Top 8 Shimmering Inks
Ready to dive into the world of shimmering fountain pen ink? There are a lot of different brands and colors out there now. Here is a list of my 8 top recommendations for shimmering fountain pen ink colors.
Jacques Herbin 1670 Emerald of Chivor
The first ink on our list is an obvious choice. Jacques Herbin 1670 Emerald of Chivor is as close to royalty as it comes when you’re talking about shimmer ink. Where its older sibling, 1670 Rouge Hematite established that fountain pen fans enjoyed ink with a little bit of shimmer, Emerald of Chivor came along and it’s been the most popular shimmer ink for the greater part of a decade.
A beautiful teal with a hint of red sheen and some lovely gold shimmer. Jacques Herbin shimmer inks have noticeably less shimmer in them than the rest of the inks that are gonna be on this list, so Emerald of Chivor is a great option if you’re just dipping your toe into the shimmer pool.
Emerald of Chivor is available in a gorgeous 50ml glass bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Diamine Winter Spice
Diamine Winter Spice is my personal favorite on this list. I love it, and so should you. It’s a delightful chocolate brown at its base with blue shimmer all mixed in. But that's not all! On top of that you get green sheen. This ink has all three of my favorite colors.
Shimmer particles can settle in your fountain pen, and that could lead to you having used up all of your shimmery bits before you’re totally done with your ink but if you have a sheening ink you still have a fun feature to get excited about.
Diamine Winter Spice is available in a fun-shaped 50ml glass bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Robert Oster Violet Clouds
Robert Oster makes a lovely ink called Violet Clouds that has become a recent favorite of mine. First of all, Robert Oster’s colors around this group are all fantastic. They are soft purples you really can’t go wrong with. Violet Clouds though really has a lot going for it. Yes, it's a beautiful pastel purple, but you’ve also got a sharp halo of blue in there too, depending on what sort of paper you’re using. The pizzazz of this ink comes from its silver-blue shimmer and wow it ties everything together.
There’s also Violet Dreams, which is pretty much the same thing but with gold shimmer and it’s great too, but I think the Violet Clouds’ shimmer matches the ink a bit better. With Robert Oster and soft purple inks, you’re going to be happy.
Robert Oster Violet Clouds is available in a 50ml recycled-plastic bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Diamine Shimmering Seas
Diamine Shimmering Seas is a navy blue with gold shimmer. This one is consistently popular and well-loved by the fountain pen community for good reason. The gold contrasting against the deep blue field just pops off the page!
If you’re looking for one of these that really puts the shimmer front and center, this might be the best bet.
Diamine Shimmering Seas is available in a 50ml glass bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Diamine Night Sky
Another Diamine Shimmertastic ink that is every bit as loved by the community is Diamine Night Sky. Another MVP in terms of popularity, Night Sky also provides an excellent contrast for the silver shimmer to really show off in front of the black base here.
Diamine Night Sky is available in a 50ml glass bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Ferris Wheel Press Stroke of Midnight
Let's add some ink from Ferris Wheel Press into the mix. Here we have “Stroke of Midnight”. The ink itself is another blue, yes, but what makes Stroke of Midnight unique from other shimmery blues is that it contains both silver AND gold shimmer!
Now before we look at the ink I want to say something about Ferris Wheel Press; while all of the inks we’re looking at in this video are radical and fabulous, Ferris Wheel Press has to win the prize for the outside of this bottle being just as magical as the ink inside.
Stroke of Midnight is available in a gorgeous 38ml glass bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Robert Oster Rose Gold Antiqua
Alright let’s go back down under to the Shake & Shimmy inks from Robert Oster and Rose Gold Antiqua. Let me start by saying that it’s pretty impossible to bottle a true rose gold in liquid form but this ink to me is the definitive Rose Gold fountain pen ink.
Rose Gold Antiqua is unique, fun to write with, and really fun to stare at for long periods of time while you forget that you're supposed to be working.
Rose Gold Antiqua is available in a 50ml recycled-plastic bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Diamine Golden Sands
I knew I wanted to pick a gold-on-gold - but I could not pick between Robert Oster Aussie Liquid Gold or Diamine Golden Sands. These two brands can make some righteous shimmer ink as we’ve established. Ultimately I'm going to pick Diamine Golden Sands. It's just a winner and you can't go wrong.
Diamine Golden Sands is available in a 50ml glass bottle, or our 2ml ink sample.
Summary
Writing with shimmering fountain pen inks can be a lot of fun! There are so many different brands and colors out there now. They do require a little more maintenance in your fountain pen when it comes to cleaning. But you may find it's worth the effort!
If you'd like to try out all of these 8 recommended shimmering inks, we've put together a handy ink sample set for you!
Additional Resources:
"How to Write with Shimmering Inks" Video
Buy the Shimmering Ink Sample Set
