2018 was an ink desert for me. The inky landscape exploded, and I was overwhelmed. That feeling made me slow way, way down on ink acquisitions, but in 2019 I am getting back into the ink game. I am interested in testing out new colors and types of inks, and, primarily, things outside of my wheelhouse. It’s time for me to mix it up!
While Robert Oster Honey Bee wouldn’t be considered a stretch for many people, this is not a color normally found on my ink shelf. I’ve had similar shades pass through some of my pens for a single fill here and there, but nothing I’ve been committed to using on the regular. I think Honey Bee might change that.
If you look closely at the online samples you will see a lot of the orange that drew me in to choosing it, but in actual use, you see more of the brown and yellow that you would expect from an ink called Honey Bee.
With my new focus on inks, I will also need to use wider nibs to really see what the inks are all about. My blue black, orange, and turquoise inks work well in my favorite extra fine nibs, but to see what an ink like Honey Bee is all about, I need to break out the stubs. Plus, I jumped at the chance to go matchy-matchy with my beautiful Stylo-Art Kinpaku and Pilot SU nib. Swoon indeed.
On the page, Honey Bee reminds me of the color of raw honeycomb. It has light browns and deep yellows and golds. It’s almost more of a light caramel, blonde roast coffee color. And I like it. I’m getting a good amount of shading too, which is what I want from my inks more than anything. The shading characteristic is not something a gel or rollerball ink pen can output on to the page.
Like some of my other favorite inks (Sailor, Pilot, Diamine, etc.) Robert Oster inks always perform well, and Honey Bee is no exception. It is the perfect combination of flow, wetness, lubrication, and saturation. It’s right in the middle across the board, and that is what I want in an every day writing ink.
Choosing an ink is always a challenge. Over the years, I’ve learned what I liked, and resisted branching out to try new things. That could mean a new brand, a new category, or even, like Honey Bee, something as simple as a new color. I’m going to keep experimenting, and when I find something interesting, you can bet I will be sharing it with you.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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