review: takeda jimuki TAG kyo iro keage no sakurasagane / cherry blossoms of keage

Here's the second in what I'm lovingly calling my Toronto Ink Samples: Kyo-Iro Cherry Blossom of Keage. It's quite a mouthful of a name!

I'd actually never heard of Kyo-Iro or Kyo no Oto until Liz at Wonder Pens wrote a blog post about new, fresh shipments they'd received. My interest was quite piqued, particularly at Cherry Blossom of Keage and Yamabukiiro.

Keage is the name of a train station in Kyoto (thus the "Kyo" part in Kyo-Iro). Having never been, I'll assume that there are rows and rows of cherry trees lining the streets around Keage station. What a beautiful imaginary sight!

Keage no Sakurasagane is a dusty pink, edging on purple.

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The ink went down a more vibrant pink before drying down to something closer to a dusty, muted tone. It's an interesting ink to use.

It didn't take too long for this ink to dry, though I'll chalk it up to the drier flow. It was completely dry just after the 15 second mark.

Keage no Sakurasagane has almost no water resistance. It fades away quite easily when in contact with water.

It has a little shading in fine nibs, though it definitely comes out in broader nibs. It's not exactly the most shading ink however.

This is definitely a really interesting ink, and a color that I don't think I've seen before. J. Herbin Rouille d'Ancre comes close in that dry state, but Keage's definitely quite a bit pinker.

In a Lamy 2000 with an oblique broad nib, there wasn't really a chance that this ink would have issues. However, Takeda Jimuki inks are known for being a bit dry. Ana over at The Well-Appointed Desk has written about Vanness Pens' White Lightning, an ink additive that helps the flow of drier inks. I've never used it before, but if you like the color of Kyo no Oto and Kyo-iro inks but don't like to deal with the dryness, it might be an option for you.

However, I don't believe that this is an ink that I would repurchase, mostly because of the price tag (Kyo-Iro and Kyo no Oto inks tend to be around $30). I love trying out new inks, but my budget doesn't love it. I'll certainly treasure the sample that I have.

Where to buy

• JetPens: bottle
• Pen Chalet: bottle / sample
• Wonder Pens: bottle + sample

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This post was updated on 10/6/19 to begin the process of matching my current review methodology.