We are traveling and my plan to bring the C-Pen didn’t work out since the shipment was delayed. I had to scramble for ideas on how to keep my kids entertained on our long cross-country flight. While brainstorming I remembered a bath activity my son loved that used a black light and glow paint. So I thought surely there’s something similar that’s travel friendly. It didn’t take long for me to find black light pens online. These are perfect for Chinese Character Fun with UV Pens!
To a 4 year old these pens are magical! I wrote Chinese characters throughout the book for him to find. He entertained himself for quite some time. He did not ask for the ipad at all and I didn’t have to bust out the new lego set until the last 45 minutes of the flight. These pens are fun even for adults!
I tried to find the pens at our local office supply store but all they had were counterfeit pens for checking paper money. These won’t really work the same because the counterfeit ink has iodine in them that leave a stain on paper. I purchased our set from Amazon for about $10, and also saw them available at other online retailers. A mini UV light is included in the kit.
The ink is completely invisible once dry and works in regular light. The pink and yellow UV pens have the brightest ink colors. The blue gives off just a faint glow. If you want to try this I would advise writing on thicker paper as the ink bleeds through thin sheets. According to the retailer the UV pens are non-toxic, waterproof, will work on any dry surface, and do not fade.
