Okurimono Japan
Ukiyo-e style illustration: at a wooden gate, a courier in a straw hat holds out a parcel while the recipient signs a slip with a fountain pen tied with a red ribbon, with great formality.
Illustration: Okurimono Japan

Gift Truths No.19

Gave them a beautiful fountain pen. It now signs for every delivery.

Honestly, that's a win. A pen that gets used every day is a pen that was the right gift.

Where this came from

The article behind it.

Buying guideSep 13, 2026

The Best Japanese Fountain Pen to Give as a First Pen (2026): Pilot, Platinum or Sailor?

A designer in Japan picks five fountain pens — Pilot Capless, Custom 74, Platinum #3776 and Sailor Profit — that make a safe, generous first fountain pen gift, and explains nib sizes, ink and why Japanese pens suit beginners.

The gift

The ones I’d actually send.