#shin-kai

[perverse-plasticity]

Pretty happy overall with this great blue heron, less happy with the hatching on the lower half

Done with a pilot metropolitan fountain pen, and iroshizoku shin-Kai ink

[bookmarksandbrushpens]

This past weekend was pretty magical for me; I got to spend it with my best friend @chatoyantquill and then my party swept the Virginia state elections. So I guess the first weekend in November is now my favorite weekend. Day 8 of the November challenge by @journaling-junkie

Pen: Kara’s Kustom Fountain K, ground EF

Ink: Pilot Iroshizuku shin-kai

Writing Music: Rain in the Tide app

[thefinerpoint]

1 Week, 1 Pen/Pencil: Week 7 Review and Final Thoughts

This week was my final one in the 1 week, 1 pen/pencil mini series. For the complete duration of this week I have been on holiday and unfortunately I have not managed to write the usual amount and so I don’t feel like I have given this weeks fountain pen and ink combination as much attention as I have done with previous weeks. To top this off it has also meant I have chosen to cheat this week. Alongside my designated fountain pen and ink I have been using a Blackwing Pearl and the Uni Pin drawing pen to sketch. This was a conscious decision as it’s not often I am in this scenic part of the world and I didn’t want this mini series to get in the way of my desire to paint. Now with these small asides explained, on with my thoughts for this week.

My feelings on the Tactile Turn Gist

The time I have managed to get with the Tactile Turn Gist fountain pen has been enjoyable. After a full weeks use I have found the brass grip section and finial the nicest parts of this pen. These brass accents make the weight pretty damn good balancing out the lightweight body to give you a comfortable writing experience. Too much brass could be overwhelming and heavy, but the Gist has struck the right balance.

The brass grip section has also started to tarnish nicely. This is one of the benefits of a brass pen and having this on the grip means guaranteed tarnishing, as long as you use it. My Gist is coming along nicely now. I’ve also thought that this pen could be considered a little understated. From an initial view and from the outside you have a plain looking black pen with a small brass finial, but then remove the cap and you get a real pop. It’s an understated look with the cool shiny parts hidden under the cap.

The one thing that bugs me with this fountain pen is the proportion of nib to pen. The Bock nib looks huge. I did point this out in my full review of this fountain pen initially but it doesn’t feel like I can shake this annoyance. Every time I use this pen it catches my eye and feels too overpowering in comparison to the fountain pens size overall.

Onto the ink…

I still love the Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-Kai. The colour is gorgeous and paired with a fine Bock nib it works really well. You get to see a nice line width on the page and can appreciate some of the inks shading. The ink flow is brilliant and it just writes so well. I have on the whole been using a good range of paper this week, tomoe river paper and Midori refills and as such haven’t had any issues of feathering or bleed through.

It feels a bit conformist loving a blue-black ink so much when there are so many different colours out there and I have no restrictions on what colours of ink I can use. However, the Iroshizuku Shin-Kai is just utterly lovely. The tone of this ink is just right. Its not too blue, or too black, it really does remind me of a deep sea blue. I also adore the Iroshizuku line of inks and I have several of their colours that I really like using for all the same reasons, good flow, wet inks and lovely colours. However with all my other inks colours I have situations or times of year when I think they work the best, with Shin-Kai it just works all the time. I can’t get enough of it.

Overall thoughts

I think I may keep this fountain pen and ink combination for a while as I have enjoyed the pairing. My initial thoughts on the Gist may have been a little harsh. I have found over the course of this week that I have warmed to this fountain pen a lot. It’s a great size and is a fountain pen I can use without worrying about damage too much. The Shin-Kai ink is still a real favourite of mine. I had gone for a period of not using it, and now I am not quite sure why. It’s safe to say that this will probably be an ink I use all the time moving forward and could be the first full bottle of ink that I actually finish.

Mini series final thoughts

I have really enjoyed planning and writing about this mini series. It has only involved a small collection of writing instruments that I use regularly but dedicating time to using them has reminded me what I do and don’t like about each one.

From this exercise I have learnt that I definitely couldn’t commit myself to one writing instrument. In itself this is a silly statement as I don’t think I will ever have to choose just one, but despite that this mini series has taught me a number of things.

Firstly I really do love using fountain pens. For longer form writing nothing beats the glide of a fountain pen nib on nice paper and watching ink settle on the page. It’s extremely satisfying. I get excited about fountain pens and enjoy using them. It’s the first choice for me and I have found my paper choices changing over time to allow me to use fountain pens more often.

I haven’t committed enough time to gel pens during this exercise but I have found that they work really well on the move and for general note taking purposes. I think this is the best option for that sort of task. They are fun to use and write smoothly and I feel like I should use them a lot more than I currently do. I haven’t found the right pen body to use with my gel refills. The Karas Kustoms Retrakt just didn’t fit the bill. I need something a lot lighter.

