KWZ Ink - Azure No. 5

KWZ Ink Azure #5 - ink drop

Today’s ink is Azure No. 5 from KWZ Ink. I’ve long considered this ink to be one of the best examples of a true blue. To me, there’s really something perfect about this particular blue. It isn’t a perfect mid-blue, as it’s slightly darker, but it glows glorious like a perfect lapis lazuli stone.

Visually, it’s lovely. In the swatch, it’s energetic and lively. In writing, it conveys stability and confidence, with just a touch of flare. Compared to blue blacks or standard blues, it pops in a way that isn’t garish at all. Shading is moderate at best, but it’s consistent. The splatter shows a gorgeous plum-pink sheen coating areas of pooling. In writing, the sheen edges strokes, but doesn’t dominate the base color.

KWZ Ink Azure #5 - ink swatch card

As a writing ink, KWZ Ink is a consistent, reliable maker, and Azure No. 5 performs beautifully, as expected. Strokes were crisp and clean across all premium papers, and largely clean on office copy, too. Shading was strongest on coated premiums, while sheen stood out most prominently on Apica, with Rhodia, with Mnemosyne just behind. Drying times were fastest on office copy at 5 seconds. On the premiums, Kokuyo, Fabriano, and Apica were fastest at 10-20 seconds. Rhodia and Mnemosyne were slowest at 15-30 seconds.

Mid-blues don’t normally excite me particulately much, but there’s something about Azure No. 5 that grabs my attention. When done really well, it’s hard to resist a great blue. KWZ Azure No. 5 is a great blue!

December 2020