Inktend / Ink library / Naples Blue

Private Reserve

Naples Blue

Blues & navies#2D6BC4

Highly saturated American inks in dozens of vivid colors, headlined by the pen-show classic DC Supershow Blue.

Track this bottle → Find this ink ↗Also on Amazon

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Specs

Color familyBlues & navies
Approx. hex#2D6BC4
SheenNot typically noted

Paper & pairing

Blues and navies are the most broadly "safe" fountain pen colors: legible, professional, and unlikely to raise eyebrows in an office. This ink will behave predictably on most fountain-pen-friendly paper. Cheap, highly absorbent paper (standard copier paper) will dull any ink's saturation and can cause feathering or bleed-through with wetter nibs.

Own a bottle of Naples Blue?
Track fills, remaining bottle life, and your real paper swatch in Inktend.
Track it →

About Private Reserve

Private Reserve Ink was founded in 1994 in Indiana and became known for intensely saturated fountain pen colors at a time when most inks were conservative. The brand was acquired by Yafa Brands in the late 2010s and relaunched with reformulated Premium, Fast Dry, Invincible, and Infinity lines. Its bottled inks remain a staple of American pen shows, most famously the annual DC Supershow blues.

USA Founded 1994
See all Private Reserve products →

Storing and using the bottle

Bottled fountain pen ink has an effectively long shelf life when kept capped and out of direct sunlight: most inks remain usable for years. The main risk isn't the ink spoiling, it's a pen sitting inked and unused for weeks: that's what causes clogs, not the ink's age.

Frequently asked questions

What color family is Naples Blue?
Naples Blue falls into Inktend's blues & navies family based on its typical swatch color.
Does Naples Blue have sheen?
Naples Blue is not typically noted for sheen. If you want that effect, browse similarly colored inks tagged with sheen in the ink library.
How should I store a bottle of Naples Blue?
Years, easily, as long as it stays capped and out of direct sunlight. The thing that actually shortens an ink's usable life is sitting unused inside a pen, not sitting on a shelf.
What paper works best with Naples Blue?
It behaves predictably on most fountain-pen-friendly paper. Stick to something reasonably absorbent-resistant, since cheap copier paper dulls saturation and can feather.

Similar shades By colour distance

Idyllic Blue
Caran d'Ache
Fountain Pen Hospital Exclusive - Henry Hudson Blue
Noodler's
Special Color - Shadowsnow
Ink Institute
Painter Series Expanded Edition - Nocturne with Van Gogh: Starry Night
Dominant Industry
#128 Santorini
PenBBS
Voyagers - Kay Cottee
Van Dieman's

Color shown is a close digital approximation of a typical swatch, not a calibrated color match.