Pocket Size Review 36: Pelikan M205 Star Ruby, Pelikan Edelstein Star Ruby

Red is my favorite color. If you’ve been following my posts long enough you’ve probably figured that out just through context by now. I worry about having too monochrome a collection so I’ll occasionally buy pens in other colors when I could have purchased them in red, and I also like to match pen and ink colors but have reservations about over-using red ink, so that helps to keep my collection diverse. When one of my favorite pens came out in a beautiful red color this year, though, I knew it would just be a matter of time before one entered my collection.

This Star Ruby Pelikan M205 was a birthday gift from my wife, and quickly entered regular rotation for me as a pocket pen, often replacing the Kaweco Brass Sport I’ve carried for years. I inked it immediately with the matching Pelikan Edelstein Star Ruby ink, and they have made a perfect pair. I don’t like my red pens to lean too much towards pink (I’m looking at you TWSBI Eco Blossom Red...) but I don’t mind a bit of pink in my red inks; it actually helps me to feel like I’m not just using a “mark-up” pen for general writing.

The depth of this material is just stunning. It’s the type of pen one really should see in person. I’m not generally one to get excited over glitter, but the way that this pen is made the glitter doesn’t just glint and sparkle, it provides a third dimension while gazing into the pen. Pelikan has recently announced their ink of the year for 2020 will be “Moonstone”, and I am very curious to see if they do something similar with the material for next year’s pen as well, after the positive reception that this years pen has had.