Black & Grey Inks

Cross Black
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

Neutral to purple/brown black with grey tones in its lighter range. Fairly dark; a good bit more than most.


De Atramentis Love Letter
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? Yes
Shimmer? No
Comments:

True, dark, velvety, charcoal black, no green/blue/brown tones, with only very slight shading and a heady rose scent.


Diamine Night Sky
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? Yes
Comments:

One of Diamine’s Shimmertastics line, this is technically a black with silvery/iridescent shimmer, but it reads a bit more as a grey because of that shimmer. A very dramatic ink!


Levenger Raven Black
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

As rather my namesake, I love this deep true black, even though I don’t really do blacks much. Of all of the blacks I have, this one has a pleasing tone, just the sort of subtle purplish hue one might expect on the glossy wing of a corvid.


Mont Blanc Black
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

Another basic black; a semi-vintage. I grabbed this more for the ‘shoe’ style bottle (the older, more rounded, deco-styled one, not the current blocky one) than the ink- I don’t tend to use black much.


Monteverde Black
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

It’s black. Well, OK, it is a nice true black, not he darkest, but in most nibs, quite dark, without any real color shift. What is notable, however, is that this is one of the best behaved inks I’ve ever used. Monteverde claims to have some ‘clewing & lubricating’ properties to their inks, and from using this one, I’m convinced. It’s becomes a go-to for troublesome pens, even though, as a rule, I don’t prefer using black ink.


Visconti Black
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

Deep true black. (Small plastic bottle.) Probably the darkest I currently own.


Waterman Black
Color family: Blacks
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

Slightly washed out but pretty true black; no noticable blue or brown tones.


Grey Inks

De Atramentis Frankincense
Color family: Greys
Sample? No | Scented? Yes
Shimmer? No
Comments:

Another of my scented ink batch, this one with a smokey Frankincense that I really like. It’s a pretty true dove grey, which I also like, though it’s an odd color choice for the scent (to me, at least).


De Atramentis Ghost
Color family: Greys
Sample? No | Scented? Yes
Shimmer? No
Comments:

Mournful greenish-grey, another tough one to describe. Think old mossy wood, stained green over water-logged grey. Has a very evocative (considering the name) scent of pine, water and camphor – makes me think of haunted mansions in the Bayou. Or something….


Diamine Grey
Color family: Greys
Sample? Yes | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

This is an interesting ink. It’s a true grey, with no noticeable shades of green, blue, or brown. It shades nicely, and seems to perform as one would expect a Diamine ink to perform. So I like this, I’m just not sure I’ll ever use it….


Diamine Grey Fox
Color family: Greys
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

I’ve been becoming fascinated with grey inks, and this one if a beautiful example. A clear, slightly cool grey that manages not to lean to any hue. Medium in tone, if can carry itself even in a finer nib, but might be more expressive in a medium or wider.


J. Herbin Stormy Seas
Color family: Greys
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? Yes
Comments:

A medium-to-dark grey with a soft golden shimmer, this ink is…well, I should love it, but I don’t, and I can’t say why. Maybe I want this lovely true grey to shimmer silver, not gold? Maybe the grey comes off as greenish in combination with the gold shimmer? I don’t know, this just doesn’t rock my socks like some of Herbin’s other shimmering inks. (Although, I will say this one does give a subtle glint to writing with a finer nib, which I do appreciate.)


Noodler's Lexington Grey
Color family: Greys
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

Greys seem to be tough – they either end up leaning greenish, bluish, or purplish; it’s hard to find a true neutral grey. This one has a very slight green cast, but is still a very nice medium grey. I’ve started to really become intrigued by grey inks…. Oh it’s also bulletproof, making it a nice choice for legal documents where you might want something *just* a little out of the ordinary, but not too flashy


Sheaffer Grey
Color family: Greys
Sample? No | Scented? No
Shimmer? No
Comments:

This is another semi-vintage ink from Sheaffer, this one in a burgundy-labeled bottle, dating from the late 1980s. It’s a really nicely balanced grey that leans a bit warm, and shows lovely shading.