PenBBS - 233 Nanjing

PenBBS - 233 Nanjing - Ink drop

Today’s ink is from PenBBS’ city-themed collection. No. 233 is named for Nanjing, the capital during China’s Ming dynasty. The Yangtze River is the central focus of the city, making this blue a very emblematic color choice for the ink’s inspiration.

PenBBS - 233 Nanjing - Shades of Blue

Nanjing is a beautiful sky or Caribbean blue with a touch of aquamarine in areas of wet saturation. This is a pigment ink, which gives it great water-resistance. It shades a bit on coated papers, but often leaves a lovely, even coloration when dry. The splatter shows greater variation than you generally find in writing. The six-ink swatch image shows some very close comparisons.

PenBBS - 233 Nanjing - Ink swatch card

This ink writes very nicely. It’s consistent, fairly wet, and smooth-flowing. Drying is very fast on uncoated papers, and average on coated papers. As a pigment ink, you need to be wary of the potential to stain pens, but I haven’t had any real problems.

PenBBS - 233 Nanjing - Ink swatch comparisons

When I first bought 233 Nanjing more than a year ago, I liked the color, but wasn’t an immediate fan of the ink. The ink in my bottle had a strong chemical odor and an odd consistency. The odor is gone now, and the consistency is normal. I'm not sure how it fixed itself, but I'm definitely glad it did! I’ve really come to enjoy this ink. I’ve tried lots of PenBBS inks, and this was my first disagreeable experience. The bottle is a big 60 ml, and PenBBS inks are very nicely priced! I think you'll like this one. Enjoy!

PenBBS - 233 Nanjing - Ink bottle and box