You may have seen this "pen" around and wondered which part of the future it decided to drop in from. An inkless pen?... Made of metal? Sounds pretty crazy.

Ron from Pen Chalet was kind enough to send me the NAPKIN Forever pen to review (from his personal collection no doubt), so a special thanks goes out to him.

In a nutshell, the NAPKIN Forever pen is a writing instrument that is neither pen or pencil, but is a really slick and futuristic looking mesh of metal and wood that writes via the oxidation produced from a metal tip.

I must admit, this is a work of art. It is beautifully made, extremely eye catching, and is bound to start up a conversation with every person that walks into your office. I assure you, no one is likely to pass this "pen" up from the perspective of unique curiosity.

The pen display set comes in two distinct parts: the pen and the stand.

The stand for this particular model is made from walnut (which I have a thing for) and is quite lovely.

A block, rectangular shape, the stand has an angled hole drilled into the top as well as a slight routed rest either to lay your pen on or to act as a sort of shadow imagery underneath while it is propped up at attention. In the side of the stand is a small plastic sliding door that reveals a hole for the pen to be placed in during transit or for storage. Super neat.

The pen itself really is fantastic looking. The overall form is made from cast metal which has been coated in a matte black finish and on each side are inlaid contoured pieces of walnut with "pininfarina" etched in. It really is a sexy thing to behold, like something out of a really cool futuristic sci-fi movie (although they likely wouldn't use wood?...).

Weight wise the pen has some heft but feels good in your hand.

Now the real question: how does it write? In all honesty, not super great. The tip is quite grabby (almost scratchy) as you transfer the oxidation from the tip to the page but, lets face it, WE ARE WRITING WITH METAL. No ink or graphite to smooth things out, so the expectation shouldn't be that it is going to be a silky experience.

That being said, I don't really think that is the point. The purpose of creating something like this is for its artistic design, placement as a desk accessory or novelty, and maybe for a quick and short note.

The pen does leave a surprisingly good mark on the page, although very light. I would put it close to a 4H-6H range graphite pencil.

I tried to write some full pages and it was pretty daunting. The grabbiness of the tip mixed with the weight made it a bit of an uncomfortable experience. If the plan was to use something like this to jot a quick note on a small card or Post-It, perfect. Definitely not something ideal for journaling or writing long winded notes.

The pen isn't overly cheap coming in at just under $100 (through Pen Chalet who has it at a decent discount), but for what it is I think this price is pretty good. It is a beautiful piece of desk art that would make a lovely showcase and offer some optional writing usage.

Thanks again to Ron for sending it my way for review.