Things to Add to Your Ink (Using Ink Additives)

I experiment with several fountain pen inks and ink additives to get different pleasing effects.
00:00 - Intro
01:13 - Tono & Lims Toner
03:42 - Ferris Wheel Press Jelly Bean Blue and Toner
05:33 - TAG Hisoku and Toner
06:33 - Shimmer Liquid Super Violet
07:09 - Super Violet and Superstar T
08:56 - Ink Institute Cat as Midnight and Shimmer Liquid Gray Pearl
10:08 - Shimmer Liquid Deep Blue
10:57 - Deep Blue and Caran D'Ache Vibrant Green
12:05 - Water, White Lightning, Toner and Shimmer Liquid.

[@InkyRocks]

Check out gadgetstop321's video on White Lightning: kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5Wpf4eVlrGKjs0 Also, make and store your new ink concoctions in a separate container. That way you don't mess up a whole bottle of ink. And you have now changed the ratio of dyes, water, surfactants and bactericides. Though I've never had a problem, it may make your new ink more prone to going "off".

[@trishw3729]

I love your channel. I always learn so much and I often refer back to your videos for information. You're a great teacher. Thank you for your hard work in putting together beautiful and well researched videos along with all of the experimenting that we can watch. Always enlightening. :)

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much! It truly is lovely people like you that make me want to make these videos and share! It makes me so happy you get something out of them!💕

[@marcydoyle9279]

I have found my Havana goals; your video’s are not only the most informative for pens, ink and paper, but your calm style of delivery is wonderful.

[@InkyRocks]

Awesome! Thanks for watching some of my older stuff!

[@marcydoyle9279]

@@InkyRocks No, the pleasure is all mine; I have only just found your videos while looking for glass pen ‘stuff’. Sorry about the auto correct above; it was supposed to read ‘Nirvana’. I have recently been gifted a couple of lovely pens, one a fountain pen and the other a matching ballpoint and you’ve even helped with them. I didn’t know why my partner gave me one of each but you explained about the difference paper qualities so thank you again. Haha, now I want to go to Tokyo, wow what a place!

[@InkyRocks]

@@marcydoyle9279 Hope you can make it out here one day. Aside from all the fantastic stationery, there are so many cool things here (food! temples! coffee!)

[@marcydoyle9279]

@@InkyRocks Well it is definitely on my bucket list; will bring my daughter with me who is a stationary freak like me lol

[@ChrisSaenz13]

This was such a fun and visually appealing video... I just love seeing ink react to water & other substances!!!

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much Chris! I just finished watching your "junk journal" video and it inspired me so much! I need to loosen up hahaha!

[@danidoodles8]

Oh wow, I've never heard of ink additives before! They seem so handy, and I can definitely see the shimmer being used for illustration purposes too!!

[@InkyRocks]

They really are handy, with White Lightning being the most useful!

[@MyLifeMits]

I always learn so much from your videos, thank you so much for taking the time to make them :))

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much for stopping by Mitsuko!

[@jom6829]

Fascinating effects. Will have to look into this.

[@InkyRocks]

It's fun! But for me, the most useful is White Lightning, as I dislike dry inks!

[@CraftingVicky]

This is such a fun thing to see!!!! I never thought of using additives!!! Another thing to try out!!!

[@InkyRocks]

You are really getting back into fountain pens Vicky! I hope you enjoy it and add it to your crafting super powers! Thank you!

[@gadgetstop321]

Thanks for the shout-out Alesa! And I love those shimmer liquids. I'm not really into shimmer inks, so I don't really want to buy an entire bottle of one. But being able to make my own shimmer ink "on demand" is a great idea.

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks Kathy! You may like that Super Violet as it puts down a very light shimmer. It was hard to film as the shimmer was so subtle.

[@wendyholiday2021]

Thank you for the education. More things to try. I appreciate your photography and rock selection.

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much Wendy! It's a rabbit hole, but a fun one! Glad you like the rocks!

