the more i try to use up my inks (even just the samples, my god), the more i'm convinced i can only treat Black as somehow Real Writing. it definitely helps if a color is dark and the only one in use (vs alternating with a contrasting color - maybe if they were more analogous?) but it still feels like "someone's playing around here, not worth reading"??
maybe with the samples i could just toss them without regret, or use them up in a wacky art project, but i have quite a few full bottles, too (granted most of them were bought Long Ago, i've only dabbled in samples and small bottles the last few years, if at all). it's a lifetime supply of illegible colors :(
i think keeping them is a great and painful reminder of My Folly, there's no way i'll make this particular mistake again (buying anything that's not black). the only question for myself is - do i keep trying to use them? i definitely will to the end of this year, i've been picking the inks to match the months' tarot decks in hopes of a more cohesive experience (except many decks ended up not actually in use after a week or so and i end up dipping into the year's favorites which don't necessarily match with the month's inks...)
the last few days i've been brainstorming what kind of journal/planner solution i'd like to try next year. obviously i saw a planner out there in the wild and felt inspired to do something new, despite having a perfectly well-working system i've designed for myself over the last few years. the upside is: i figured out a thing that will work the same way, it's just a different size/format and i'll separate the planning to go in the front, with the bulk of the notebook dedicated to journaling and my usual hodge-podge or art, quotes, tarot readings, ideas etc.
at first it was a very attractive idea to have a monthly color again - just one, so that you can tell the passage of time at a glance. maybe start with something Aesthetic, matching the cover. i could still achieve this with just my full bottles, even if i decided to Art Project the samples. but now i'm wondering whether that's somehow setting myself up for failure. to dislike the new system because of these secondary things...
i'm also keenly feeling the lack of a pen inked in black when it comes to my tarot journals. i've started them all in black and do not want to clown them up with different colors. and filling more of the in was a goal for next year...
idea: for the rest of the year i'll try two more harmonious, analogous colors. if that still doesn't work, i'll go black in the new notebook. i have two samples, two cartridges, and a little bit left in the big bottle so i'll start with that (and i'll have a comparison of 3 black inks!) when it's all done, i can buy a new bottle of black. the samples will go in an art project and the remaining big bottles will remain a Warning. i'll probably be open to passing them along to someone ultimately, if that's something people do?? would probably go over well on fountain pen mastodon.
