In Manchester, England, Autumn has tinted my street in hearty colours, and yellows, browns, oranges and reds to cheer up the chilly days.
So, what is better than answering nature’s call and using coloured inks in that palette in my work?
In my past attempts to replicate Autumnal colours, I found that coloured inks were too bright and vibrant, very different from the autumn tones. Using gouache instead, the result was not satisfactory either.
Fortunately, last March at the CLAS Annual General Meeting, Bob Alldred offered me a new brand of inks that he was selling on the CLAS shop, and they were perfect, just what I needed!
They are called Bister Inks and come as crystals in plastic pots. Dissolving the crystals in water results in coloured ink with the consistency to write.
The result will be light or dark, depending on how many crystals you add to the water. And they blend beautifully, writing with broad or pointy nibs.
There are five colours to choose from, of course, I bought all of them that day – plus a couple of more items, but it is better if I not mention them here to avoid marital conflicts. Believe me, there is no such thing as too many calligraphy materials!
To show you the individual colours of this pretty inks, here is a colour chart, written in Copperplate (English) and Modern Calligraphy (Spanish).
I am finishing now this post, and I am thinking of revisiting CLAS shop for ideas to complete my Christmas list… Ho, ho, ho!
Thanks for reading, and keep well and safe.