[@isandie]

That super violet is stunning! Great video!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much! It is currently my obsession hahaha! Most of the bottle is used up!

[@bodhitoro]

Another visually stunning video! Love the detailed experimentation notes and examples. I’m still exploring the vast universe of fountain pen inks without even adding a thing (beyond a water brush) - this was fun to watch, but I’ve got my hands full just getting to know colors and textures of the inks themselves 🤣 I could listen to your smoooooth narrative all day long, though the music is a little melancholy. Thanks and Happy New Year!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much! I have found that using a water brush is so much fun! I had originally gotten one to mess with crafts and find I use it more for my inks. I love the way it looks. Happy New Year to you too!

[@dmullins311]

Beautiful video as always! It always makes my day when I see you have posted one and cannot wait to finish work to watch it. Beautiful gems that work so well with your inks.

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much! I wish I could post more often, but each video takes so much time. I'm trying to streamline the process and am learning some new programs to hopefully help that.

[@dmullins311]

@@InkyRocks we just really appreciate it and the quality of your video are outstanding.

[@InkyRocks]

@@dmullins311 💕

[@jcparkins]

Interesting video. I never know there was such a thing as additives. I loved watching the shimmering additives in the water. I have mixed ink colors to try and achieve a custom color but this is new to me, very cool!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much Jackie! I may need to do a video on ink mixing as I love doing this also. I have a bottle called "ink dump" where I put "left-overs" but it is a kind of ugly color hahaha!

[@kp4xx]

Soothing and informative!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you!

[@Susansinksanddrills]

I knew about White Lightening, but nothing about adding toner or shimmer. Thank you for showing your experiments!

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much! Those were new to me too and I had to go to the store I bought them from, several times, to discuss how to use them hahaha!

[@pen2paperplans]

Super interesting video! I didn’t even know about any of these additives.

[@InkyRocks]

Glad you enjoyed! Thank you!

[@peterhofmann8292]

This was a fun video to watch and I appreciate the effort that was put into it. 👏👏👏👏👏👍👍👍

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much Peter!💕

[@russelltrotter5372]

Very interesting, well done!

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much!

[@MamaTomasu]

As an ink noob, I’ve been wondering if these types of things were avail…and they are. Thanks for sharing your knowledge

[@InkyRocks]

Glad you got some info from this. Wearingeul also has some kits, like "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" that has bottles of additives and ink that you can mix.

[@limu9331]

Watching your video is fantastic. Sometimes, I wonder if we've been thinking and developing this deeply. I'm learning a lot from you. Thank you very much. Tono certainly will.

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much! I'm learning a lot from the "inku-numa" ladies and the sales people at Okamotoya. And it's been fun experimenting. I'm looking forward to whatever you come up with next!

[@eileengoldenberg270]

Wow so much interesting information!

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks Eileen!

[@lcritter]

Fascinating! Thank you!

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks--glad you enjoyed it!

[@michaelbigham9243]

Love idea of,ink additives, thanks Mike

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much Mike! They are super fun!

[@MiguelAngelBriones]

Beautiful as always, amazing colors, love the light, the textures and the shapes. Just got myself today Cat at Midnight ink. I am thinking on doing some experiments with other inks and see what comes out. I also like the in just like that, I try it with a dip pen and did some engrosser script and came out beautiful. 😊Thank you for sharing, best wishes for you and keep up the good work. This is the best Chanel on everything that has to do with ink. Very relaxing.

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much for your kind words and support Miguel! I believe you will enjoy Cat at Midnight--it is an interesting ink. I hope you will enjoy your ink experimentation!

[@HandmadebyLorelei]

Fascinating! I have not tried these yet. But I do have some Tono and Lims ink arriving in my mailbox today. And I also think I have one of the Ink Institute Cat inks in this order too. Excited!!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you! I think you will like those new inks. It's amazing how a box with bottles of colored liquid can cause so much excitement and fun hahaha! Enjoy!

