Greetings Readers, and Happy (last day of) June!

Summer has officially arrived (too bad the weather hasn’t heard this yet) and with another month over, that means it is time for the latest installment in my calligraphy favourites!

I didn’t do a favourites post last month, as I didn’t have a whole lot of faves. But today I do, and they are: 

FOX AND QUILLS INKS

If you’ve read any of my previous monthly posts, you’ll have noticed a trend – I love all things paints, pigments and inks. And while handmade watercolours still have my heart, this month I purchased the entire line of the Fox and Quills iron gall inks and they have not disappointed! The range has 22 colours, and my favourites of the bunch are the green shades, namely Peacock, Bali Blue, and Emerald. Something to note is that the darker colours, like Victoria and Elephant, have quite a strong smell, so if you’re sensitive to odours that is something to bear in mind. I’m not though, so I love them all!

Additionally, the pigments in a few colours (Mermaid Magic, Moroccan Gold Shimmer, Sakura, and others) settle, so you’ll have to mix them up prior to use for maximum effect. Overall these inks were definitely a great purchase and I look forward to using them in future projects.

FERRIS WHEEL PRESS INKS

To the surprise of no one, another set of inks made my favourites. But this entry is extra special because…I won them! I entered an Instagram competition hosted by @theinkybrush, Pure Pens and Ferris Wheel Press, and I emerged victorious! I received three bottles – Morningside Mint, Madam Mulberry, and April Showers. I will be writing a separate post about these inks next month. Now, I have been eyeing up Ferris Wheel Press for quite some time. Their packaging has an almost ethereal quality to it and I wanted them on that alone.

These three inks are stunning and quite lovely to use. Since I usually use watercolour or acrylic ink, the thinner consistency took some getting used to, but once I got the hang of it, it was smooth sailing. Of my prize it’s hard to pick a favourite, between the smooth green of Morningside Mint, to the deep blush oof Madam Mulberry, to the glistening sparkle of April Showers – I love them all!

PEN CUBBY

I have taken the next step in my artist journey and purchased a gigantic cabinet to house my massive collection everything to do with calligraphy and calligraphy accessories. A separate review on the cabinet is in progress, so keep an eye out for that. As pens and markers are a big part of my collection, I had a custom pen cubby made when I bought the cabinet. It fits perfectly into any one of the slots, and holds many of my pens, including Ecoline, Uniball, Kuretake, and even some of my lesser used oblique and straight holders.

COSMETIC JARS

I pretty much exclusively use oblique holders these days (I still love brush pens though). Because of their somewhat awkward shape, that does make it tricky to dip nibs. Couple that with the beautiful but inconvenient packaging of the inks above, the inks need to be decanted into another container to be used. And that’s where these nifty cosmetic jars come in! These jars from Ampulla have been great for ink storage. I got the 20ml volume so I can transfer small amounts at a time. The mouth of the jar is wide enough to accommodate even the most of oblique of holders. The seal is great as well. I have had my fair share of ink leaks with other containers, but so far so good with these.

ACRYLIC CONTAINERS

Yet, even with an enormous cabinet, I still had a need for further organization. I didn’t want to waste the time and effort of decanting all the ink I got this month, only to end up losing track of my little pots of prettiness, or worse, spill on my carpet! So, in comes these acrylic boxes! I got them from Muji. They are durable, affordable, and satisfy my deep love for all things acrylic storage solutions.

And there you have it! These are the things I’ve loved this June! Is there something you’d like me to try or review? Share your comments below!