Noodler’s Antietam and de Atramentis Cucumber
This week I wanted to get some Noodler’s Antietam into my 1/2″ dip pen as it really looked fantastic while loaded in my Ahab fountain pen. Last week’s mix played a nice saturated orange off a flat gray – this week I wanted to try a complimentary color and one on the lighter side to balance out the darker parts of the Antietam.
Enter de Atramentis Cucumber – a scented ink with a beautiful even green tone and just enough saturation to keep up with the Noodler’s without fighting it. The cucumber smells nice (though Hyacinth is still my favorite) and flows really well requiring less pressure to get it flowing from the nib. It can get dark, but only where you really let it pool up heavily. In the dip pen. Antietam starts as a light rusty red color and as the ink builds up it gets a fantastic warm red-brown tone. With this color speed is key, it shades much easier and gives you a greater range of color so if you are trying to get a consistent color you will need to work at a more consistent pace.
I worked on Strathmore 300-Series mixed media paper this week as it has been the best bet when working with the very wet dip pens. The paper has a similar surface property to fountain pen pads like Rhodia and Clairfontaine, in that it keeps the ink pooled on the surface while it dries, allowing for crisper edges and better shading and blending than a more absorbent watercolor or thinner marker paper.
If you are looking to pick up a bottle of Antietam or Cucumber they are available from the folks at the Goulet Pen company:
Noodler’s Antietam 3oz
de Atramentis Cucumber 35ml