Finally I learnt some things about my pencil use. Pencils have always been a bit of an anomaly for me. I like using them and I now think I have liked the idea of the simplicity of a pencil probably more than using them. The weeks I found the most difficult during this experiment were the pencil weeks. I found I was getting bored and wanting to see a bit of colour on the page. I had to choose a Blackwing for this experiment as they are such an iconic pencil and a real presence in the pencil market. Overall I do enjoy these pencils but what I have found is that it cannot beat the Staedtler Mars Lumograph for me. This is a wonderful pencil that I really enjoyed using. I actually think I could put a stake in the ground and say this is my favourite pencil. Pencils definitely have their place for me but they are never a writing tool that I could use all the time on their own. The are the understudy in my writing arsenal.

What next?

I think this mini series has been useful and perhaps should be replicated semi regularly. I have found several benefits with using writing tools in this way rather than flitting from one thing to another. It reminds you what you like about a specific pen or pencil. Sometimes its nice to use one of the many pens or pencils I have for a full week and just enjoy it not worrying about what pen to use next. Most of the time I buy these things because I enjoy them and this exercise has reminded me of that simple fact. Therefore I am not annoyed at the times when I had to use a different pen for a specific task. Overall I think I completed this series pretty well.

If you have missed previous weeks in this mini series and would like to catch up, simply click here to check them out.

[writteninrain]

shin-kai replied to your post: this is it friends no diamond...

Noooooo :/ Good luck for the next season ;___; I’m just Silver though gl hf ^___^

sON

SON

WHAT SERVER DO U PLAY ON

[shin-kai]

Salam bro, I follow so many blogs and I just saw yours for the first time today, it's awesome. It was like love at first click

Wkslm ^__^ Hope you are good :) Hey That's cool, my blog is just a mix of a lot of random stuff :'D but thankyu bro ^__^ I will check yours ~ 

[the-truth-awaits]

Wheee Tag Thingy

so I was tagged by 2torykiind ((THANK YOU ;A;))

Rules:

Always post the rules

Answer the questions of the person who tagged you and write 11 new ones

Tag 11 new people and link them to the post

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THANK YOU FOR TAGGING ME!!!

1.) Has your dash ever make you decide to start a series, TV show, etc.?

YES!! All the time actually!! The most recent is Serei no Gargantia, but there have been tons that I've watched because of my dash and lovely followers!

2.) Do you have siblings?

Yep, one younger brother (though apparently I have the same maturity level as him -.-).

3.) Do you play any instruments? If so, what?

Ish. I quit piano as a kid, so know like 3 songs, but I can sing!

4.) Do you like white chocolate?

No. Sorry, but I can't eat it without feeling sick -.-

5.) Have you ever written/drawn fanfiction/fanart?

... YES to both... >///< I draw a lot, and with a reference can draw most things really accurately (without tracing of course!)  I also am currently writing 2 Fullmetal Alchemist fanfics that are actually pretty popular on FFN and aren't horrible I promise!! (If you want to check them out, you can send me an ask!! ._.)

6.) Who the fuck even started the whole tagging thing?

I DON'T KNOW!! I CAN NEVER DECIDE WHO TO TAG!!! And these are really fun but can take so much time because I actually think about my answers so I always take forever before doing it and feel bad T_T

7.) Explain y = mx+b.

... ok... y = mx+b is the equation of a line, or the graph of a function with a constant slope. y is a function of x, x is a variable, m is the slope of the line, and b is the y-intercept of the line. Yeah... I liked math for some reason (before I discovered calculus eek).

8.) What is your favorite food?

Ahhh I cannot chooooose!! I love Japanese food and Italian food though (but specifics are too difficult!!!)

9.) On a scale of 0-10, how bad are these questions?

wait... does 10 mean they're bad or good?!?!?!?! ahhhhh nuoooo ((but dwdw, they're good!!))

10.) What is your favorite song?

I don't have one really -.- I suck at the "favorite" questions. But right now I really like the Shingeki no Kyojin OP Guren no Yumiya

11.) Do you like sugary things?

Nope. I feel sick every time I eat sugary things. ;-;

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QUESTIONS FOR YOU!!!

What is your favorite anime/show that you are currently watching?

Do you ever wonder if your friends like you as much as you like them?

How do you like your coffee (or do you even like coffee)?

What was the last movie you saw in a theater? Did you like it?

What has been your favorite vacation/place to visit?

Do you play videogames? What's your favorite?

What do you think of the Shingeki no Kyojin and Free! tumblr takeover/fandoms that may or may not be all over your dash right now?

If you could be transported into an anime world, in which you were able to use any powers that characters in that anime have or be incorporated into the story, which would it be?

Do you have any song(s) that you just hate? Why?

Is there some type of food that you really don't like?

Do you dream (when you're asleep)? Can you remember your dreams, and do you sometimes wish they could be real or wonder if they are?

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I'm sorry if the questions were lame T_T And I'm so sorry if I don't tag you!! ;-; I just can never pick only 11 and I want to choose so many other people I am so sorry!!! T_T

Tagged people, I choose you!!!

[applebla]

Hi ^__^ ! I just want to ask What do you use for your gifs please ? Thanks ^^ ( From the moment you take screenshots to the finish please :D ) Thanks sorry my english is really bad xD

Hi! :33 

Ooooohh, I learned how to make gifs due to this tutorial (thanks, ohyeahfriendsyeah), read it, it's very detailed! Hope it'll help you!~

Don't worry, my English is also terrible :DD And what is your native language?? *OOO*