Diamine Sub-Zero Ink Review & Giveaway

Read today’s Diamine Sub-Zero ink review for more details on this beautiful shimmer fountain pen ink originally released in Diamine’s popular 2021 Inkvent Calendar.

If you’re looking for the giveaway and you want to skip straight to the bottom of the review to enter to win we won’t be mad. We pick winners monthly now – during our monthly 15 on the 15th: GIVEAWAY DAY with Pen Chalet!

Check out the 15 on the 15th fun (you’re going to love it)!

All About the Ink Maker: Diamine

If you’ve tried any of Diamine’s inks, it’s likely you are already a fan because we don’t often come across someone who just hates Diamine inks. Diamine’s fountain pen inks are known for their great ink flow. The well-regarded inks are made in the UK in a wide variety of colors. Founded in 1864, Diamine currently offers many colors in several different ink collections:

This Week’s Featured Ink: Diamine Sub-Zero Ink

Diamine Sub-Zero ink is a lighter blue ink with a hint of sparkle or shimmer, making it look like glacier ice. It’s a great, fun color that when gone, will be gone for good – just like the ice each winter. Diamine Sub-Zero ink is not a new ink, it was originally released in December 2021 as one of the bespoke inks in Diamine’s hottest holiday item, the annual Inkvent Calendar that counts down the days until Christmas with a new ink each day in December (instead of the traditional chocolate in many advent calendars). On Day 18 of the 2021 countdown, lucky inkvent calendar owners got to open the little green door to discover their ink of the day was Diamine Sub-zero ink, a shimmer ink that definitely brings on the icy, winter holiday party vibe. The fun of the advent calendar featuring exciting bespoke fountain pen inks from this well-regarded ink maker caught on fast, and while the inkvent calendar only has a history a few years in the making, its a solid necessity for many pen and ink enthusiasts.

All About the Ink Series: Red Edition

The first two Diamine Inkvent Calendar Editions (Blue and then Red) sold out before we hit Christmas during the 2020 and 2021 holiday seasons. This year’s Diamine Inkvent Calendar 2022 is the Green Edition, and it’s available for preorder now (and selling fast). Each year after Christmas, Diamine has released the 25 colors created for their previous year’s inkvent calendar in a fantastically shaped 50ml glass ink bottle, and they name the new collection after the edition, so after the 2021 Diamine Inkvent Red Edition calendar release, Diamine released the Red Edition Ink Collection in 2022 featuring the same 25 inks from the calendar, but in full size bottles. This week’s featured ink, Diamine Sub-Zero ink comes from the Diamine Red Edition Ink Collection.

It’s Time: Diamine Sub-Zero Ink Review

This week we put Diamine Sub-Zero fountain pen ink through our standard ink review tests. Read on to see what we found out!

Diamine Sub-Zero Ink Review
Read the full Diamine Sub-Zero ink review, and check out the actual ink review results here.

Ink Review Testing Factors (to keep things scientific):

During this week’s review we used a French-made J. Herbin spiral glass dip pen (with a tip comparable to a medium-fine fountain pen nib), and Rhodia bloc paper.

Let’s Talk About the Diamine Ink Bottle:

Diamine ink company produces a few different shapes and sizes of bottles for their different ink series. The Red Edition Collection inks (NOT version of Sub-Zero ink released in the original Inkvent Calendar) is bottled in a fantastic new 50ml glass ink bottle. Diamine has a few different ink bottles, but the ink bottle they introduced with the 2022 release of their Red Edition Collection inks stands out from the rest; a conversation piece with four legs/pedestals holding up the bottle. The bottle has a medium sized silver lid and an ink label on the front in the ink color printed with the brand name, color name, size of bottle (50ml) and any special traits (in this case, the label indicates “shimmer.”) The exterior packaging is a box reflecting the overall pattern on the original inkvent calendar box with a cutout that allows you to see the label on the bottle showing the ink name and color.

How Much Does Diamine Red Edition Ink Cost?

This week’s fountain pen ink comes at a very reasonable cost. Check for the latest discounted price at PenChalet.com.

How Fast Does Diamine Sub-Zero Ink Dry?

Diamine Sub-Zero fountain pen ink showed a dry time of about 6-7 seconds, which is very reasonable so it’s easy for us to recommend this lovely blue ink as an everyday ink choice for either the home or office.

Does Diamine Sub-Zero Ink Bleed Through?

We saw no bleeding during normal use on Rhodia paper, and very slight bleeding during the heavy saturated cotton swab test (and only at the wettest points).

Was There Any Feathering While Using Sub-Zero Ink?

We saw no feathering during normal use. And only some slight feathering during the water test. But even with the slight feathering the lines remained very clear and legible.

How Does the Ink Stand Up to Water?

For the water test, we let an ink sample dry for about 3 minutes before running a wet cotton swab over the sample. Sub-Zero isn’t a waterproof ink, and we saw light color smearing and some light feathering. However, the lines remained legible and clear.

Does the Fountain Pen Ink Have Good Shading/Shimmering Traits?

Sub-Zero ink showed some nice shading possibilities from a deeper turquoise blue to a very light glacier ice shade of blue with a nice, consistent shimmer throughout. The shading and shimmer aspect of this ink will vary depending on your nib and paper choices.

Final Conclusion on this Week’s Featured Diamine Ink:

We like the economic price on this imported ink from a prolific, well-regarded ink company. Diamine’s ink are made in the UK and their Sub-Zero ink is a beautiful blue ink color with an “icy shimmer” that flows well and is safe for use with fountain pens. Diamine Sub-Zero ink showed a very reasonable dry time, as well. As with any shimmer ink, a good periodic cleaning is recommended (every week or so), and pens that have been inked with shimmer inks can benefit greatly from using a cleaning solution designed for use with fountain pens like Pen Chalet’s Fountain Pen Flush. Happy writing from the UK!

Enter to Win This Week’s Ink, Next Week’s Ink & More

Look for the bottle of Diamine Sub-Zero ink used in this week’s ink review as one of the giveaway prizes in our next 15 on the 15th: Giveaway Day with Pen Chalet! Enter to Win now at PenChalet.com, and come back next week for another weekly ink review:

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Robert McNally
1 year ago

Such a great ink, one day I’ll get it

Carmen J
1 year ago

Good luck to all who are entered into the drawing!

Carmen J
1 year ago

Thank you! I love my Inkvent Sub-Zero! I actually have it hidden so it’s one of the last ones I use… I would prefer to keep it around the longest! Haha