Highland Smoke, a dark grey by Ferris Wheel Press

Let's take a look at the newest grey from Ferris Wheel Press, Highland Smoke. How does it compare to other greys from this manufacturer?

Inks

Every time I open a new ink in one of the primary colors, I wonder if it’s different enough from other shades from the same manufacturer in that color. Do you know how different yellows can be from each other? Or oranges? Purples? Or grays? Today we’re taking a look at grays from Ferris Wheel Press, welcoming aboard their newest shade, Highland Smoke.

Highland Smoke Ink

Highland Smoke is an ink from the Everyday Ink collection, available in 38ml and 10ml bottles, which premiered on June 6, 2025. It has been in my hands for a few weeks now, and today I can finally tell you about it!

As we might guess from the name, we are dealing with a gray ink color. It is definitely dark and easily visible on both white and cream paper. As you can see in the second photo, Highland Smoke has medium shading and a reddish sheen. It’s on the “cozy” side of inks, with surprisingly warm outlook — especially considering it’s a gray colored ink, that could be boring and cold.

As usual, I tested the inks in an Odyssey notebook with ivory Tomoe River paper and on lighter and thicker paper in an Ottergami The Pro notebook.

Highland Smoke in Odyssey notebook with Tomoe River paper

Drying time: long

Feathering: none

Impressions: Should I start by saying that I don’t like Tomoe River? I’ll just mention it, okay. This paper is too loud for me, and everything takes too long to dry. Highland Smoke inked in Carousel pens with M nib looks very dry and… miserable? Or maybe I’m just used to the thicker lines of eMs in TWSBI? Anyway. We still have no problem seeing ink shading here.

On larger blots they are very clearly visible, and the shade itself is… definitely grey. Suitable for everyday writing, visible enough and also different enough from typical black.

In my opinion, you should use a thicker nib or a glass pen to release the full potential of this ink.

Highland Smoke in Ottergami notebook with 150 gsm paper

Drying time: medium

Feathering: slight

Impressions: I’ll start by saying that I wrote here with a glass pen, which delivered much more ink than a fountain pen would have. However, I wanted to give the color a chance to show itself in all its glory. From now on, I think I’ll be using that for testing — that way every ink review is consistent in this respect.

The color on the Ottergami notebook is much darker and there is less shading.That’s because we are dealing with “typical” rough paper, not the smooth Tomoe River that helps bring out the sheen and additional properties of the inks.

The ink goes very well with cream paper, but it feathers sometimes. It needs more than 5 seconds to dry, although it seems dry.

How does Highland Smoke compare to other Ferris Wheel Press grays?

The most important question, right? And let me tell you, yes, it makes sense. It’s different enough from the other greys in their range. Lighter than Bearrington Black, noticeably darker than Leadcast Letters. Remaining greys in their range have sparkles and from those Wayfinders Slate would be the closest, but it’s still not it — it’s lighter and obviously has sparkles. Plus, our new colour has a reddish shimmer. It looks really interesting.

In the writing sample above, we can see that Bearrington Black is just one shade darker. So, quite honestly, for writing on ivory paper, one of these two will be enough for you. On white, the difference is more visible (samples below).

Now I want to take a closer look at Bearrington Black, especially since it’s still available for sale. And pretty much every other one too. I currently have Leadcast Letters in a pen, which I use to fill my work calendar, and I love its “sandy” shade. After buying it, I immediately put Atlas Iron Ore back on the shelf and never looked at it again, which is… sad. I’ll catch up, I promise!

Details

Manufacturer: Ferris Wheel Press
Color: dark gray
Ink: fairly dry, with slight shading and a reddish szheen
Sheen: none
Shimmer: none
Available volumes: 38 ml, 10 ml
Release date: June 6, 2025

The ink packaging shows us a hunt with a whole range of different animals. Alongside the grey that’s supposed to match the ink — and it’s very close, as usual, we also have the usual gold shiny details.