Waterman Mysterious Blue Replacement?

[OMASsimo]

I love writing with Waterman's mysterious blue ink and used it for years. But now it's increasingly difficult to find where I live and so I wonder if anybody here, knowing the original by Waterman, could suggest a good replacement. Is there anything similar by Diamine (a brand easy to find here)?

 

Your suggestions are very much appreciated.

[mannschott]

I looked through my many swab cards and found nothing that was an exact match. Here are the closest I could come up with:

 

• Diamine Blue/Black (duller and darker)
• De Atramentis Ferdinand von Zeppelin/Atlantic Blue (darker, a bit redder)
• Robert Oster Blue Night (slightly greener)
• Rohrer and Klingner Verdigris (darker, a bit redder)
• Pilot Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo (greener)
• Pelikan Edelstein Aquamarine (greener)
• Faber-Castell Deep Sea Green (Even greener; unpleasantly dry flow)
• Organics Studio Barkley's Blue Teal (Very much greener)
• J. Herbin Vert de Gris (Very much greener)

 

To my eye, Diamine Blue/Black and Rober Oster Blue Night are closest, though both miss the mark in different ways.

 

If you don't mind veering into green, I would encourage you to consider Vert de Gris. It's a beautiful ink and behaves very well in my experience.

[gmax]

Diamine Eau de Nil or maybe Diamine Teal - I think the first of these would be closest

[OMASsimo]

I looked through my many swab cards and found nothing that was an exact match. Here are the closest I could come up with:

 

• Diamine Blue/Black (duller and darker)
• De Atramentis Ferdinand von Zeppelin/Atlantic Blue (darker, a bit redder)
• Robert Oster Blue Night (slightly greener)
• Rohrer and Klingner Verdigris (darker, a bit redder)
• Pilot Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo (greener)
• Pelikan Edelstein Aquamarine (greener)
• Faber-Castell Deep Sea Green (Even greener; unpleasantly dry flow)
• Organics Studio Barkley's Blue Teal (Very much greener)
• J. Herbin Vert de Gris (Very much greener)

 

To my eye, Diamine Blue/Black and Rober Oster Blue Night are closest, though both miss the mark in different ways.

 

If you don't mind veering into green, I would encourage you to consider Vert de Gris. It's a beautiful ink and behaves very well in my experience.

 

 

Thanks a lot for these extensive comparisons and suggestions. I do have a bottle of Diamine Blue/Black and are not too enthusiastic about it. I don't like the greenish tint and the way it shades. I've seen the Edelstein Aquamarine and like the colour. But it's too far to the green to replace the mysterious blue unfortunately. So, #2 and #4 from your list might be the most promising, #3 could be too. I'll have to see what is available in my B&M store. Anyway, this has been very helpful!

[OMASsimo]

Diamine Eau de Nil or maybe Diamine Teal - I think the first of these would be closest

 

Ahhh, Eau de Nil looks very promising, indeed! I think I have a good chance to find it locally. Thanks a lot.

[1nkulus]

Perhaps, Diamine Turquoise or Havasu Turquoise.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/300566-ink-review-diamine-turquoise/

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/300565-ink-review-diamine-havasu-turquoise/

[1nkulus]

A slightly different option, Diamine Presidential Blue.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/317361-ink-review-diamine-presidential-blue/

[Tas]

It, and both bottles of the Parker Quink Blue Black Ive owned were almost indistinguishable.

 

(I read on FPN somewhere that Parker have changed their formula so Id look for slightly older bottles on eBay perhaps)

[OMASsimo]

Thanks a lot for the suggestions. I've been to my two B&M stores today to check for the possibilities. First of all, I was lucky enough to snatch up the very last bottle of Mysterious Blue before they phase out Waterman inks altogether. Why on Earth are they? OK, that's another topic. My other B&M store didn't have Eau de Nil in stock. All the other suggestions didn't seem to get too close to what I was looking for. So, I ordered a bottle of Eau de Nil and will see in two or three weeks whether or not it is a good replacement or complementary addition to my ink stock. I'll try to remember to report back once I've got hold of it.

[welch]

Diamine Sapphire Blue. A purplish blue, like Waterman.

[aurore]

Diamine Sapphire Blue. A purplish blue, like Waterman.

Florida/Serenity is purplish, not Mysterious

[jmccarty3]

I agree, there is nothing purplish about Mysterious Blue. It's an odd ink, appearing more blue in some pens and more green in others. One well-known nibmeister swears by it vociferously, to the point that I bought a bottle of it on his recommendation. It is a markedly well-behaved ink, but no more so than Serenity Blue, which was my standard ink for many years before I dived down the FPN rabbit hole.

[peroride]

Thank you @OMASsimo I'm partial to Absolute Brown but now your post has made me want to try Mysterious Blue though I have Parker blue black Quink.

 

Not affiliated with any retailers, but PenChalet has it in stock but you may have to buy lots to make the shipping worth it.

Edited May 5, 2019 by peroride

[welch]

Florida/Serenity is purplish, not Mysterious

 

Ah, right. "Mysterious" is Waterman's Blue-Black.