You find more pages searching google with the Japanese for Vestaere, i.e. ヴェスターレ, then with the English.

Beautiful looking in the pictures. But that's all I know. I'd like to know about pricing, availability and where to buy.

Price is on the Sailor website: http://www.sailor.co.jp/BUNGU/vestaere/index.html - roughly ~$1300 retail in Japan.

I'm sure the Ujuku Shop could order one in.

Do you REALLY like it? I think it's downright ugly. Especially at $1,300! Why do you find it so appealing?

We like constructive criticism - not pen bashing, thank you very much...

I find the Vestaere unusual, and I like unusual things. If I had a spare grand handy, I'd pick one up just for the quirkiness factor!

HAhaa... at first glance, I thought the pen was ugly, but after a few more minutes of looking at it, I think it would be a great pen for cooler summer days, sitting in some posh cafe writing in my journal while wearing loafers with matching stitching. okay.. weird scenario.. but whateverrr.

Takuya Okamoto is a leather craftsman well known among Japanese pen collector. Many Japanese hard-core pen collectors have him make custom pen cases. His cases are all hand-stitched, and the quality is the top notch. The Sailor Vestaere pen barrels are hand stitched by him. His website is somewhat difficult to navigate, but my favorite is Gion-mamori under High-Fidelity series - very creatve design. It holds pens, an ink bottle, and stamps But it costs as much as a few of Nakayas

http://takuya-mbh.jp/

Now that is a fascinating website. Taki, would you know if he makes the leather pen case offered by Nakaya? I guess their Troy model is made especially for maki-e pens (at the price of one...). Ruud

I've been an admirer of these cases for some time, though not all of them appeal to me.

That was my first thought, then the price struck me. Now, I am wondering if it is a joke or a cynical stunt on the pen market. The more I look at it the more it strikes me as just being so very wrong in so very many ways. If the company made up a large run it would be very interesting, say next year, to hear how they sold. I admit I have never been a very good judge of taste and have been wrong frequently in the past. But this one is just so wrong for a fountain pen design...

I think the blue one is quite fetching.

To hear (read) some comments I expected that cheap "cigar" pen that is supposed to look like a cigar but instead looks like an animal dropping.

I rather like this. It conjurs up thoughts of baseball. Hubby would probably think the dark brown a complement to his baseball glove. It looks too clunky for me but I don't find it ugly. I've seen other leather-covered pens that were much less appealing.

Also keep in mind that there are other leather-covered Japanese pens, though they are different from this one. It appears to be a tradition that other countries' manufacturers do not have. The Sailor Takuya Vestaere is not my cup of tea, but heh, others might like it ($1300 is sooo far out of my range that it would never occur to me to buy a pen like that anyway).

Erick

I don't believe so, I think if it was made by him Nakaya would advertise it as such and they would sell it for more.

As for the Vestaere pens, I don't think it is ugly but the price is out of my league to even consider Eric is correct, I think most of the big three pen companies used to sell leather pens, and Platinum and Nakaya still offers them. But I think lether is glued on the metal barrel on those pens. Maybe Stan can elaborate on this

Since my name was mentioned...

Pilot, Platinum, and Sailor all made pens with leather covered barrels and caps in the 1970s. The Amazonass series by Platinum are the more famous as they used different exotic leathers and screen printed decoration on colored cowhide. The ones by Sailor are least encountered owing to smaller production.

Leather covered pens go back a number of years in Japan. I have a few from the prewar era where the leather is glued to the ebonite barrel.

Many of the leathers were extremely supple when new. Most found today are hard as they may have dried some over the years. Still...many new pens with tags are found. If interested, check out Yahoo Japan as they come up for sale periodically.

Regarding Takuya, this is high-end stuff and most Japanese take their leather seriously. Once, I asked why leather goods were so pricey in Japan and was told that only the highest quality and most supple hides were used. My wife tried to show me by having me feel this bag and then another so I could appreciate the difference. It was for the most part, lost on me.

Yes.


Uh huh.


That makes it look worse?


I don't know.

I thought the best music release of 2007 was Toshiji Mikawa's "Gyo-Kai Elegy" (of around 1000 that I reviewed). I don't know why I find it so appealing and satisfying. I'm pretty sure most people would dislike it if they heard it. Many would declare it to be not music. And I don't know why they don't like it. Nor is it very important to me. I just accept that they don't like it. Their opinions are as good as any others.

I'm with you . . . a cool looking pen. Price would keep me from buying it, but it is still a pleasure to look at.

Hi, Stan,

I see an Amazonass on ebay from time to time. Some are very desirable. But I'm a Sailor fan. The pen in the last post in this thread is delightful. Other than keeping an eye on ebay, can you suggest ways I might locate leather Sailors?

tia
tom