Inktend / Ink library / Tanbai

Sailor

Tanbai

Purples#C6B5F3

A Japanese ink house whose bottled inks are formulated for their own fine, precise nibs, with several well-known sheening colors in the lineup.

Track this bottle → Find this ink ↗Also on Amazon

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Specs

Color familyPurples
Approx. hex#C6B5F3
SheenNot typically noted
BrandSailor

Paper & pairing

Purples sit at the boundary of professional and playful, one of the more personality-forward choices that still reads clearly on the page. 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 Tanbai?
Track fills, remaining bottle life, and your real paper swatch in Inktend.
Track it →

About Sailor

Founded in Hiroshima in 1911, Sailor is Japan's oldest fountain pen maker, known for precisely ground gold nibs and its own line of bottled inks.

Japan Founded 1911
See all Sailor 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 Tanbai?
Tanbai falls into Inktend's purples family based on its typical swatch color.
Does Tanbai have sheen?
Tanbai 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 Tanbai?
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 Tanbai?
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

Pastell - Blue Iris
Octopus Fluids
Polar Light - 仙境彼岸 (Fairyland Yonder)
Cattybox
Kaleidoscope - Yume
Tono & Lims
MILKYWAY INK - Milky Way
Pentonote
Midnight Deep Sea Fish
Tono & Lims
Jun Ci
KAZE

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