Ink Review: Colorverse the Mini Collection & the Johannes Kepler Set

Colorverse recently released a line of tiny inks called The Mini Collection. Nearly all of the colors in the line have been previously released in their regular seasons. However, some of the colors were only accessible as part of a traditional Colorverse ink set which includes one 65mL bottle and one 15mL bottle. Where as before you may have had to shell out $36 for the set when you were really only after the smaller 15mL bottle, these mini inks allow selecting and testing specific inks without investing in a full set or a massive 65mL bottle. The packaging may be small, but it still manages to include the whimsical attention to detail of their previous releases.

The mini collection is sold in sets of three inks, and one of the most interesting aspects of the line is that you are able to individually self-select any of the inks from the collection as the three inks you would like included in your set. This type of set-up is a welcome addition in a world of ink where most sets allow little choice and often leave you with some inks you prefer more than others.

Colorverse already produced one of the smallest glass ink bottles on the market with their 15mL line. It’s important to note that these mini sets do not include the 15mL bottles, but instead include even smaller 5mL bottles. One the the more precarious parts of using tiny ink bottles is the size of the opening of the bottle. The Colorverse 15mL bottles were already tiny openings, and these mini bottles are every smaller. The good news is that I checked several different converters, and they all fit fine into the bottle for filling. You would not be able to fit a nib or a pen into the bottle to do a piston-fill. Amazingly, with a bit of rolling and finagling, I was still able to successfully dip the Col-o-ring Dipper into the bottles. Hooray! The bottles come with a plastic pipette for filling. The pipette works, but I found a syringe easier to use.

Price is definitely something to consider with these inks. At $19.50 for a set of three, the price per mL nearly triples compared to the original Colorverse sets. It’s also about double the cost of purchasing three ink samples, and the size is only 1mL greater than a traditional sample. On the other hand, you get the benefit of adorable tiny glass ink bottles and miniaturized packaging. It is also worth noting that other than samples, this is the only way I know to try three different ink colors of your choosing for under $20. If you are trying to fills holes in your Colorverse collection without breaking the bank, or just want a chance to try a variety of inks at a lower cost entry point than other Colorverse sets, these inks are perfect for that scenario.

All of seasons 1-5 are available in the collection as well as six colors from the Earth Edition, four Special Edition colors, and three colors from a brand new limited set. Thanks to Ana gifting me many of her Colorverse duplicate 15mL bottles, and purchasing a few new mini sets and some additional samples from Vanness, I was able to swatch all of seasons 1-4 along with one of the special edition inks and the three new limited colors.

Along with the launch of the mini collection, Colorverse also released a new limited set of three colors: the Johannes Kepler Set. The namesake of the set was a scientist and astronomer who is known for everything from describing the orbit of planets to writing what many consider to be one of the first pieces of science fiction.

The inks are packaged in the exact same manner as the other mini collection sets, but are sold as a pre-selected set. The set includes a red, green, and blue. None of the inks have significant sheen, but all are decently saturated inks that show some shading properties. I compared the colors to some of the other reds, greens, and blues from the Mini Collection.

Overall, I don’t feel the colors in the limited set are the most interesting in the Colorverse line overall, but I do enjoy all three of the included colors enough to merit having them in my collection. The small 5mL bottles give me the perfect opportunity to swatch all three, and still have plenty of ink left over to fill a few cartridge/ converter pens.

Swatching all of seasons 1-4 reminded me how many great colors Colorverse has released over time. The Mini Collection makes me hope to see more ink manufacturers innovate their methods of releasing ink- especially in terms of allowing more individual selections in the purchasing of sets. I would also like to see Colorverse release similar sets in the 15mL bottle size. One can dream right?

Tools:

• Swatches: Col-o-ring “Oversize” ($15), Col-o-Ring Dippers ($5)
• Stamps: Sample Vial Rubber Stamp ($12)
• Ink:  Colorverse The Mini Collection ($19.50 for 3- 5ml bottles)

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DISCLAIMER: The items in this review were purchased with my own finds or handed down to me from the Colorverse queen. Some of the inks that were passed on to me were originally provided to us free of charge for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.