Where to buy: Blackbird Inks [Here]

Price: £5.95

Bottle size: 30ml

Price/ml: £0.20 (2dp)

Colour: Blue

Shading: Some

Sheening: No

Recommend?: This is a really cool blue that I didn’t warm to initially, but I absolutely adore it. Solid blue, no nonsense, not too showy. It’s beautiful.

Recently I have found myself down another rabbit hole, still in the pen hobby, but more niche. Mabie Todd fountain pens. Unfortunately, Mabie Todd ceased production, but now the brand has been resurrected and this begins with a line of inks: Blackbird Inks (to pay homage to Mabie Todd’s previous line of inks, Swan Inks). So to say I am really excited about this is an understatement as it brings new inks and new pens. I have an offering of six inks to review for you. These inks are made in England – operating in the same way Mabie Todd did back in the 20th century. The pens will also be made in England, which is why the release will be a bit later on because it’ll take longer to manufacture than outsourcing. Though, well worth the wait and stays true to the Mabie Todd brand that brought us the pen of the British Empire.

All the inks are named after birds, which is a great theme. You can buy the inks here directly. Links to independent reviews will be uploaded as and when they’re made – all links open in a separate tab. You can find the reviews here (all links open to a separate tab)-

As I said, in the overview and at the top of the review, I didn’t warm to this ink initially. I think I was expecting more of a vibrant colour, but this is a really solid blue with a nice colour, some subtle shading properties and just all round nice to look at. It isn’t so much a ‘royal blue’, which is what I initially thought it was and perhaps why I was put off of it to begin with (as much as I love blues, you can’t really do much with a royal blue in terms of being impressed).

In terms of shade, this is a fairly darkish blue. Not a blue-black by any stretch of the imagination, but if you consider some of the lighter shades that I have obsessed over in the past (particularly those with a “sea” theme, it appears), this has more depth to it. Like I said, darker but not too dark that it’s a blue black. Here are a few comparisons that might be useful, however.

On cheaper paper, you get a touch of feathering (though, they’re named after birds.. It would be disappointing if you didn’t!) but really nothing substantial. Slight bleed on the reverse side and show through. You lose the shading qualities of the ink on this type of paper, though.

This ink isn’t very waterproof either.

I don’t think I can sing the praises of this ink enough. You know I love a good blue, but this ink is simple that it makes it great but coupled with some nice shading. Perhaps I rather admire the ‘vintage’ feel? At any rate – get yourself some because you’ll love it!

Disclaimer: I was sent this ink in exchange for an honest review. All views expressed are my own.