Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue Ink Review & Giveaway

Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue Ink is one of the outstanding and widely regarded inks created exclusively for Nagasawa, which is a famous ink and stationary store in Japan. Nagasawa Kobe inks have been available in the United States but only in a very limited capacity, until now. We are excited to have the opportunity to now sell Kobe ink. We have been chosen as one of the exclusive retailers and we will be carrying the Kobe ink in all of the colors as they are released. Currently only 20 of the 54 Kobe ink colors are available in the US, but this number will expand over time.

Kobe Marchais Blue Ink Bottle

Kobe Marchais Blue Ink Bottle

Kobe inks are named after one of the largest cities in Japan, near Osaka and is home to 1.5 million people. The city of Kobe is known for its architecture and shrines, but for fountain pen and ink lovers, it is known for the Nagasawa-Kobe stationary store that has had the exclusive rights to all 54 Nagasawa Kobe ink colors.

Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink #48 (known as Sudousuji in Japanese) is a nice light blue-green ink color. Some may call it a light teal, or a blue-green turquoise. Regardless of how you describe this color it is a vibrant, warm and inviting color. Dark enough for regular home and possibly office use and definitely for journal, letters and notes.

Continuing reading for a chance to win the bottle of Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink we used for this review.

Kobe Marchais Blue Ink

Kobe Marchais Blue Ink

We found the following traits while testing Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink that you may find useful:

Testing Factors

We used French made Rhodia dot pad paper with a J. Herbin glass dip pen for this review. The glass dip pen has a tip that is equivalent to a fine fountain pen nib.

Bottle Sizes

Nagasawa Kobe #48 Marchais Blue ink comes in a standard 50 ml. glass ink bottle. The bottle has a large mouth opening and can be placed on its side to gather those last few drops of ink. The Kobe cardboard box has the skyline of the Japanese city of Kobe on the outside with its unique architecture depicted. There is a small label on the top of the box that identifies what color of Kobe ink, with its Japanese name, American Name and assigned color number. Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink is #48 in the Kobe ink collection.

Cost

Nagasawa Kobe #48 Marchais Blue ink is on the higher end of fountain pen inks and retail for $30. Although on the expensive side, the quality and rarity of this ink in the United States makes it a prized possession for many fountain pen lovers.

Dry Time

We experienced a reasonable dry time while using Nagasawa Kobe #48 Marchais Blue ink of approximately 6-7 seconds, using the glass dip pen on Rhodia paper.

Bleed Through

While testing Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink we did not experience any bleeding whatsoever on Rhodia paper. Even during the cotton swab test we did not experience any bleeding.

Feathering

Our sample test lines using Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink were clear, crisp and distinct without any feathering during normal use. There was some slight feathering during the water test, but only at its wettest point.

Water Test

Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink is a non-waterproof ink, thus the results from the water test were pretty typical. There was some color smearing, and slight feathering at the cotton swab’s wettest point. However, for the most part, the sample ink lines remained clear and distinct, although with quite a bit of color smear.

Shading

Experimenting with Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink will produce some nice shading, as the wetter lines will produce a darker teal, light blue-green color. As with most shading, your penmanship and tip of the fountain pen being used carries lots of importance as well.

Conclusion about the Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink

Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink is just one of the 20 Nagasawa Kobe inks that we have available. We are excited to carry the Kobe line of inks and feel that our loyal customers will love this new, albeit expensive addition to the wide array of inks that we carry. Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink has all the great characteristics that you have come to love with quality fountain pen inks. It has a reasonably quick dry time, great bottle, unique color, no bleeding nor feathering with quality paper. The unique blue-green turquoise color is pleasing to behold. We are thrilled to be chosen to be an authorized retailer of Kobe ink and hope you enjoy these new inks, which are in stock and ready for shipment today.

Enter to Win

Enter to win the actual bottle of Nagasawa Kobe Marchais Blue ink that we used in this ink review:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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FaithRobin Buchin
6 years ago

This is such a cool blue. It reminds me of some corals and parts of the ocean. Very pretty!

Jessica
6 years ago

I love this color!!

Laura
6 years ago

Such a pretty color.

Whimsicism
6 years ago

This looks like a really lovely colour! I really like Sailor’s standard line, so I have high hopes for their Nagasawa Kobe line too 🙂

c smith
6 years ago

Great for the upcoming “October’s bright blue skies!”

M. Ingibergsson
6 years ago

I love this vibrant shade of turquoise!

Stephanie
6 years ago

I love this color! I think it would go nicely with a Pacific Lamy Al-Star

Alicia H
6 years ago

This blue reminds me of the waters in the Caribbean! Lush and vibrant!

Diana
6 years ago

I have always been curious about Nagasawa Kobe inks and would love the opportunity to try it.

Andrew Mulnix
6 years ago

I haven’t had this brand, but this color looks nice

Michael Elson
6 years ago

Thanks so much for the opportunity. This blue is amazing.

roy c
6 years ago

i do love teal!

Cody Hall
6 years ago

I love Sailor inks, so Kobe is right up my Alley! Favourite ink? That’s a tough one! Maybe Yama-Dori?

Grace K
6 years ago

I LOVE THIS COLOUR!! And I really want to try this brand

David
6 years ago

A beautiful turquoise!

rdcalhoon
6 years ago

I like this color a lot. My favorite ink varies depending on the day.

Nicole
6 years ago

I am a collector of turquoise inks, and this needs to be in my collection. It’s so beautiful!

Kristal M.
6 years ago

This is one of my favorite colors! Very excited to see this ink.

Katherine M Stewart
6 years ago

This ink is amazing! Love a good solid teal ink.