I've been so focused on writing my last few Field Notes posts that I've neglected to keep up with the gel pen happenings in Japan. Here are a couple news items I found interesting lately. Links are in Japanese but surely, pictures are worth thousand words? 😊
サラサ総選挙 結果発表！ | SRS46カラフル総選挙 (Results of Colorful “Election” SRS46)
There was a poll earlier this year (in Japan) where people voted for their favorite Sarasa Clip color, and these are the results, from a total of 5,276 votes. I’m surprised Blue Black/Dark Blue came in 1st, beating Black, and that quite a few of the pastel colors are in the top 20. Red Black (the bottom pen pictured at the top of this post), came in at a respectable 8th, while my favorite, Brown Gray, placed 18th. Poor Copper. It came in 46th, the last place. Side note: I feel like their use of the word 総選挙 or “general election” is supposed to be a joke or a play on words. Maybe somebody more fluent in Japanese / in tune with the culture and current events could help me what got lost in my translation.
Uni-ball Signo 0.38mm in 12 new colors
Not to be outdone by Sarasa’s 46 colors, Uni-ball is adding more colors to its Signo line-up (UM-151). (Signo is pronounced SEE-gu-no, dammit.) Gotta love the healthy competition in the Japanese gel pen market, right? I’ve been hoping for more nuanced gel colors, so this is exciting news. The new colors are: Apple Green, Blue Green, Prussian Blue, Purple, Lilac, Light Pink, Yellow, Beige, Khaki, Brown, Gray, and Dark Gray. I don't know when they’ll cross the ocean, but I am most excited to try Khaki, Blue Green, and Dark Gray soon. Release date in Japan is June 16th. Any of these colors catch your eye?