[@MichaelEKaz]

I haven't heard of ink additives until now, so this was an especially interesting topic to me. And as is the case with all of your videos, this was a beautiful production!

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much! They are pretty fun!

[@troywhite8980]

I'm glad to see White Lightning get more press. It really can make dry inks perform so much better. I've had several bottles of ink where I loved the color, but couldn't stand to write with them because they were too dry. A tip/warning, though: a little White Lightning goes a LONG way. If you add too much, it can start to have the opposite effect and the ink will go back to behaving poorly. I second InkyRocks' suggestion that you create a separate jar or vial for doing ink modifications so you don't ruin the whole bottle if you mess up.

[@InkyRocks]

You are so right--it is some powerful stuff. But now I find it indispensable!

[@tezzcan1]

Congratulations Joe Brown🎉

[@InkyRocks]

🎉

[@MrsSurrealista]

Inky ladies! we're the best, ha. This video was very fun and relaxing. Love from Chile 💗

[@InkyRocks]

hahaha! We are! I'm glad you found it fun--thank you so much. Love from Japan!

[@64ftContraBombarde]

I think I'll have to get myself some Toner! Thanks for the gorgeous shots as always.

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much! It is fun and usefully, especially for overly saturated overly wet inks!

[@64ftContraBombarde]

@@InkyRocks I'm thinking it might make my KWZ Sheen Machine a little bit more useable.

[@InkyRocks]

@@64ftContraBombarde You could also try straight up water.

[@64ftContraBombarde]

@@InkyRocks I definitely will

[@tiffanybluetarot]

I can easily spend hours mixing and adulterating inks. (And I only own 3 colors! 😆) I don’t have it down to a science at all…I just cross my fingers & make a mess. So far, I’ve made several winning combinations…but now that I’ve learned about these additives, I just may be able to elevate my game! What I’d really like to know is how to achieve a sheening effect. I’ve done it, quite by accident…but how to consistently replicate or change up the colors is a complete mystery to me. I’m so glad you posted this video. Thank you for sharing some of your mixology secrets.

[@InkyRocks]

Haha! I just like messing around. From what I understand is sheening is an effect from concentrated dyes. I think I’ve heard of people putting the ink in a covered area but open so that it can evaporate some of the water. I’ve not tried that. Good luck on your experiments!!

[@tiffanybluetarot]

@@InkyRocks that actually makes sense to me, based on the times I did get that effect. I appreciate the brain candy! I’m off to go make a mess…!!

[@Tinsleymumsey]

You are the Irving Penn of Inks💙💙💙

[@InkyRocks]

I wish! But thank you for the lovely comment!💕

[@cesspresso]

I feel like I just attended a master class 💙💛

[@InkyRocks]

Hahaha! Master crazy class! Thank you💕

[@bootsandberry]

This is a fun thing to see. I didn't know about additives. I'm not courageous enough yet to test but this is very informative!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you! One day if you have an ink that is too dry, just put a little in a sample vial and add just a touch of a tooth pick end dipped in dish soap. You will be hooked after that!

[@cind_h_er5717]

I found your channel thanks to aidanbernal mentioning you in his recent video. I'm so glad! Excellent content. Thank you.

[@InkyRocks]

Thanks so much! His foray into the challenge was so interesting! Glad he did it.

[@dokochu]

This is so fun! Love seeing the shots of the shimmer liquids. Unfortunately I'm more of a user and not someone who just wants to play with ink, but it would be great to experiment with additives for art, especially the toner. I've used White Lightning for writing, but it's hard to get the right amount. I'll probably buy shimmer liquid at some point so I can make any ink into a shimmer ink. It would be fun to mix different glitter colours!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you! I'm like you, I'm more of a fountain pen ink user instead of an ink experimenter. In the end, it it doesn't work well with my pens, it tends to sit on the shelf. Adding glitter is an easy way to mess with an ink. Try the toothpick method of adding White Lightning!

