Inky Madness – Colorverse

So, I just missed March with this post, but life decided to life, and, well, better late than never, right?

In this sequel to my Diamine Inky Madness post, I’m going through all of the Colorverse inks I own bottles of. To make this bracket a bit more fair than the Diamine bracket, I listed the bottles by number of uses, then looked for inks in the same color family with the closest number of uses possible. That way, as much as possible, I could avoid comparing an ink I love and use a lot to an ink I just got or have used significantly less. I’ve included the number of times I’ve used each ink in a pen in parentheses after the name in round 1.

Disclaimer: To have isolated photos of each bottle I pulled images from: Colorverse, Inky Inspirations, and Papier & Stift.

Jump to a round: Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Ultimate Winner | Full Bracket

Round 1

As with any bracket, I started with all — 35!! — inks I own bottles of.

Adobe (15) vs Rising Reflections (7)

Although Rising Reflections is a pretty gold with lovely blue shimmer, I love Adobe‘s bold yellow with a green undertone. Both are great shaders, but I have to give the win to Adobe.

Winner: Adobe

Sea of Tranquility (11) vs Walk the Dog (9)

I’m sorry, Sea of Tranquility, but Walk the Dog wins this easily. Sea of Tranquility is a lovely emerald green, but there are many emerald inks out there. Walk the Dog is a gorgeous grungy green with a yellow undertone and some brown multishading.

Winner: Walk the Dog

Sea Europa (9) vs Brunch Date (3)

Three in and we’ve hit the first hard one. Sea Europe and Brunch Date are fairly similar. Sea Europa is a dusty pink, more vibrant than Brunch Date’s muted coral. But it’s also darker and can look like an off-black ink with wetter nibs. At this precise moment, I’m giving the win to Brunch Date. Ask me again in a week, and my choice would probably be different.

Winner: Brunch Date

Butterfly Nebula (8) vs Cat’s Eye Nebula (6)

While Butterfly Nebula and Cat’s Eye Nebula are different colors, they are both fairly pale — requiring wetter nibs — have shimmer, and shade well. Butterfly Nebula has multichrome shimmer that complements its periwinkle base color and purple multishading beautifully. Cat’s Eye Nebula has multiple shimmer colors, which pair nicely with its almost-green teal base color. I’m giving Butterfly Nebula the win because it tends to be a bit better behaved than Cat’s Eye Nebula.

Winner: Butterfly Nebula

Lights on Ceres (7) vs Lucky Cosmos (2)

While Lucky Cosmos has some glorious multichrome shimmer, I have to water it down when used in all but the finest nibs to avoid it shading to off-black. So, I’m giving this one to Lights on Ceres, which was one of my first pink inks and shades beautifully.

Winner: Lights on Ceres

Milky Lavender (7) vs Tang Pyeong (6)

Just like the previous bout, while I love Tang Pyeong‘s beautiful grape color, I have to be careful which nib I use it with so it doesn’t look off-black. Milky Lavender, however, can be used with any nib and still be a gorgeous pinky-lavender.

Winner: Milky Lavender

Gluon (5) vs Hwang Cho (3)

I can’t deny that Gluon is a gorgeously saturated yellow-green, but Hwang Cho is a beautifully desaturated forest green. Gluon shades enough to become off-black, whereas Hwang Cho turns brown with heavy ink deposits. This one is really difficult. I’m picking Hwang Cho because when I want an ink in that color family, it’s the one I tend to reach for, whereas Gluon is not my first pick when I want that kind of color.

Winner: Hwang Cho

Under the Shade (5) vs Winter of Mudeung (2)

While I enjoy Under the Shade as an excellent gray, it is just a gray ink. Winter of Mudeung has some pink multishading and multichrome shimmer to accompany its beautiful grayish-purple base color.

Winner: Winter of Mudeung

Ginkgo Tree (6) vs Coffee Break (4)

Oh, dear, another difficult one. These are both gorgeous browns. Ginkgo Tree is reminiscent of piloncillo/panela, and Coffee Break is a delicious chocolately brown. Both have lovely shading, although Coffee Break can turn into an off-black with wet nibs. This gives Ginkgo Tree a slight edge, which is what it needs to win this round

Winner: Ginkgo Tree

Able (4) vs “Anti-Matter” (4)

Before I work on choosing a winner here, I need to say that my bottle of Anti-Matter is clearly mislabeled, because it’s not gray. My best guess is that it’s actually Life on Mars, but I’m not positive. That said, the saturated teal of my Not-Actually-Anti-Matter is more appealing to me than the muted, green-gray of Able.

Winner: “Anti-Matter”

75t Rocket Engine (4) vs Blue Dragon Glistening Blue (2)

I don’t know precisely what it is about 75t Rocket Engine that has such a hold on me, but I fell in love with this pale blue-black the first time I used it. I do have to be careful what pen I use it in because it can shade to off-black. Blue Dragon, on the other hand, I bought because it’s for the year of the dragon. It’s Colorverse’s version of Emeraude de Chivor, from base color to sheen — had I purchased the gold version, it would be an ink dupe. I’m not a huge fan of sheening, though, so I need to water it down to really enjoy it, and that’s difficult with shimmer. So, I’m giving the win to Rocket Engine.

