{"id":15863,"date":"2025-10-15T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/?p=15863"},"modified":"2025-10-30T21:22:23","modified_gmt":"2025-10-31T01:22:23","slug":"inktober-2025-skirmishes-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/inktober-2025-skirmishes-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Inktober 2025 Skirmishes, Little Women"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Welcome back to Inktober Skirmishes. As a reminder, I’m using Inktober to work on my resolution<\/a> to get rid of some inks. The goal is to remove one ink from my collection for each skirmish, but if the two inks are different enough, I’m open to keeping them both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skirmishes are similar to Ink Battles<\/a>, but without scoring, just final judgment. I am writing out the first chapter, one skirmish at a time, of as many of my favorite books as necessary to get through the 31 days of Inktober.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m running a bit behind with these as I’m working on them around a lot of Halloween crochet projects. I should be fully caught up by the end of today and back to doing one a day, like I planned. Still, here is the next set of skirmishes featuring Little Women<\/em> by Louisa May Alcott.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Reminders: I’m using F Jowo nibs because I want to make sure that whatever inks I use are dark\/saturated enough to actually show up with the nibs I use most often. The paper is lined Maruman loose leaf. I’m alternating inks as I write. The ink used for odd rows (first row of writing, third row, etc.) is listed first, with the ink used for the even rows listed second.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Pens<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I stuck with the below pens because I was going to change pens each week, but then decided I’d change pens each book. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Skogsy<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Skogsy<\/a> Cholla Brown Micarta<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Esterbrook<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Esterbrook<\/a> Estie Sunflower<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, on to the skirmishes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

October 6, Moon Beam and Half Moon with Dimmed Light<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First we have Diamine Moon Beam (odd rows) and Wearingeul Half Moon with Dimmed Light (even rows). Both are gray inks with light blue shimmer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Skirmish<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"Close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Close<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Initially, I planned to give Moon Beam the boot, since it’s darker. But, the more I think about it, the less convinced I am that it will appear black in broader nibs. I’m going to test it later before making my decision on whether or not it stays. Half Moon with Dimmed Light definitely gets to stay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 7, Adobe and Yamabukiiro<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Next we have Colorverse Adobe and Kyo-No-Oto Yamabukiiro. Both are green-leaning yellows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Skirmish<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I feel like I should<\/em> get rid of Adobe because it’s not great in fine nibs. But, I love the color and use it frequently, so it stays. And Yamabukiiro is different enough that I don’t feel I have to get rid of it as a dupe. No eliminations here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 8, Asa-Gao and Azul Frida<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We continue with Pilot Iroshizuku Asa-Gao and Amarillo Stationery x Pennonia Azul Frida. Both inks are bright royal blues. I’m tempted to tag this post as an ink dupe for this battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Skirmish<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

These two are virtually identical, so I’m keeping Azul Frida both for the name and the bottle size \u2014 I have a mini bottle of Asa-Gao. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 9, Velvet Storm and Hera Dark Green<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Next we have Robert Oster Velvet Storm and Laban Hera Dark Green. While the values are different, they’re the same dark teal hue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"skirmish<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This was an easy decision. Velvet Storm is an “off-black” ink, even in a fine nib. Technically, it was Jim’s ink, but he hasn’t used it in quite a while and OK’d getting rid of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 10, Macassar and Demeter Brown<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now we have Diamine Macassar and Laban Demeter Brown. Like the previous skirmish, the values are different, but they’re the same chocolate brown hue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"skirmish<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Another easy decision. I originally got Macassar because I wanted a chocolate brown ink, but it’s really an “off black” ink, so away it goes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 11, Deep Dark Orange and Blood Orange<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Almost done \u2014 with Little Women<\/em> \u2014 we have Diamine Deep Dark Orange and Diamine Blood Orange. In person, I can see a very<\/em> slight difference between the two; Deep Dark Orange is a bit more brown while Blood Orange is a bit more red. But, I find it annoying that a store exclusive and a 150th anniversary ink are so similar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"skirmish<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