[@hekatsees9449]

I like Kyoto TAG “Hisoku”.I just got the color on a lark. It’s a lighter version of Van Dieman’s, The Midnight Series “ Blackened Sea”. I think the pic of it was more green, but it’s still very nice. I saw Graphilo written on the top of your page; is that the paper? I’ve tried dish soap by accident when I didn’t rinse a converter as well as I should have & it made my ink wetter, in a good way. Too bad I couldn’t repeat the little accident. Your ink experiments look like an ‘ink party’ to me. I still can’t get over how beautiful your ‘signature slo-mo’ video of ink falling through water is. You’ve turned liquid color into an art form... Viewing your signature art form sends pleasure signals to my brain. Your videos are always a nice surprise,🤓; a nice respite from crushing reality... Thank-you for still recording your videos. I also try my version of odd experiments with ink & other mediums at my disposal to see how it will look. But, I don’t have any artistic ability, just ideas..LOL...

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much for your very kind words--they really keep me going. I'm definitely not artistic at all. I don't say that to be humble--it's just something that is true. But I enjoy doing this ink stuff and that is what is important to me, and I'm so glad you get something out of it! If experimenting with ink makes you happy, then that is "art" enough for me!

[@ziawoolzstudiobuzz313]

I loved watching this, thank you for sharing! I’ve never used any additives, just recently added water to a fairly concentrated old cartridge, that’s about as fancy as I got... haha. Never would have thought of dish soap in a million years! xx Dag (paperdag)

[@InkyRocks]

Actually, that's pretty cool--I've not messed with ink in cartridges, but that sounds like a great tip! Be careful with the dish soap--just a very small amount (like try using a toothpick to add the soap.) Thanks Paperdag!!

[@ziawoolzstudiobuzz313]

@@InkyRocks okay! I'll remember, thanks!!

[@bethcunningham4346]

Great video! Perhaps I should try some of the shimmer inks. I'm also curious about Vaness White Lightning since I have a few inks that I think are too dry.

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you! It is probably my most used additive as I really dislike dry inks (and why I don't buy too many TAG ones.) If they are out of stock, you can try the dish soap but use very little (like just a toothpick dipped in it).

[@viviwiththefrills]

Who needs drugs when you have shimmer liquids and a giant tank of water LOL lovely and informative video as usual!! I hope I can get a bottle of Super Violet sometime soon!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you so much! I hope you can too! Try Shigure Inks!💕

[@miroslavpavlemanovski3886]

Ooooo: lovely!

[@InkyRocks]

hahaha! Glad you think so!

[@namope359]

Have a bad itch for White Lightning at times. Otherwise, have a tendency to make lightened colors by not letting my feed dry after a cleaning. It's not very long lasting. Or clean the cartridge/ cartridge converter, but not clean the feed and refill the cleaned cartridge/cartridge converter with another ink for an ombre effect that lasts a surprisingly long time. Shimmer sticks around 2 to 3 cycles of cleaning. And you'll shimmer an ink if you just leave the shimmer ink in the feed and Refill for another color.

[@InkyRocks]

hahaha! These are great tips! I'm a bit of a White Lightning junkie myself. That ombre technique is something I will have to try.

[@MarieLaureDelageCarlson]

I'm going to try the shimmer liquids...hopefully I'll find them easily!

[@InkyRocks]

You can try asking Shigure Inks if they will carry it. Also, someone just told me Pennonia sells their own version of it. I'm going to try it out!

[@hekatsees9449]

Mica powder which is safe for make-up as long as it is 10-60 microns in size(absolutely no bigger)can work wonders. There are tons of colors & lots of variation as to how much sparkle a mica might possess(not all mica sparkles). Artificial or inorganic mica works nicely as well with similar parameters, it just seems more rare. I even found some 5-micron mica in a pearlescent white like color. Very little is needed to add a shimmer effect. I never work with more than 5mL of ink at a time. I found a fountain pen today which had one of my experiment inks in it from January. The ink is in a pen with a fine nib & it started writing immediately with no skips. That was a happy surprise. The quality & size of the mica particle is imperative. If mica powder does not supply the micron size, I wouldn’t buy it. You can have size variety from color to color, so you gotta check all the specs... It really is fun to play with...

