Exploring Our Favourite Calligraphy Inks
The process of creating a piece of calligraphy begins with a few important decisions. What would you like written, and what colour should it be? Ink is the essential medium that brings your words to life. But selecting the right calligraphy inks is a personal choice.
Fortunately the world of calligraphy has a wide variety of formulas and colours to explore. No matter if you’re looking for a bespoke piece of calligraphy art, wedding stationery or a unique calligraphy project. We can offer a range of calligraphy inks to complement your vision.
Considerations
It's important to remember that you can’t consider inks on their own. You may have a specific ink colour in mind. But the ink you end up choosing will also depend on what you would like written and the paper you would like it written on.
Ink bleed is always a concern with calligraphy and it’s usually hard to predict if it will happen or not. Bleed can depend on a number of factors including the consistency of the ink, and the binders used to make the paper. Thinner inks tend to bleed more, low-quality paper or paper with an extremely rough texture also increases the likelihood that ink will bleed.
It is common for customers to have a specific paper that they would like us to do calligraphy on. If you choose to do this we would always suggest getting in touch first to find out about our ink selections. Usually we would need to test any paper supplied to ensure that our ink won’t bleed on the paper.
Our Favourite Calligraphy Inks
Sumi Ink
Sumi is one of our favourite black inks. It works well for both practice and finished calligraphy pieces. You can dilute the ink to the right consistency and the ink remains opaque, even on thin hairlines. It is lightfast and waterproof. Meaning the ink won’t fade or change colour over time. That way you can be sure your artwork will last for years to come.
We love using this particular ink because it works on almost all paper types. If there is ever a paper it bleeds on it's really easy to mix in a little gum arabic which solves those little bleeding problems.
Dr PH Martin Bleed-Proof White
Bleed-proof white is one of our all-time favourite inks and is our go-to for any project requiring white ink. This ink comes in a very thick paste so we can dilute it with water to the consistency we need for writing.
We love this ink because it lasts such a long time. We’ve been using the same bottle for over three years now! It can take a little time to get used to working with this ink, but it is very opaque even with fine hairlines. Meaning it works very well on almost any dark-coloured paper.
Walnut Ink
Walnut ink is a classic of the calligraphy world. Originally made from the husks of walnuts, this ink has been a calligraphy favourite for thousands of years. Walnut ink dries to a deep brown tone, making it an ideal choice if you want to add a bit of character to your calligraphy.
Walnut ink can be bought as a liquid or in crystal form (where you add water to create ink). It tends to be a very watery ink so can be challenging for beginners. It also tends to be a transparent ink so works better on light-coloured papers with even fine hairlines showing very clearly. It looks beautiful on smooth paper, but also works extremely well when paired with handmade paper.
Finetec Metallic Watercolours
As the name suggests, Finetec Metallic Inks are actually watercolour paints, rather than traditional calligraphy inks. But don’t let that put you off. If you’re looking for a metallic ink Finetec makes some of the best and is our go-to pick for metallic colours.
Finetec paints come in solid pans which need to be mixed with water to the right consistency for writing. It can take a little practice to get it right but the result is more than worth it. Finetec inks are made with mica powder, which means they are extremely pigmented and highly reflective. They are opaque which makes them a great choice for darker coloured papers. Even very light golds will show up well on black paper.
We love these inks because they have such a wide range of shades. They have over 20 different gold, bronze and rose gold colours to choose from. If you have a very specific shade of gold you would like us to match chances are good we will find the right shade in Finetec metallics for you.
Designer Gouache
Gouache is not made specifically for calligraphy, but is something we’ve been using for years and we love the flexibility it offers us. Gouache is a little like watercolour, but more opaque. It comes in a range of colours, including neon and metallic shades. We can mix almost any colour you may have in mind using gouache. This makes it a fantastic option if you have a specific colour you would like us to match for wedding stationery.
Gouache comes in tubes of thick paint, and it can take a little practice to get used to mixing them to the right consistency for writing. But the effort is worth it. Gouache is a lightfast paint, meaning it also works well for custom artworks as they won’t fade or change colour over time. They are also opaque, so will work well against light or dark-coloured papers.
It's important to remember that you can’t consider calligraphy inks on their own. You may have a specific ink colour in mind. But the exact type of ink you end up choosing will also depend on what you would like written and the paper you would like it written on. If you have a specific project in mind please Get In Touch so we can discuss what will work best for you.