An Overdose of Vitamin C for sure!
This year has been nothing short of amazing if you are a fan of the color orange – it seems every few weeks there is a new pen on my radar begging for my attention. Today we’re looking at one of the must-have releases from a store known for their excellent collaborations with Sailor – Bungbox. The latest in their lineup is the “Mandarin Orangette” – designed and named after a candied orange dipped in dark chocolate (You can see how it’s made, or if you want to make it yourself here is the recipe). Some versions use the whole orange while others just use the orange rind, but either way it looks delicious – but I digress, back to the pen.
Based on the Sailor Pro Gear Slim, the Orangette mixes orange and a caramel-brown resin with the addition of a transparent orange cap to replicate the look of the candy. Bungbox took the extra step of adding a custom finial, cap band and nib like most of their releases – but with a little surprise. This mixture of different colors and resins could have been a mess waiting to happen, but it was superbly executed with the resins complimenting each other instead of fighting. The gold trim and clip are well matched to all 3 colors and nothing feels out of place.
So that surprise I mentioned? It’s how cool the finial design is on this model. Bungbox created a chocolate-dipped orange icon, but used a Wajima raden maki-e technique that catches the light at certain angles and gives off a stunning rainbow reflection.
The cap band features a 4-leaf clover and the inscription “I wish you a lot of happiness” in place of the traditional Sailor branding. The grip uses the caramel colored resin as does the end cap.
The 14k gold nib features “Ink Tells More” inscribed between the breather hole and grip – a common element on Bungbox pens like the Norwegian Wood and Canneberge Nouveau Pro Gear models. I went with a medium-fine nib this time and it does not disappoint – always able to keep up and never a hard start.
Packaged in a simple while Sailor box, Bungbox added an Orangette sticker to the slipcase and included an insert describing the pen and the origin of it’s name. Under the pen holder are the pair of Sailor ink cartridges but – and as I mentioned with the Ohatsu – an included converter would be a great addition.
You can find the Orangette available at Bungbox for ¥27,000 – and still available in EF/F/MF as of October 4th, but hurry as they don’t last long. If your looking for a good ink to match the always popular Sailor Jentle Apricot is an obvious choice, but I opted for a little Akkerman Oranje Boven. As always if you need any help sourcing one let me know in the comments below – happy to help!
