What is sheening ink?
By definition, sheen is the property a fountain pen ink possesses when it dries down to a glistening finish, typically with a different hue from the ink’s base color. This is most apparent when looking at the ink under certain lighting conditions. Many blue inks may have a pink sheen, while some green inks have a touch of red, while black or grey inks can have green or purple sheening properties.
Sheen can be subtle, but many writers like to play around with bolder sheening inks that have a slick or metallic appearance.
Best sheening fountain pen inks
Choosing the best sheening fountain pen inks is a nearly impossible task. After all, there are so many inks on the market and even more being made. Still, we’ve taken a look at our ink selection and chose some of the best inks for you to try out first if you’re new to sheen.
1. Diamine Bilberry
Bilberry is a gorgeous purple ink from Diamine with a good amount of coppery sheen. If you want a sheen monster of an ink, then this is definitely one to try out.
2. Colorverse Project 1 Bluish Green
Colorverse gives us a deep blue-green ink with plenty of red sheen. This is a great ink to try if you prefer inks with a drier flow.
3. Pilot Iroshizuku Yama Budo
For those who want an ink that stands out from the sea of blues and greens, try Yama Budo from the Pilot Iroshizuku ink line. It is a bright fuschia with a yellow-green sheen.
4. LAMY Azurite
Bluish-purple inks never go out of style, and this LAMY ink contrasts nicely with its bright green sheen.
5. Robert Oster Burned Orange
The Robert Oster brand is well-known for its Shake and Shimmy shimmering inks, but they also produce sheening inks like Burned Orange, which is a dark unsaturated orange with some black sheen.
6. Troublemaker Lam-Ang
Troublemaker inks are well-known for their sheening and shading inks, and Lam-ang is definitely a stunner with its deep, cobalt blue color with high copper sheen. This is another ink that has a drier flow.
How to add more sheen to your writing
For the writers who can’t get enough sheen, we do have a few tips for adding more of it to your writing.
The most practical way to let inks show off their properties is to use a wide, wet nib with a fountain pen with good ink flow. The more ink you lay down on paper, the more sheen will appear. Sheen may not show up if you use extra fine or fine nibs, but medium, broad, and stub nibs should showcase them nicely.
Paper type also matters. To get the most out of your sheening inks, you’ll want to use a high-resistant paper like Tomoe River. Such paper types have slower dry times and rate of absorption and spreading, allowing the ink to collect and pool and dry with more saturation and sheen.
The bottom line
Sheening inks are just one of the several types of fountain pen inks you can experiment with. They add a beautiful dimension to your writing, making it more enjoyable to play around with different colors in one stroke. Try any of the sheening inks we listed above to find what brands and textures work well for you.
Happy inking and happy writing!
Written by EndlessPens Blogger Ramona Kabigting
