It’s time for another favorite fountain pen feature – showing off the Esterbrook Estie Sparkle fountain pen! Can you guess which reviewer picked this as a favorite fountain pen for 2020? It’s created by Esterbrook. Its name, the Oversized Sparkle, comes from the diamondcast material used to create the pen (spoiler: real diamonds are involved), and because of those diamonds, it SPARKLES. (Seriously, this is one sparkly pen). If you’re a fan of our guest fountain pen reviews, you may have already guessed that this is one of Pen Gangsta’s favorite fountain pens of 2020 so far. Of course, she would love it – because it’s fabulous. Read on to hear more about one of our guest reviewer’s favorite fountain pens of 2020. 

Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle Fountain Pen: What Do You Get With the Pen?

Vanessa has purchased an Esterbrook or two. Alright, we’re not going to disclose how many Esterbrook fountain pens Vanessa may or may not have purchased. Still, we will say this, the arrival of her Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle Garnet fountain pen from Pen Chalet completed her full collection of Esterbrook Estie Sparkles: 

• Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle Garnet
• Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle Montana
• Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle Tanzanite

As a veteran Esterbrook owner, Vanessa wasn’t surprised by the classy red box that her pen arrived in or the included ink cartridge, polishing cloth, or documentation about the Esterbrook/Diamondcast collaboration that made this pen possible (that Diamondcast material is seriously something!). 

Is it Polite to Stare? Only When You’re Staring at a New Esterbrook:

We’ll say upfront that Vanessa doesn’t just like the Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle fountain pen. In her own words, this fountain pen “makes her heart pitter-patter.” Why? First, she’s already a fan of Esterbrook fountain pens. Second, ALL THAT SPARKLE! If you’re a fan of the Esterbrook Estie design, you’ll recognize it here – the oversized version, not the regular size Estie. It’s a classic look, and it’s a great writer. There’s a reason so many people embrace the Estie design. 

What Do People Love So Much About Esterbrook’s Estie Design?

Esterbrook Estie fountain pens come with a stainless steel nib, use a cartridge/converter filling system, and take Standard International ink cartridges. In the images (and the video linked below) you’re looking at the Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle fountain pen in Garnet with a Medium nib. But, of course, you can get the Estie Sparkle in any of their three available colors, and everyone has their favorite nib sizes. Find out more about Esterbrook Pen Company and what they’re all about. If you’re wondering what people love about Esterbrook’s Estie design, here are a few things people are always talking about: 

1. The pen feels good in your hand – which makes it comfortable to write with, and that’s important since that’s what you do with pens. 
2. Some pens, even some good writers, aren’t necessarily good choices for long bouts of writing. The Esterbrook Estie design is a good writer, but it’s more than that. You may want to just keep writing for ages and ages because that’s how good it feels to write with the Estie.
3. The actual “look” of the Estie’s design is vintage. The cigar-shaped fountain pen is an elegant and streamlined vintage-inspired design that the modern public adopted wholeheartedly. 
4. The “cushion cap” element of the design means you don’t have to worry about your pen drying out even if you leave it unused for a chunk of time.  

Getting to Know the Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle: That’s a Pretty Big Pen

Remember that the Esterbrook Estie comes in two sizes, the regular Esterbrook Estie and the Esterbrook Estie Oversized fountain pen. The regular Esterbrook Estie fountain pen and the Oversized or OS Estie fountain pen are 6 inches long, but while the regular Esterbrook Estie is .563 inches in diameter, the Esterbrook Estie OS fountain pen is .625 inches in diameter. And today’s featured pen, the Esterbrook Estie Sparkle is oversized – so it’s a pretty big pen. If you were to pull up both pen product pages and look at their product details, you’d notice that while the Esterbrook Estie fountain pens (regular size) has a posted length listed as 6.75 inches, the Esterbrook Estie OS fountain pen and Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle fountain pens don’t have a posted length listed. With the oversized diameter increase, posting the cap isn’t recommended.  

Any Additional Conclusions About the Esterbrook Estie Sparkle Pens? 

Just a heads up – now that she has all three with her all the time, Vanessa had to pick a favorite. Well, she didn’t have to, I suppose, but she did. We overheard someone ask her which of the three she liked best now that she’d stared at all of them and spent time with all of them and spent time writing with all of them, and she immediately answered, “The Montana Sapphire!” She did say that she loved the other two, as well, but that she couldn’t get over that green with that sparkle! 

Pairing Inks with Esterbrook Estie Sparkle Fountain Pens:

While there will be countless different right choices, we thought we’d go ahead and include a few of the “right” ink pairing choices Vanessa made recently with her Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle fountain pens. 

Vanessa enjoyed the Esterbrook Sparkle Garnet fountain pen paired with Robert Oster Bronze fountain pen ink. 

Esterbrook’s Estie OS Sparkle Tanzanite fountain pen looked great paired with Montegrappa Blue fountain pen ink. 

And while the Pen Gangsta never officially posted any photos of the Estie OS Sparkle Montana Sapphire fountain pen paired with a specific fountain pen ink, we think it belongs alongside Van Dieman’s Midnight Series Enchanted Woods. Which ink would YOU pair it with? 

Our Guest Reviewer: The Pen Gangsta

Today’s Pen Chalet guest reviewer is The Pen Gangsta (a.k.a. @pen_gangsta – or in true modern superhero style, you can also refer to her by her day-to-day handle, Vanessa Langton). An art historian with superhero level pen enthusiasm and straight-up skills, Vanessa loves tons of different hobbies. For instance, writing with fountain pens, drawing with fountain pens, hosting pen parties, making fountain pen videos, and conducting fountain pen reviews. She’s also straight up and honest. You can see it in her reviews. If you’re a pen fan, you’ve probably already run across her reviews or a gorgeous pen photo or two. 

Need more Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle: Watch the Video Review

Watch the video to see the Esterbrook Estie Sparkle fountain pen in motion. See how to ink the Esterbrook Sparkle. And, of course, watch a writing sample. In this video, the fountain pen was inked with Robert Oster Bronze fountain pen ink. 

For more information on the Esterbrook Estie OS Sparkle head to PenChalet.com.