Winner: 75t Rocket Engine

Rainy Day (3) vs NGC 6302 (2)

Another easy one. The only reason I have NGC 6302 is because it came with Butterfly Nebula; it’s a pretty standard muted teal. Rainy Day, on the other hand, was a purposeful purchase decision because I love it’s slightly muted turquoise.

Winner: Rainy Day

Chesapeake Bay (2) vs Gold Rush (1)

This one is a little difficult. Chesapeake Bay has some yellow and gray multishading which is lovely, and there’s no worry of it shading to off-black. Gold Rush, while a good shader, doesn’t go to off-black in the nib sizes I like, and has a great gold shimmer; it really is dirt and gold. What I feel gives Gold Rush the edge is that I don’t have to worry about using it in EF nibs, whereas Chesapeake Bay can get hard to read in them.

Winner: Gold Rush

Space Needle (2) vs Tangerine (1)

Space Needle is a peachy-orange with some shading, and it is quite nice. But, Tangerine is delightfully vibrant and evokes nostalgic thoughts of Creamsicles. Nom. Sorry, Space Needle, nostalgia for the win.

Winner: Tangerine

Iris Nebula (2) vs Mystic Mountain (3)

After Butterfly Nebula/Cat’s Eye Nebula, these two inks are probably the most disparate pairing in round 1. Iris Nebula is a desaturated purple with silver or blue and yellow or gold shimmer. Mystic Mountain is a pretty denim-ish blue with multichrome shimmer. Both are gorgeous inks, making this a difficult decision. On one hand, Iris Nebula’s multicolor shimmer is a lot of fun. On the other hand, the color/shimmer combo of Mystic Mountain is stunning. Today, I’m giving the win to Mystic Mountain. Ask me again another day, and I’m likely to choose Iris Nebula.

Winner: Mystic Mountain

Fabulous Las Vegas (2) vs Horsehead Nebula (1)

Both Las Vegas and Horsehead Nebula are new-to-me inks. Las Vegas is a completely unique color in my collection — a slightly purple pink with gold shimmer. Horsehead Nebula’s base color is similar to other inks I own, but its multicolor shimmer makes it stand out from the crowd. Because of its uniqueness, I’m giving this one to Las Vegas.

Winner: Fabulous Las Vegas

Stellaris (1) vs 2023 New Year (1)

Another two inks that are new-to-me. Stellaris is a vibrant turquoise with a red/fuchsia shimmer. 2023 New Year is a gorgeous emerald green with — what looks like — the same gold/yellow and blue/silver shimmer that Iris Nebula has, but with more of the blue/silver. Based on my swatches, 2023 New Year can shade to an off-black. Conversely, I know from experience that Stellaris needs a broader nib to be readable. But, they are both beautiful colors. I have to be nitpicky again to choose a winner here. Given how pale Stellaris can be, the individual shimmer particles are easily visible and aren’t as pretty when the light isn’t hitting them just right. So, I’m giving this one to 2023 New Year.

Winner: 2023 New Year

Leftover: Delicious Sleep (1)

And that leaves Delicious Sleep to automatically move on to the next round.

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Round 2

Alright, we’re on to round 2, and down to 18 inks. I know from the Diamine bracket that this set will be significantly harder. For this round, I ignored use numbers and focused on similarity in colors to create my pairings.

Adobe vs Tangerine

Despite Tangerine’s nostalgia-inducing orange, I have to admit that it can get a bit eye-searing when used to write a full page, and it has minimal shading. Adobe, however, is perfectly comfortable to read, and has some lovely shading with a hint of multishading.

Winner: Adobe

Walk the Dog vs 2023 New Year

Both Walk the Dog and 2023 New Year have gorgeous base colors, so this becomes a battle of shimmer vs multishading. While I’ve certainly come to appreciate shimmer, I don’t know that it will ever beat out the understated beauty of shading.

Winner: Walk the Dog

Brunch Date vs Ginkgo Tree

If anything, this battle is even harder than each ink’s round 1 battle. Both are comfortable to read a full page of writing. Both have shading that doesn’t extend into off-black territory. Brunch Date is muted, Ginkgo Tree is vibrant. Pink vs Brown. I’ve legitimately been staring at both ink swatches for about 5 minutes, and I don’t know what to decide. I’ll come back to this one once I’ve finished the rest of round 2.

I couldn’t decide on a winner, so I enlisted the help of my cats. Ritz is currently under the bed, but Athena, Dante, and Floofenstein all agree that Ginkgo Tree is better.

Winner: Ginkgo Tree

Butterfly Nebula vs Mystic Mountain

Because Butterfly Nebula can be so light — you really need to use it with a very wet nib — I’m giving this one to Mystic Mountain.

Winner: Mystic Mountain

Lights on Ceres vs Fabulous Las Vegas

Lights on Ceres is one of the colors that Horsehead Nebula — from Las Vegas’ round 1 battle — is similar to. I’m giving the win to Las Vegas again for its uniqueness in my ink collection.