With such similar inks, it came down to bottle size. I have a small bottle of Deep Dark Orange, so I’m keeping Blood Orange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 12, Tinsel and Dahlia<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Finally, we come to Diamine Tinsel and Endless Pens x NibsAndFlourishes x Pennonia Dahlia. These two are much more different when writing than in my swatches. Tinsel is a red with pink shimmer \u2014 which I let settle. Dahlia is a less vibrant pinkish-red.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"skirmish<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"close<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Since these are more different than I realized, I’m keeping both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Winner Recap<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Diamine Moon Beam vs Wearingeul Half Moon with Dimmed Light \u2014 Both stay (for now)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Colorverse Adobe vs Kyo-No-Oto Yamabukiiro \u2014 Both stay<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Pilot Iroshizuku Asa-Gao vs Pennonia Azul Frida \u2014 Azul Frida<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Robert Oster Velvet Storm vs Laban Hera Dark Green \u2014 Hera Dark Green<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Diamine Macassar vs Laban Demeter Brown \u2014 Demeter Brown<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Diamine Deep Dark Orange vs Diamine Blood Orange \u2014 Blood Orange<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Diamine Tinsel vs Pennonia Dahlia \u2014 Both stay<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
    \n\n\n\n

    What do you think of Ink Skirmishes? Do you agree with my choices? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Thanks for reading to the end, I hope you enjoyed my post. Make sure to subscribe to my blog<\/a> or follow me on Instagram<\/a> so you don\u2019t miss any posts. I generally post at least once a week.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I created my own Inktober participation method this year in an effort to pare down my ink collection. Enjoy these skirmishes featuring Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.<\/p>\n

    Keep ReadingInktober 2025 Skirmishes, Little Women<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15845,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[407],"tags":[457,455,456],"class_list":["post-15863","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ink","tag-ink-skirmishes","tag-inktober","tag-inktober-2025","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/inktober_featured.jpg?fit=288%2C288&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8Z77k-47R","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":15835,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/inktober-2025-skirmishes-1\/","url_meta":{"origin":15863,"position":0},"title":"Inktober 2025 Skirmishes, Week 1","author":"Rachel","date":"October 3, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm creating my own Inktober participation method this year in an effort to pare down my ink collection. Enjoy \"week 1\" of Inktober Skirmishes featuring Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.","rel":"","context":"In "Ink"","block_context":{"text":"Ink","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/stationery\/ink\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Close up of Skirmish between Soft Snow of Ohara and Tang pyeong","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20251002_071217.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20251002_071217.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20251002_071217.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20251002_071217.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20251002_071217.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/20251002_071217.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15847,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/inktober-2025-skirmishes-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":15863,"position":1},"title":"Inktober 2025 Skirmishes, Pride & Prejudice","author":"Rachel","date":"October 8, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I created my own Inktober participation method this year in an effort to pare down my ink collection. 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Enjoy these skirmishes featuring Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith.","rel":"","context":"In "Ink"","block_context":{"text":"Ink","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/stationery\/ink\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"close up of skirmish between infinite grey and downpour","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ppz-1-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ppz-1-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ppz-1-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ppz-1-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ppz-1-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ppz-1-1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15909,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/inktober-2025-skirmishes-4\/","url_meta":{"origin":15863,"position":3},"title":"Inktober 2025 Skirmishes, Indian Captive","author":"Rachel","date":"October 21, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I created my own Inktober participation method this year in an effort to pare down my ink collection. Enjoy these skirmishes featuring Indian Captive by Lois Lenski.","rel":"","context":"In "Ink"","block_context":{"text":"Ink","link":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/category\/stationery\/ink\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"close up of","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ic-1-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ic-1-1.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ic-1-1.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ic-1-1.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ic-1-1.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ic-1-1.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15944,"url":"https:\/\/racheldelafuente.com\/blog\/inktober-2025-skirmishes-7\/","url_meta":{"origin":15863,"position":4},"title":"Inktober 2025 Skirmishes, Wrap Up","author":"Rachel","date":"November 5, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"This is it for 2025 Inktober Skirmishes. 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