Still waters run deep with Lucia – Ink Review: Vinta Inks Deepwater Blue (Lucia 1952)

If you are new to Vinta inks, fret not. Vinta inks is hand made in the Philippines. The long string of names on the ink bottle is easily explained in the following order:
1. English name of ink
2. Filipino name of ink, usually linked to the Philippines heritage or cultural events
3. Year of reference of those events

Deepwater blue is an ink inspired by mermaids. It has its origins from the Filipino comic book created by Mars Ravelo, and is named after Lucia, one of the characters in the comic. According to the story, Lucia was so obssessed with mermaids while she was pregnant, that her child was born with what looked like fishtail instead of legs. There is always a story to tell with Vinta inks,
something to make our colour journey an impressionable one.
The ink itself reminds me of swimming in a sea of blue, green, lilac and for those of you familiar with the movie The Little Mermaid, it also reminds me of Ariel the mermaid’s tail.

I can imagine depths of the sea, embodied with a bit of mystery when I see this color. It’s amazing how accurately Vinta managed to depict the many layers of the sea. With sheen and shading inks like these, certainty of layers is not easy to achieve. In some other inks I have encountered, each dip is sometimes a matter of luck – but here, it seems that every drop is encapsulated in all the different layers of color the maker wants you to see.

Credits to @missmuffat 

I like how Vinta inks offer variety in color but still manage to surprise ink addicts like me with every single color they produce. Most of the inks in this collection are perfectly legible regardless of white or cream-based paper. Ink change occurs within five seconds from contact of paper, but I’d call it a wet ink. This is advantageous for inks of high shading and sheen.
I used this ink on Leuchtturm paper, which is a more cream-based paper – the ink turned out more turquoise upon contact with paper, but dries off to a darker shade of blue green quite quickly, with a hint of dark lilac.
When I tried it on Tomoe River (white) paper, it was more consistent, from start to finish, but nonetheless the same beautiful mermaid blue.
Vinta Inks are rather viscous, the droplets are thick dense drops that hardly glides around on paper.

The ink comes in a round bottle made of dark brown glass and has a wide opening. This makes it appealing for dipping pens, making artwork with the ink and also gives you a much easier job filling up your pen.
It has a striking close resemblance to Omaezaki Sea from Sailor (Bungubox exclusive), but presents even more intriguing layers than the latter. The complexity and depth of Vinta Deepwater Blue gives it more value than what it is selling for, which makes it really easy to buy more than one bottle!
Vinta inks offer great value for money, and insists on high quality ingredients when formulating the inks. The inks are made in-house, not outsourced. Definitely my go-to range of inks when I am looking for unique and diverse range of colors.

What I used:
Paper: Leuchtturm 1917 notebook, Tomoe River paper (white)

Dry Time: ★★★☆☆ (1=slow, 5=fast)
Flow: ★★★★☆ (1=dry, 5=wet)
Shading: ★★★★☆ (1=low,5=high)

Write on!!
Yours truly,
@missmuffat