Calligraphy Ink

Is calligraphy ink any different from fountain pen ink? Yes, it generally is. Fountain pen ink has to work in fountain pens. Obviously. That puts some restrictions on it, because you wouldn’t want it to clog up the feed, ruining your pen. Without any such restrictions, calligraphy ink can have extra ingredients to make it shiny, or sparkly, or permanent. Not all calligraphy ink is all these things, but a lot of it is at least one - or just too thick to work well in a fountain pen.

To be very clear: don’t put calligraphy ink in a fountain pen - it’s likely to clog it up, and may be impossible to clean out.

But as long as you’re happy using a dip pen or brush to apply your ink, removing those restrictions opens up a new world of ink.

But can you use fountain pen ink for calligraphy? Yes! Dip pens may not work as well with fountain pen ink as they would with calligraphy ink, as its a bit lower viscosity - more free-flowing - which means it doesn’t always ‘stick’ to the nib as well. But it should work fine, just might need a bit more dipping.