Taiwanese pen and ink maker International Writing Instruments (IWI) offers so much promise. In 2021, they released a 24-ink series called the Colors of Nature. This series is filled with interesting and unusual colors. In my experience, some of their inks have had feathering issues, and I found that to be true when I reviewed Spring Equinox. I recently picked up three more from the series to give the brand another look. I’ve had mixed, but much better results with today’s ink. In fact, I think I’ve cracked the code!

This is IWI Grain Full. Grain Full is a warm, very complex honey-ochre. It’s a beautiful ink with undertones of red. There’s lots of very nice shading, with buttery light areas and rich darker areas on each stroke. As you can see in the splatter and chromatography, there’s a gorgeous fiery orange element that erupts on the splatter, and it subtly comes out in long form writing, as well. There are even hints of green. It’s a very attractive ink!

On my six standard test papers, I found feathering on each ranging from modest to significant. However, I did find a lovely match with wonderful performance in a seventh paper that I don’t think I've mentioned before. My work paper of choice is HP BrightWhite 24. In a Lamy Studio (f) on this paper, the results were close to perfect! There was no feather, nice shading, and drying was quick. In this pairing, Grain Full is a real pleasure!

It’s amazing what the right pen and paper pairing can do for the performance of an ink! With a friendly paper match, I recommend this smooth-flowing, beautiful ink, as well. On others, it isn’t quite that simple. IWI Grain Full is gorgeous and complex, and once tamed, you’ll love it, too!