Day 13’s ink is Molten Basalt, a standard dark blue ink with so much brown sheen that I don’t understand why this ink wasn’t categorized as a sheen ink. It’s a baffling ink, not something that I’d expect in an Inkvent calendar.
Something about this ink reminds me of Montblanc Around the World in 80 days – it’s a dark indigo blue ink that looks like spilled petrol more than anything. It reads as a dirty black ink – a brownish black.
This ink is interesting, even though I’m not sure it should be part of the Inkvent calendar. There’s something about its strangeness that makes me think that it could have been one of the those inks that Diamine designs with input from the community – like celadon cat.
The only way to see the base colour is to look at it while it dries. Once it’s dry you see the brownish purple sheen settle on every letter.
Today’s bear is Alex by June Kendall of Hardy Bears. I have several of her bears and I like her work.
I’m still not sure what I think of Molten Basalt. I will likely not buy a full bottle of it – will you?
Writing at Large 
Chris
It’s sure a peculiar choice for a Christmas-themed ink collection, from the name to the color.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Jane
My all time favourite ink is Diamine’s Silent Night. While Molten Basalt’s base colour isn’t quite the same shade and is somewhat darker, the addition of the coppery brown sheen puts this firmly into the must-buy-a-full-bottle category for me.
I too had to go back and check the description on the label. I thought I must have misread it as a Standard ink. Very clearly a sheening ink!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Chris
I love Silent Night, too, and I have a full bottle. This one just doesn’t do it for me, though: the blue is invisible in all but the lightest writing. It just looks black to me. Sort of reminds me of last year’s disastrous (IMO) Inkvent climax.
LikeLiked by 1 person
writingatlarge
Yes! It does.
LikeLike
Stephanie M.
There’s blue in there you say? 😆 I sort of see it in the close up but easy pass for me. Blah advent color choice too, Diamine.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Gegard
I’ll need a sample first, but I like that Diamine is taking some risks and trying different things even if a lot doesn’t work for me.
LikeLiked by 2 people
writingatlarge
I agree – I enjoy their experimentation even if I end up not liking all of it.
LikeLike
Chris
I like that, too. There hasn’t been an Inkvent yet without a few duds, but I think Diamine has done a very good job with them overall. I look forward to buying the calendar every year, and then I look forward to opening each day’s ink in the morning.
Sometimes I peek…
LikeLiked by 2 people
Jean Wilcox
I like the experimentation too. It’s one of the reasons I do the Invent every year and I enjoy seeing all the comments here. Everybody has different opinions and uses for the inks. I’m a writer, not an artist. Not a fan of this ink. The dry color was very muddy.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: Diamine Inkvent 2025 Summary – Writing at Large