Stealthy Stationery Supplies: the Invisible Ink Pen
Posted by RenaissanceTrophyWife on January 7, 2009
I snagged a couple of invisible ink pens from DealExtreme; at <$2 with free shipping, the price is great. Make sure you order ahead of time, however, since they’re shipped from Hong Kong. I just got mine in the mail and figured I’d share the results.
The invisible ink pen is a little shorter than a normal pen, and it feels like construction is pretty sturdy. The cap makes a satisfying snap when it comes on and off, which is nice since (hopefully) the tip won’t dry out very quickly. I also like how the pen had one of those tabs separating the battery and the connector for the black light– it would really suck to have a non-working light when you open the package since that’s pretty much essential to seeing what you wrote.
Next we have me writing with the pen… oooh, so exciting, I know…
And voila, the invisible ink appears!
The ink shows up great in broad daylight and is really easy to read. I just changed the exposure on the last photo since I wasn’t sure how well it would come out on the internet. Also, I was holding the pen at an angle to take a good pic, but the light is actually about as bright as the innermost circle when you shine it directly on your paper.
I have to say, I love that invisible ink now comes in pens. Did anyone ever use the toothpick dipped in lemon juice method, and a lightbulb to make the ink show up? Talk about a pain in the ass. After I tried it once as a kid, I knew I wasn’t cut out for the espionage/secret spy career… too much effort for me.
Oh, and what do you use these pens for? One really common use is to number your RSVP cards so guests can be identified even if they don’t remember to fill in their name. And of course, writing secret messages to your honey… What would you use your invisible ink pen for?
