BeNu | United Inkdom

Can you believe it? It’s December ALREADY! This year has flown by. I don’t know where it’s vanished to at all; possibly down the side of the sofa with all my pound coins!

We are at the last United Inkdom giveaway of 2018. So, ladies and gentlemen (and all shades in between), the United Inkdom review team present to you… the BeNu Friendly Chameleon!

Let me tell you a little bit about this pen. She’s a VERY attractive Russian pen, part of the BeNu range (all hand-made and equally strikingly coloured) and retails for $90 (converter extra). Read what the United Inkdom reviewers said about it HERE.

What do you think? Isn’t it just the best-looking pen?

This lovely creature could be delivered to your door by Hogmanay! Just think, you can start your 2019 journalling with this classy fountain pen and it won’t cost you a bean!

Interested? To take part this month, you should be resident in the UK and sign up to receive updates for the United Inkdom blog by email (hit that red ‘ink me up’ button). And that’s it!

The giveaway closes on 22 December, with a winner drawn before 24 December. And providing we get the winner’s address details in good time, the BeNu Friendly Chameleon will be with you before 31 December.

And if you’re not the lucky winner, why not visit the BeNu site and check out their whole range – that Christmas present money isn’t going to spend itself!

A little bit of history Based in Moscow, Benu burst into the pen scene last year with a range of striking designs. When they offered us one to try, we said да!

How it looks The Friendly Chameleon itself is indeed very striking. The barrel is a squared off triangle, with a matching cap. The resin is beautiful with a whole lot of shimmer and sparkle. It truly is chameleon-like, changing appearance as it catches the light at different angles. All our reviewers loved this resin but some felt the overall appearance was let down slightly by the black plastic centre and grip sections. It’s all a matter of taste and a pen with these kinds of looks is bound to provoke a wide range of reactions.

How it feels Surprisingly comfortable. There’s quite a step down from the barrel to the section but the section’s long and so your fingers are safely out of the way. The pen’s width and light weight mean it’s comfortable to hold for extended periods. The cap is light and so doesn’t throw off the balance when posted. The shape also means the pen won’t roll away – always a plus with a clipless pen.

How it fills Benu very sensibly use an international standard cartridge or converter.

Crucially, how it writes… The nib is a generic steel Schmidt #5. The one on our review unit had good flow and behaved itself very well with no skipping or hard starts. It had some feedback which we felt was just the right side of acceptable but might not be for everyone. It isn’t the greatest nib but it works well and is easily replaced.

Pen! What is it good for? The Friendly Chameleon writes well and is comfortable in the hand and so, fortunately, is an excellent pen for doing lots of writing! It’s also good for just gazing into, while waiting for inspiration to strike.

VFM At $90 (plus another $5 for a converter) this isn’t a cheap pen but it’s unique in shape and colour. It would be good to see a higher quality nib but if you like the design (and, let’s be honest, you’re going to either love it or hate it!) then a pen that works well and is this unusual is good value at this price.

If this isn’t quite your cup of tea, but almost… It’s hard to find a pen with these kinds of looks at this price. You’d usually be looking at something bespoke, for a lot more money. So if you almost like this pen but aren’t quite sure then you might be best off looking at the rest of Benu’s range.