Sailor 50 States, Illinois

— Pelikan Edelstein Tanzanite

— Robert Oster Aussie Cities in Colour, Adelaide

— Vinta Inks x Enigma Stationery, Tabuan Purple Sea Star

— Wearingeul Grape-colored Night

— Vinta Inks Lavender Payapa

— Monteverde Purple Reign

— Montblanc Lavender Purple

— Franklin-Christoph Black Cherry

— Diamine Amazing Amethyst

— Pelikan Edelstein Amethyst

— Platinum Chou-kuro

Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I wish you a very happy holiday season!!

Third House Inks Aqua Tofana Ink Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And her latest book, Root Rot, is now available for pre-order!)

It starts out feeling just like a cold, then a stomach flu, and then you're dead. Just a few doses of Aqua Tofana, and that's it. Or, that was how it worked in Italy in 1630, when Giulia Tofana developed and sold the arsenic, lead, and belladonna concoction to women who wished to be widows.

But this particular bottle of Aqua Tofana looks pretty and smells nice, so I'm sure it's fine. Don't drink it, though.

Third House Inks gives a new face to this name. Instead of a poison cosmetic, we have a charming ink. It comes in a 30ml matte black glass bottle with an eyedropper lid. The eyedropper is handy for filling pens that fit that style, but it's trickier for filling converters. And the bottle's neck is too narrow for many pens to fit into, so filling from it is also a bit tricky. But once the pen is filled, this is a very fun ink.

The color is a pure teal, with chromatography going from sky blue to a tint of yellow. Where it pools, it looks like dark spearmint green, then it fades to a bright emerald. It has a quick dry time, and it does feel a bit dry when writing. It has no sheen, and shows little shading in the writing, but it doesn't feather except where it has been pooled on the page on purpose. The ink shows excellent water resistance, and didn't fade or run at all when water was dripped on it or wiped across it.

Overall it behaves well, and, as I said above, it smells nice. It has clearly been perfumed, and the scent is apparent not just in the bottle, but on the page as well. It's not overpowering, just pleasant.

There are similar shades of teal out there, but the fast dry time and water resistance set this one apart. And while I don't love the bottle, I do like the ink, and it's certainly worth the $8 price tag. Heck, for that, I'd buy it just for the name. In fact, Third House Ink names are all pretty irresistible. So many poisons!

(No individuals were harmed in the writing of this review. Brad purchased this ink at the 2023 Orlando Pen Show at regular price.)

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