GUCCI WRITING INSTRUMENTS BY STIPULA
In the early 1990s the passion for fountain pens experienced a powerful revival in Europe and in Italy in particular.
Pen collecting became a very fashionable hobby and many Italian manufacturers started producing their first limited editions, which flanked their standard production.
Pen makers such as Delta, Stipula, Visconti, Marlen, Montegrappa, Tibaldi, Omas and a few others, manufactured some of their best products ever.
The passion for limited edition pens affected a few fashion designers, too.
Gucci had already marketed a line of “accessories” in the late 1980’s which comprised a number of personal items such as key rings, perfume bottles, razors , lighters as well as ballpens and fountain pens, but none of them was numbered.
In 1992, Gucci decided to upgrade their line of writing instruments and commissioned the production of a line of limited edition pens and pencils to Stipula.
The Florentine pen company manufactured fountain pens, ball pens and pencils following indications coming from the Gucci family. They wanted to have a very elegant and refined line of writing instruments choosing the “buckle” as a symbolic feature of the line.
These writing instruments were expected to embody the principles of creative and balanced elegance which were part of Gucci’s tradition.
The pens were manufactured in dark red lined ebonite, whose effect was very similar to rosewood Details on cap top and barrel end were in sterling silver, which enhanced the look of the long torpedo-shaped design of the pens.
Three finishes were available: complete silver overlay, silver cap or plain ebonite. The same selection was available for ball pens and pencils.
All the fountain pens were numbered on the barrel with Roman digits.
To emphasize the connection with the famous fashion group, the pens were fitted with a special roller clip whose end was reminiscent of a horse bit, one of Gucci’s most famous features. A geometric guilloché and a high relief buckle on the cap band completed the very original look of the pens.
These pens are quite rare today and very desirable.
They are converter fillers and are fitted with a two tone Bock 18 ct gold nib, which is pretty stiff but very smooth.
The packaging is in perfect Gucci’s style, if one is lucky enough to find a pen with the original box.
Only one size was manufactured.
