Every so often I order one of the Diamine 150th anniversary inks; I order them because not only do I think the cheese wedge bottle shape is interesting but because the colours are a little different from the every day.
This time around I am looking at Blue Velvet and before the year is out I will be looking at Regency Blue.
Blue Velvet is a vivid blue; a nice strong colour somewhere in the mid-blue spectrum; I would guess one of the nearest Diamine inks to it would be Sapphire Blue They are not a match for each other as Sapphire is a softer shade of blue whilst Velvet is literally brighter but they are not too far apart.
I’ve been testing it in a new Wing Sung 3013 and it has been a real pleasure to use, it’s well behaved and flows very nicely and I would describe it as moderately wet and with sufficient depth of colour to be suitable for either office or home use.
Would I recommend this ink? Definitely. It’s ideal for anyone who finds Oxford Blue and similar too dark and Sapphire Blue too light. The only issue I foresee with this bottle is that whilst it is new it’s easy to fill your pen but once the bottle starts to run low the shape of the bottle may make it tricky to fill your pen without decanting the remainder of the bottle into a more suitable container or loading your converter separately either in the bottle or with a syringe.
However, this will not deter me from ordering another bottle when mine runs low, but I do have a universal sample container ready for when the time comes to decant the remainder of the bottle.
Just as an aside, I would recommend anyone picks up a few of these containers from their pharmacy; they are in expensive, very useful for decanting inks, mixing inks and can make excellent travel inkwells.
Disclaimer: The ink was purchased with my own funds at retail price. The opinions expressed in this review are my own; and I am not connected with either the retailers or manufacturers in any way.
The Indian Marmalade Company 