Hi there, fountain pen friends! Whitney here, with my latest Monday Matchup pairing: a TWSBI Vac Mini Smoke inked up with Pilot Iroshizuku Momiji. Read on to hear my thoughts on this interesting matchup.
I found inspiration for this piece in the meaning of the ink name. Momiji means "autumn leaves" and I thought what better than a Japanese Maple to represent this theme, so I drew the tree. I wanted to find an uplifting autumn quote to accompany it. I found the Albert Camus quote and thought it very fitting and I liked the connection between flowers and the leaves in fall.
I started by googling Japanese Maples so I could get an idea of how I wanted to draw the tree. I decided to do the drawing free hand, no pencil sketching first. I tried my best to mimic all the best parts I saw in my search when I started to sketch. Then I drew the extra leaves around the drawing and did an ink wash to blend the colors a bit and give the drawing more color. When that was mostly dry, I wrote in the quote.
I love the Iroshizuku inks so, even though I'm not a huge fan of pink inks, I knew this would be a great ink to use. It flows so nicely and is a great quality ink. Momiji is a complex ink with lots of shading ability. It provides a nice variety of color between writing and ink washes.
As for the pen, broad nibs are not my favorite either. I prefer to stick to the extra-fines and fines as my writing and sketching tends to be very small and detailed. Using the broad for this matchup was a very interesting switch up for me. The TWSBI broad was very smooth and wrote nicely. It makes bold, thick lines that look very pretty.
I think this pen and ink combo would be good for journaling, letter writing, or any other place where you would want big, bold, interesting writing. Momiji is a nice pink hue that isn't offensive to the eyes so it would be OK for anything that was going to be re-read. While this pen and ink wouldn't be my first choice for my personal writing style, it was really interesting to try out and I enjoyed stepping out of my comfort zone.
You can find the TWSBI Vac Mini Smoke at GouletPens.com for $60 ($65 for the 1.1mm stub nib) in EF, F, M, and B. Pilot Iroshizuku Momiji is available in a 50ml bottle for $28 or a 2ml ink sample for $2.25.
Want to win this pen and ink? Enter our Monday Matchup giveaway on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or here on the blog! The contest is open Monday, September 12, 2016 at 12pm EDT until Tuesday, September, 13, 2016 at 12pm EDT. One winner will be randomly selected and announced tomorrow once the contest closes. The winner must live in a country that Goulet Pens currently ships to. Click here to see the Official Contest Rules.
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Have you ever tried a pen or ink that was way outside your comfort zone just to test your limits?
Write on,
Whitney