(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)
Pelikan's gemstone ink of the year is a light turquoise color called Apatite. Compared to past blue-green shades, it's lighter than Aquamarine and bluer than Jade. It's a lovely shade that will no doubt delight fans of the blue-green ink family.
Chromatography on this ink shows a basic cyan base color with a splash of bright green mixed in, which gives it a cooler aqua undertone. Think 1990s swimming pool. It shows some shading in print writing, but almost none in cursive writing. It does not have any sheen. Overall, it's an unfussy color. It's dark enough to read on the page without too much trouble, but it's too pale and fun to pass as a businessy color.
The closest color match I found was Colorverse Eagle, part of the Apollo 11 series, which has the same cooler blue undertone. They're not quite twins, but so close that they'd be difficult to tell apart in writing. Other colors in my swab collection all skew much greener.
I would consider this a dry ink. It flows well in the pen, but writing with it has a dryer feel, and the ink on the page dries completely in 20 seconds. This would make a good ink for lefties, or for writing quick notes where you want to turn the page or close the book as soon as possible.
There's no water resistance to the ink. There's no trace of a line left even when a water drop is quickly and carefully removed with blotting. When water is wiped away, it erases the ink completely.
The gemstone line comes in a 50ml glass bottle that sells for around $28, which is a fair price for a bottle of this size. The bottles are steady and easy to fill from, with wide mouths and a solid base, so there's little risk of spilling and even big pens can be easily filled.
I'm a big fan of the gemstone inks from Pelikan, and while this shade isn't my favorite from this line, its swimming pool summer vibes will be much needed in the winter months to come.
(Vanness Pens provided this product at a discount to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.
Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!
