thINKthursday
Blackstone Sydney Harbour

Blackstone Sydney Harbour is a sheen-lover’s delight.

thINKthursday Blackstone Sydney Harbour Blue

Blackstone is an Australian ink-maker and they are quickly expanding their palette of colors. Sydney Harbour, one of the first inks Blackstone released, was immediately welcomed with glowing praise. The ink is a beautiful dark navy denim, but is best known for its wonderful red sheen. Blackstone inks come in a round 30ml Nalgene bottle that is easy from which to fill. This review was done with a Pilot Prera F, Lamy Studio B and on Rhodia blank No.18 paper.

Sydney Harbour is a highly saturated ink and has a similar appearance in both a fine and broad nib. At its lightest, the ink is a cobalt navy blue, but otherwise it is a fairly uniform dark denim. The ink is best known for is its striking red sheen. On Rhodia paper, it can be achieved with a broad nib. On Tomoe River paper, it is abundant regardless of nib size.

Blackstone inks are well behaved and generally have good properties. Sydney Harbour has great flow with no feathering or bleedthrough on Rhodia paper. Even with its high saturation, the ink has good dry times at 20-30 seconds. Water resistance is low, but clean up is easy. One unusual thing about this ink is its thicker-than-normal consistency. While this in no way effects their performance, it is an interesting characteristic of many of the Blackstone inks.

I’ve been a big fan of Blackstone Sydney Harbour and Barrier Reef ever since we started carrying them. Sydney Harbour is an excellent choice for a work-appropriate blue with the added benefit of that outstanding sheen. This ink offers the best of both worlds – business by day, party by night.

As with any ink review, the pen, paper and person doing the writing will influence the way the ink looks. If you’re not sure about a color, try a sample to see if it’s the color for you.

Ink it Up!
Chris

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