The new Parker Duofold finish, Pinstripe, is available in two versions. The Chocolate Pinstripe, seen here in the Centennial size fountain pen, with matching ballpen, is a subdued brown, with thin stripes of bright blue and cream running the length of the cap and barrel. The trim is gold plate, and both the cap top and barrel end are black, as is the section. The nib is that standard Duofold design, in two tone 18K gold.
The description sounds more jarring than it actually appears in person, but still, the Chocolate Pinstripe is not likely to be the design for everyone! It's certainly bold, no doubt about it, but I personally think that it might end up overshadowed, at least in the category of popular taste, by it's sibling color.
The Navy Pinstripe is, as it's name suggests, a dark blue colour overall. The accenting stripes on this version are less obtrusive than those on the Chocolate, consisting of a lighter shade of grayish blue that sets off the dark blue background very nicely. Unlike the Chocolate Pinstripe, the trim on the Navy is silver in colour. It goes much better with the cooler blue shades of this pen. The nib is also in 18K gold, but plated to match the trim colour.
Both versions are available in two sized for the fountain pen, the larger Centennial size and the slightly smaller International size. They are also being made in rollerball versions, as well as in the classic ballpoint model, patterned after the pencil version of the original Duofold of the 1920s. The Pinstripe is a bold design, and as such, will be very unlikely to be popular with everyone.
But for those pen lovers who like a step apart from the everyday, or for those collectors who want something out of the ordinary, the pinstripe might be just the thing to go with that subdued gray suit hanging in the closet...
Copyright 2004 William Riepl