Winner: Fabulous Las Vegas

Milky Lavender vs Delicious Sleep

Delicious Sleep is a delicious color, but it doesn’t have much shading — if it did, it would be in the off-black category. Milky Lavender, on the other hand, does have shading, which I rather enjoy.

Winner: Milky Lavender

Hwang Cho vs Gold Rush

It’s another battle of multishading vs shimmer. Both Hwang Cho and Gold Rush have about the same level of desaturation. They also have similar levels of shading. Granted, as opposed to the Walk The Dog/2023 New Year battle, these two inks are different color families. While I love Gold Rush, especially in my Namiki Rock Garden, shading still wins over shimmer.

Winner: Hwang Cho

Winter of Mudeung vs 75t Rocket Engine

I’m sorry, Rocket Engine, this isn’t really a fair battle. Winter of Mudeung has multishading and multichrome shimmer; it wins hands-down.

Winner: Winter of Mudeung

“Anti-Matter” vs Rainy Day

While Not-Actually-Anti-Matter is a pretty teal, today I prefer Rainy Day’s turquoise and more noticeable shading.

Winner: Rainy Day

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Round 3

Well, I made it through round 2 with some help, let’s see how I do with round 3. I’m down to 9 colors this time. I once again tried to keep to similar colors for my pairings.

Adobe vs Ginkgo Tree

While Adobe and Gingko Tree have about the same level of shading and saturation, Adobe also has some multishading that gives it the edge.

Winner: Adobe

Walk the Dog vs Hwang Cho

Green multishader vs green multishader! You’d think this would be difficult, but Walk the Dog is a more vibrant color, which both shades to a darker green and multishades to a yellowish brown. Hwang Cho does have some same-color shading, but it looks almost gray in comparison to Walk the Dog. Its multishading is to a grayish brown that just doesn’t live up to Walk the Dog.

Winner: Walk the Dog

Milky Lavender vs Rainy Day

Milky Lavender and Rainy Day have roughly the same levels of shading, saturation, and lightness. Neither has any shimmer or multishading. So, that really only leaves hue to judge on. As I said in my Diamine battle, it’s rare that a blue will win out over a purple ink for me, and that still holds true.

Winner: Milky Lavender

Winter of Mudeung vs Mystic Mountain

Whoooo boy. I have to choose between a multishading grayish-purple/pink ink with blue/pink multichrome shimmer and a shading denim-ish ink with rose gold/orange/yellow multichrome shimmer. At first blush, Winter of Mudeung seems like the winner, since it’s a multishader, but it can be rather light in a F/EF nib. But then, it leans towards purple, and purple usually wins out over blue with me. But Mystic Mountain is the denim-like blue that I really enjoy, and its shimmer is such a stark contrast! The contrast is calling to me.

Winner: Mystic Mountain

Leftover: Fabulous Las Vegas

I decided to let Las Vegas be the leftover color for this round since it was the standout in terms of color family.

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Round 4

OK, the penultimate round. I can do this. I’m less surprised by the inks that have made it this far than I was with for the Diamine bracket. There’s still a pretty nice spread, though. I almost have a rainbow.

Adobe vs Walk the Dog

While this is a surprisingly easy battle, I feel bad. I love Adobe, it’s gorgeous, but it’s not as appealing to me as Walk the Dog.

Winner: Walk the Dog

Milky Lavender vs Fabulous Las Vegas

This is another surprisingly easy battle. While Las Vegas is beautiful and unique to my collection, it can also be hard to read in finer nibs. Milky Lavender may not have shimmer, but I can always choose to mix in an additive if I want to.

Winner: Milky Lavender

Leftover: Mystic Mountain

I couldn’t let Fabulous Las Vegas coast through another round. But, the other four colors paired up quite nicely, leaving Mystic Mountain as the odd-ink-out to slide through to the final round.

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Final Round

Well, round 4 was, again, surprisingly easy. Mystic Mountain is a bit of an outlier here, as I wouldn’t have thought of it if asked my favorite Colorverse ink. Walk the Dog, however, is definitely a favorite and Milky Lavender is really nice.

Walk the Dog vs Milky Lavender vs Mystic Mountain

I have to be honest. This last battle isn’t going to be even remotely objective. I look at these three bottles, and it’s an instant win for Walk the Dog. Yes, Milky Lavender is a gorgeous purple. And yes, Mystic Mountain is precisely the type of blue I love with a stunning shimmer. But Walk the Dog has had a hold on me since I first tried it, and I have to give it the win.

Because it has such a beautiful shimmer, Mystic Mountain comes in second, and Milky Lavender takes third.

Winner: Walk the Dog

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Full Bracket

It’s much easier to see the progression of my Colorverse bracket in this at-a-glance form. But, I rearranged the order to make it a bit easier on me to lay out. Click the image to see it full-size (and readable).

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Where do you disagree with me? Which ink would have won for you? And would you like to see more inky madness, or even pen madness? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.

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