Every serious collector of fountain pens has to buy a case for their special writing tools at some point. It is inevitable. One of my good friends knows this and, alongside some brilliant, brightly coloured TWSBI pens, she gifted me a stunning Galen Leather fountain pen case, with enough room for five pens inside.
I promise that I'll review it and not just rave about how much I love it, but quite frankly, I don't know what there isn't to love about it!
When I unwrapped the gift, I found a pretty box made of thick cardboard with 'Galen Leather' printed on the front sitting on my lap. I admired the very nice box afterwards.
It was my birthday. On one day every year, everything gets hastily scrabbled into, and this was that day.
A wondrous sight met my delighted eyes! A purse (I thought initially) made of amazingly soft, smooth, purple leather! Not only purple, but a dark, rich purple, my favourite shade. I turned it over in my hands a few times, admiring the perfect finish, and the shiny zipper.
I unzipped it, and my joy promptly quadrupled. This was no purse- this was a pen case!
The inside is made out of a soft material. I'm not sure what it is but it is pleasantly textured and strong. Stitched on to the left side are five stretchy elastic loops. You insert a pen into one of these loops, and for added security you can use a pen clip to fasten it to the loop. On the right side is a flat, wide pocket, meant for notebooks, I think. The pocket will admit anything, such as the Everyday Notebook, so you can slide the back cover in, and your notebook will be held securely by the pocket. Zip the case up and you have a little writing kit that you can take wherever you go!
I was particularly impressed by the quality of the stitching. No dangling bits of thread, saggy stitches, or loose layers. This is truly great craftsmanship on the part of its maker. I learnt from the card that was included with the case that it was made by the skilful hands of a man named Yusuf, the brother of Galen Leather's founder, Zeynep.
I can just about darn a sock. It rarely survives the washing machine. But this guy managed to sew through thick, tough leather and fabric.
The only reasonable explanation is magic.
Galen Leather have produced a pen case that will only get better as it ages. I look after mine well, clean it regularly and use it every day. It is a product that could be passed down through generations, since leather is resilient and acquires its own unique look and feel as the years go by.
I couldn't wish for a better place to store my precious fountain pens. If you like to travel with your pens, or just need a place to safely store them, I recommend investing in one of these gorgeous cases!