thINKthursday – Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday
Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

Midnight Blue is the only color that can ever compete with black. –Christian Dior

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

Midnight Blue is one of the most universally-appropriate colors in the Graf von Faber-Castell ink line. As the name suggests, Graf von Faber-Castell ink falls under the umbrella of the premium Faber-Castell line of products. Midnight Blue is available in a 75ml glass bottle adorned with a beautiful metal cap and precisely packaged in either a cardboard box or short international-sized cartridges. This review was done with a Pilot Metropolitan M, Sailor 1911 Standard zoom, and on Rhodia blank no. 18 paper.

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

Available in 17 different colors, Graf von Faber-Castell inks are self-described as indelible; this means that they are supposedly smudge-resistant, light fast, waterproof and are resistant to many solvents and chemicals. While I take issue with some of these assertions – especially the waterproof one – their ink is one of the most consistent on the market.

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

Blue-black inks are a staple of many fountain pen users, and Midnight Blue is a nice addition to the category. Oddly, I found the ink to be darker and more saturated in a fine nib than a broader nib.  In a Pilot Metropolitan medium, the ink initially read as a black, before I noticed the dark denim blue tones.  In a Sailor zoom nib, the ink shaded more, and that brought with it a lighter denim appearance.  In the areas where the ink pooled, there was the same near-black appearance as with the Pilot medium nib, but it was nicely complimented by the navy-denim blue areas.

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

The ink’s flow was good, and the saturation was on the moderate side.  Dry times were a little higher depending on the nib used, but nothing that hindered writing performance. Water resistance was moderate; the ink washed away from the letters but the writing was still legible.  There was no problem with feathering or bleedthrough, and the clean-up was easy.

thINKthursday Graf von Faber-Castell Midnight Blue

Like other premium inks, Graf von Faber-Castell always performs consistently. Midnight Blue is a nice blue-black, and although it doesn’t have unique characteristics like strong shading or sheen, it always preforms well. If you don’t want to spring for the whole bottle, the Graf von Faber-Castell cartridges are a great value at $3.50 for a box of 6. If you’re in the market for a good workhorse, then Midnight Blue fits the bill.

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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