Troublemaker - Yellow Tartanilla

Troublemaker - Yellow Tartanilla - Ink drop

I love a deep, mustard yellow. They may not always burst with sunshine optimism, but they convey an honesty, integrity, and seriousness that canary yellows just can’t.

This is Yellow Tartanilla from Troublemaker’s Standard inks collection. The name Tartanilla refers to two-wheeled, horse-drawn buggies traditionally common to Cebu in the Philippines. Cebu is home to Troublemaker Inks, and a number of their inks are inspired by their local culture and history. Yellow is one of the more popular colors used to decorate the festive carriages.

Troublemaker - Yellow Tartanilla - Light and Dark

Troublemaker Yellow Tartanilla is a beautiful, earthy yellow ochre in wetter areas. It’s a nice shading ink with a brighter, sunny yellow highlighting light areas and stroke ends. As the splatter shows, there’s a rich, dark edging that becomes a defining stroke halo in writing.

Troublemaker - Yellow Tartanilla - Dark Edging

I find this ink to be very readable, particularly on coated papers. Coated papers bring out the stroke halo, and nurture greater variation in coloration. Feather and show-through wasn’t a problem on any of my test papers, and drying was quick! I think this is a nice writing ink.

Troublemaker - Yellow Tartanilla - Ink Swatch Card

Troublemaker Yellow Tartanilla doesn’t get as much attention as it deserves, and I think that’s a shame. This is a gorgeous, very usable dark yellow, and usable isn’t a quality shared by all yellows! I highly recommend this one!