[@susanorban3059]

@@hekatsees9449 oh wow! I'm an artisan soap maker and I use mica all the time. I will have to try adding some to ink. What a fun idea!

[@Johan-vk5yd]

Beautful video! The skating bottles were thrilling! I’m still on the basic level, adding different amounts of water to different inks in different pens, when using different papers. The possible combinations are already a handful to handle for me. ( a couple of thousand most likely)Edit: 10 000 combinations! Mindblowing!

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you! You sound like you are already a pro! As long as it's fun, it's good!

[@Johan-vk5yd]

@@InkyRocks I’m certainly not a pro. I might be obsessed with nuances?

[@InkyRocks]

@@Johan-vk5yd hahaha!

[@Johan-vk5yd]

@@InkyRocks I’m deep into water dilusion!

[@PensandNeedles]

Wow, this information was so helpful to me! Thank you. Now I want to experiment with adding things to my inks! I find Noodler's inks too saturated for my tastes, for example. I love the idea of customizing inks this way.

[@InkyRocks]

That's awesome! You would like "inku-numa" as many of the ladies like desaturated inks. You can definitely go down the rabbit hole in experimentation! Thank you!

[@Johan-vk5yd]

How interesting! I’m deep into water diluting my Noodler’s inks! You too?

[@PensandNeedles]

@@Johan-vk5yd I have only just started. Excited to see how it goes!

[@WritingDelight]

I'm very curious to see when these additives for the ink will really gain a foothold here in Europe. It is interesting to create your own ink. Whether from mixing inks or here the changes in properties as here.

[@InkyRocks]

It really is--I probably should have added ink mixing too! I'm not sure additives will be really popular as I think the majority of pen users like to keep it pretty vanilla.

[@thorhilda]

You don't have to buy a specific brand (White Lightning) of "wetting agent". Surfactants are easy to find as they are commonly used in black and white photography and as anti-static cleaning solution for vinyl records.

[@InkyRocks]

Yes, someone mentioned Photoflo. I didn't know about the cleaning solution for vinyI records, but I remember it from cleaning my records as a kid! I like White Lightning because it's in a nice small bottle to store with my inks. That is why I quit using dish soap.

[@brownphoto]

I recently created my own ink with the combination of Noodler's Boston Brahmin Ship of the Line, and DeAtrementis Heliogen Green-Gold. It was very dry, but the addition of a drop of While Lightning in a 4ml sample vial did the trick. BTW - What is the music that accompanies this video, it is exquisite.

[@InkyRocks]

That White Lightning is so useful! The music is from Epidemic Sound. It's on another computer. I'll send the name when I send your package!

[@AntW11]

I wish I could buy sheen additives. But in the meantime these shimmer liquids are very interesting. I will keep my eye out for them.

[@InkyRocks]

Me too! If you have an ink you are willing to experiment with, you can try "evaporating" some in a small unopened bottle. I've gotten accidental sheen with that. (You may need to add a bit of soap or White Lightning afterwards as it gets thick.)

[@AntW11]

@@InkyRocks Thanks, that makes sense. I have seen a lot of pink/red sheen, using old ballpoint pens that have thick sticky ink.

[@Amanda-kw1vi]

Have you found an almost white or white silver shimmer? Kind of like the light violet one? I'm going to try and look up the company but thought I would ask in case sooner other company has one. I found an ink palette but it's for dip pens :/

[@InkyRocks]

The only added shimmer I have found is from Tono and Lims and Pennonia. I haven't tried the Pennonia.

[@cerealnana]

I've used photoflo to lighten inks. Can't remember where I heard about it though.

