Wearingeul The Sky, Seasons Passing By
Ink Review #51
*Please note that the scan is the accurate representation of this color.
Overview
The color/properties:
The Sky, Seasons Passing By is a muted medium blue. It shades crisply between light and dark tones where the ink pools. There was a slight red sheen in the ink droplets, but I don’t believe that it would ever show up in normal writing circumstances. Overall I think this is a refined and soothing, but also mildly somber blue.
Ink Splat
Ink Droplets
Performance on paper:
During my tests, there was minimal bleed-through on the Kokuyo sheet, and no feathering or bleeding on the other test pages. The Dry times were a touch above average, especially on the Midori page, where almost every nib was dry within 15 seconds. On the other hand, they were surprisingly poor on the Maruman page, taking up to the 30-second mark to dry with the larger nibs. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a lot in the way of water resistance: when exposed to water most of the color quickly washed away leaving mostly unreadable traces behind.
Water resistance
Chromatography
Performance in the pen:
The Sky, Seasons Passing By has a medium flow, but it felt smooth, comfortable, and well-lubricated across each of the test nibs. I didn’t experience any skipping or hard-starting during my tests, and it was overall a very well-behaved ink.
The ink cleaned out of the pen with a basic soak and flush, leaving no traces of color or sediment inside the barrel of the pen or the nib units.
Value/cost per ml:
At the time of writing, Wearingeul The Sky, Seasons Passing By sells for $22 for a 30ml bottle from US retailers, making this ink $0.73 per ml.
The bottle/packaging:
Wearingeul The Sky, Seasons Passing By comes in a simple but elegant square glass bottle similar to the ones many Sailor inks come in. The glass has a nice clarity, and the cap is faceted, allowing you to get a good grip on it. There’s a small card inside with an image of the swatch, as well as the colors RGB values and Pantone number (respectively 50/59/86 and 3506 U). Functionally the bottle is fine. It’s small but stable enough to fill from without struggle. The bottle opening is fine and It will allow you to get most pens through to fill from the nib, but I personally think it would be easier to fill from a syringe or pipette (and far safer to do so without causing a spill).
Score: 62.5/70
Price per ml: 4/10
Performance in a pen: 10/10
Performance on paper: 9/10
Color saturation: 6.5/10
Sheening: 1/10
Shading: 6.5/10
Dry time: 8/10
Water resistance: 1/10
Ease of cleaning: 10/10
Bottle form: 4/5
Bottle function: 2.5/5
*Only 70 of the 100 available points are required for an outstanding score.My personal thoughts...
The Sky, Seasons Passing By is part of Wearingeul’s Yun Dong-ju literature ink set. Three of the 4 — including this one — are inspired by Yun Dong-ju’s poem “A Star Counting Night.” While I wasn’t able to acquire an official translation in time for this review, I was ultimately able to read and interpret the poem for myself from several online sources. If you’re interested in Yun Dong-ju’s poetic works, a complete translation can be found in ‘Sky, Wind, and Stars,’ translated by Kyung-Nyun Kim Richards, and Steffen F. Richards. I will also include links below to the resources I used.
I think this is a great ink — in fact, my girlfriend and I liked it so much, we purchased a second bottle. I’ve looked at the other inks in the set, and while they’re equally beautiful, I believe that this ink best represents the work as a whole. The Sky, Seasons Passing By doesn’t offer the eye-catching qualities of the other three inks, but the absence of shimmer or sheen reinforces the overall mood of the color in relation to the poem. The poet stands beneath a deepening autumn night sky, counting the stars and reflecting upon the past and the present, longing and hope. The color matches his poignant tone.
After learning more about the poem, the poet, and the historical setting from which this ink drew inspiration, I have a greater appreciation for its simple beauty.
Written in a Leuchtturm1917 notebook with a Taccia Covenant (Selvedge nib by Nib Tailor)
More images/info:
Tools and materials used in the writing samples:
A TWSBI Diamond 580 AL with 7 nib units including a Needlepoint grind, EF, F, M, B, 1.1mm stub, and an Architect grind. All nibs are tuned to perform at the same medium wetness.
A Rhodia No16 A5 DotPad
A Leuchtturm1917 A5 Notebook
A 68gsm A5 Tomoe River Notebook
A Maruman Mnemosyne A5 Spiral Notebook
A Kokuyo Campus A5 Notebook
Resources used in this review:
Korean Jream’s video reading of the poem
This is an excellent video reading (and translation) of ‘A Star Counting Night’ This is the version that was used for the writing sample in my images.
Sky, Wind, and Stars (not affiliated)
A full English translation of Yun Dong-ju’s complete work.