Sailor - Manyo - Ayame

Sailor - Manyo - Ayame - Ink drop

Ayame is my third review from the four spring 2022 additions to Sailor’s Manyo line. This ink is an unusual, dual-shading beauty and is named for the flowering iris plant.

Sailor - Manyo - Ayame - Shading

Where both of my two previous reviews, Hinoki and Fuji, had blue elements in either the base or visible in shading, Ayame starts with a gentle blend of grey and muted green. As you can see in the splatter, and on written strokes, pastel pinks, peaches, and violets are visible throughout. The secondary colors are particularly dramatic on coated papers, but they come through on all. This is a strong shader on all types of paper with huge leaps from dark to light. It’s quite an effect!

Sailor - Manyo - Ayame - Edge

Manyo Ayame is a wet ink and a nice writer. A nice, darker green edging borders the pink-violet stroke centers and gives it a fairly crisp stroke profile on coated papers. It's not quite as sharp, however, on uncoated papers. Drying is moderate, and the hidden colors are revealed as it dries. I found a bit of bleed-through (a brighter mid-green) on uncoated papers, as well. All-in-all, I’m happy with the performance, but really prefer it on coated papers.

Sailor - Manyo - Ayame - Sample on Rhodia

Ayame, and the other two Manyo inks that I’ve reviewed so far are very attractive. They’re nice additions to the line. My closest match with Ayame is probably Vinta Mermaid Sirena, but Ayame is more aggressive in color variation. It’s hard to imagine a stronger shader, and for color shift, it’s definitely not shy! Enjoy!

Sailor - Manyo - Ayame - Ink Swatch Card

Sailor - Manyo - Ayame - Ink Swatch Comparisons