[@InkyRocks]

Thank you for this tip! I looked it up and it appears that people use it to make ink flow better (a wetting agent). Another commenter says he also uses the liquid to clean vinyl records as a flow agent!

[@thegoblintrader]

Ok I am geeking out over these inks and the look of the ink drops in water.. Where do I order the additives from?

[@InkyRocks]

White Lightning is from Vanness: vanness1938.com/ The Tono and Lims additives may be carried by Shigure Inks but it looks like Pennonia makes some too: www.pennonia.eu/

[@JoeyTrejo10]

Recently found your channel and now I really want to go to Asia to buy all these interesting inks and additives! What is the flex pen you use in this video?

[@InkyRocks]

The first was an over 100 year old dip pen. The second was one of my steel flex nibs. Check out the wild nib video--I explain them there!

[@stacijohnson9825]

Oh my gosh! Am I an ink lady at heart??? 😳

[@InkyRocks]

Yes. Yes you are!

[@Perelka_L]

Heh, the only ink additives I know is water, or water with soap (it helps a lot to make inks wetter). I don't think I ever saw any other... Also, the way the bottles slid across the screen made me giggle - it was pretty but also in a way hilarious.

[@InkyRocks]

Yes, those are the two I use all the time. I agree, for some reason bottles sliding by looks slightly ridiculous, and funny to me too!

[@PacoElMapache]

I hear glycerin works well with Inks that are too wet. I am having troubles with some iroshizuku ink bleeding through cheap paper. I just added a drop of glycerin into the converter and its already much better. Now I don't have to dilute my ink with water and i can use it on cheap paper:)

[@InkyRocks]

Wow! Thanks for the tip--I had not heard that one! Now I need to try it out!

[@PacoElMapache]

@@InkyRocks I tried it on another type od paper and if feathered like crazy but no bleedthough. The ratio of glycerin to ink is probably quite delicate

[@PacoElMapache]

If you try it out and figure something out that may be interesting, could you make a video about it? :)

[@jayofthenorth3364]

Hey there I’m wondering what your pilot parallel like glass dip pen is called? I’ve been looking for weeks and I cannot even find a picture of a stub nib glass dip pen in America ANYWHERE. I need to absolutely get my hands on one.

[@InkyRocks]

It’s called the Ribbon and it’s made by the glass company Toos. Right now in Japan, there is a 4 month waiting list. From outside the country, you might try Kingdom Note. You may have to use a proxy service. Their IG is @glass_studio_toos

[@jayofthenorth3364]

@@InkyRocks thank you so very much!! I can only find 1 picture of this pen, it’s crazy. I didn’t find the pen online anywhere so I am literally going to pay a custom glass blower to make a knock off of this ribbon nib pen. I am looking on Etsy for someone to make this pen because it’s not ever going to be available for me to buy 🥲🥲

[@InkyRocks]

@@jayofthenorth3364 If you find one that does it, let me know! So many people ask me this question, and it would be nice to point them in the right direction!

[@PenFriends]

Not used any additives, but for my art, this could be interesting!

[@InkyRocks]

Oh, that's so cool! I'm always curious about how people use ink for their art. Good luck!

[@CreatedBy_official]

What’s that flex pen you’re using?

[@InkyRocks]

It is Regalia Writing Labs' 1.1 Jowo #6 flex nib.

[@wittwittwer1043]

I enjoy inks that shade, but don't enjoy, and will not use, any of the "gimmick" inks: Shimmers, or glitter. I had some accidentally loaded green glitter ink plug the feed of one of my pens. I got that particular ink in a sample tube, but it was IDd as a green without the mention of it being "glittified."

[@InkyRocks]

Well, there is still plenty for you to choose from! Funny thing, when I first started using fountain pens, I didn’t like shading! Of course, now I do.

[@TheTektronik]

You should not have any problems with it since fountain pen inks are water-based.

[@InkyRocks]

True