The 2018 Edelstein Ink of the Year has long been anticipated and Pelikan took the opportunity today via their social media accounts to make the official announcement. You may recall that Pelikan ran a social media contest back in 2016 which allowed fans the opportunity to choose this year’s limited edition color. Over 1,200 suggestions were submitted per the company but Johannes from Cologne was ultimately declared the winner of that contest with an olive-green colored entry. That ink now takes on the official moniker of Olivine in keeping with their gem stone themed line of colors (not to be confused with the Monteverde ink of the same name). This release follows the brown tinted Smoky Quartz from the 2017 limited edition run. It will be the fifteenth addition to the Edelstein line-up, a line that is currently composed of nine regular production inks. It joins the likes of Turmaline, Amber, Garnet, Amethyst, Aquamarine, and Smoky Quartz as the seventh Ink of the Year.
The gem stone olivine derives its name from its typical olive-green color which is derived from traces of nickel. The mineral can also take on a reddish color thought to result from the oxidation of iron. Translucent olivine is sometimes used as a gemstone called Peridot. Based on past releases, Olivine the ink will likely be available in 50 mL bottles as well as standard international cartridges. Pelikan states that retail outlets will have stock sometime around March of this year. Historically, these are made in limited runs so, if you’re a fan, you may want to stock up while supplies last.
I really like the choice of an olive-green tinted ink and am very excited to see how this color will look on paper. It’s not clear as of yet what kind of properties or how much shading, if any, Olivine will have. This is the Ink of the Year release that I’ve been waiting for and am looking forward to picking up a bottle. I also appreciate the fact that this color was born from one of three instances where Pelikan reached out and let its fans have a hand in choosing the color. Such events allow for a unique level of engagement between Pelikan and the pen community.
The bigger question that I have and one that I will put to you here as a poll is, what type of M2xx demonstrator do you think Pelikan will release as a companion to this shade? We have had Amethyst (2015) and Aquamarine (2016) M2o5s with chromium trim as well as the gold-plated M200 Smoky Quartz (2017). It is highly anticipated that Pelikan will continue this trend and release an M2xx demonstrator to compliment its Olivine ink. Please take a moment and respond to the poll below and let me know which type of furniture you’d like to see adorn the presumed forthcoming fountain pen. We’ll likely have to wait until June/July to find out what Pelikan has chosen for us based on past release cycles but it’s always fun to speculate.
The Pelikan's Perch 
I voted chromium/M205, but I think either would look good.
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I’m torn. I can’t tell if I’d like it in gold or silver but I think I’m leaning towards gold.
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Gung-ho. This should be a hit with the old jarheads.
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Haha. Not sure if that’s a market Pelikan is intentionally targeting.
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Not surprised the votes are currently quite close, I was torn myself but just came down on the Chromium side.
If a matching demonstrator is released it will of course become another addition to my flock but I would really like to see Pelikan release a more vibrant demonstrator, maybe a bright orange!
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I agree that choosing a finish for that one is a bit of a challenge. I guess that we will have to wait and see. I do believe we will see something orange next year from what I’ve heard. Think M320 Orange Marbled, only bigger.
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An M600 Orange Marmalade would be very high on my “only dreamed of” list! Hope it is an ’18 release.
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🙂 I’d seen the Pelikan release in Instagram.
As much as I like green and this new shade, I’m kind of disappointed – I’d rather seen a shade of purple or red.
By the way, Graf von Faber-Castell has released a quite identical olive shade this season. And I wonder how close they are.
Have a very HAPPY weekend 🙂
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Several manufacturers have an olive green on the market. I’m not sure whose will reign supreme. I do like the color though. I don’t think we’ll see purple for a while since we had Amethyst just in 2015. Would have been better in my opinion if they added that one to the standard line up instead of Aquamarine. I think we are overdue for a nice red/orange though.
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This is an ink that has been needed in the Pelikan line for a long time. Wish they would do something in the M600 line to go with it.
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That is a suggestion that I could get behind. This might pair nicely with the M600 Green O’Green (2011) though.
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The M101N Tort. Brown might also be a nice match.
Looking forward to this ink and the future M205 (hopefully) pen.
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That one for sure and I was thinking the Tortoiseshell White and the M450 Green Vermeil Tortoise would be good matches
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Thanks, Joshua, hoping this will be as fabulous as it has the potential to be. Vivid Olive might make a nice M600 …..
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You’re welcome. I’m super excited for the potential. I just hope it lives up to expectations.
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Great post, as always, Joshua! I love green inks, so I’m happy to see this one. A couple of bottles will certainly make their way to my house – the only Edelstein I don’t have is the Amber, which seems impossible to obtain 😦 .
I’m also looking forward for the Orange pen and hoping it is a M800 (I doubt they would ever consider such vibrant color for the M1000 ). It seems a logical sequence to the Vibrant Blue and Renaissance Brown… A Red one in that material would be nice too.
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Thanks! I had quite a time tracking down a bottle of Amber but it was well worth it. Near impossible to come by these days.
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I love this color and can’t wait. Its the first Edelstein ink of the year that has really compelled my interest. I could go either way on the demo trim — the design world pendulum seems to be swinging back to warmer tones after a long spell were cooler colors and environments were on top. So maybe it will be gold! I’m more interested in the 11 other releases Pelikan is planning this year that a dealer I met at the Philly pen show told me to expect.
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Whatever color the furniture is, I just hope they nail that olive green color. I don’t know about 11 but there is a good outlook for the 180th. Rumors of some of the planned releases are truly awesome.
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Any hints???? 😉
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A lot is under wraps still. A couple of familiar styles in new colors and an old color making its way to a new style. Blue, turquoise, olive green, and orange marbled are just some of the colors anticipated for this year.
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Looks like a chromium plated M205 is going to win this poll. Can’t wait to see what Pelikan actually releases.
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Any update on the m200/m205 in olivine to accompany this ink? All of the other pens that paired with the ink of the year were announced in late June or early July. Given that we’re now in August, I’m starting to worry a little bit that they won’t release one this year. I was really hoping to see this one come to market.
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I agree that the IOTY M2xx release had been announced late June/earl July for the past 3 years. That fact also had me nervous so I poked around a bit. One of my sources suggest that we should expect an announcement sometime circa August 15th. From what I hear, we are still on track.
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Nice! Thanks for the quick reply! I’m glad to know that it’s still a possibility. I was really looking forward to this one.
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You will be happy to know that the news is out. Check it out here.
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Wow! Crazy timing there to have left that comment yesterday and have some news just a day later! In any case, I read your post about the pen and am looking forward to seeing the material more closely in more photos soon as well, but I suspect I’ll be getting one in any case. I have each of the IOTY demonstrators so far and am rather fond of the model, so I plan to keep the collection going as long as Pelikan keeps releasing them. Thanks for all the work that you do and for all of your responses to my comments. I enjoy reading your posts and appreciate all of the information you give as well as the time and effort it must take to stay on top of it all.
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Thanks for reading. It does take a lot of work but it’s a labor of love. I agree that this is one of those that we just have to see before judging. Still, I’m optimistic and, like you, will almost certainly add it to the collection.
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I’ve been meaning to inform you that I purchased an M100 from 1930. That might be one of the first ever. I haven’t inked it yet.
Drop me a PM if you need to communicate.
Regards,
Ed
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If it’s from the 1930s, then it’s just a 100. The M100 was a very different bird from the 1980s. The old 100 and 100Ns are great pens and their abundance almost 100 years later is a testament to their durability.
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