Hello inky friends! Madigan here, reviewing the glorious Pilot Iroshizuku Yu-yake. I used this ink in a recent Monday Matchup and liked it immediately. While it might not be the most audacious orange, it is still vivacious with gorgeous shading. Yu-yake translates to sunset and this ink will certainly set your writing ablaze! Read on to discover more.
Supplies Used:
- Lamy Al-Star with medium steel nib (also EF and B nib)
- Rhodia No. 16 dotpad, 80g white paper
- Tomoé River white paper
- Moleskine notebook
Smear Test (Dry Time):
- Medium- Under 30 seconds and this one is dry. That's a pretty standard drying time. Not quick dry by any means, but you shouldn't be too worried about turning the page when writing.
Drip Test (Water Resistance):
- Medium- Surprisingly, this ink had pretty good staying power! It isn't exactly waterproof (there was some smearing) but the lines stayed somewhat in tact and legible.
Saturation:
- Medium- While there were definite fluctuations in color between the first and second swabs, there was no difference between the second and third.
Ease of Cleaning:
- Easy- The light hue of the ink made it easy to clean out of the pen. A couple of runs through the faucet, and my Lamy was clean.
Shading:
- High- Like a lot of orange inks, this one had gorgeous shading. When I worked with it in my Monday Matchup, I could see almost burnt orange, to this lighter shade. It's seriously stunning.
Flow:
- Medium-This ink has wonderful flow! Not to heavy, not too light, right in the sweet spot.
Packaging and Aesthetics:
- Beautiful 50ml bottle and box.
- Bottle has a large round opening making it easy to fill.
- The box is beautifully designed and pleasant to look at.
Inks Similar in Color:
Summary:
This is a fantastic ink! I'm not sure if it quite beats out Noodler's Habanero for me, but it is gorgeous. I can see it working well as an alternative editing ink. It could work well for teachers who don't want to grade in red as well. Obviously, orange isn't the most professional of colors, but it could be used for letter writing or journaling.
You can find Pilot Iroshizuku Yu-yake at GouletPens.com in a 50ml bottle for $28 or a 2ml ink sample for $2.50.
What is your favorite orange ink?
Write on,
Madigan