Galen Leather is one of those brands that I’ve kept my eye out on since I joined the online journaling and planning community. In case you didn’t know, Galen Leather is a family company based in Istanbul, Turkey specializing in handmade leather goods and woodwork. Most of their products’ target market are stationery lovers (traveler’s notebook, notebook folios, pen cases, etc).

Read: Tomoe River Notebooks to Try in 2020

One of the better-known products by Galen Leather is their leather pen case. All of their pen cases are made of high grade vegetable tanned leather with various colors to choose from. The zippered pen cases come in several variants of pen slots as well – the largest pen case capacity can accommodate a fountain pen collection of 40!

About the Product

• H x W x D : 160 mm x 125 mm x 30mm (6.3″ x 5″ x 1.2″)
• 10 elastic pen loops
• Full grain leather
• Holds up to 145 mm / 5.6 inch pens
• Protector fabric
• YKK zipper

Materials

• 100% vegetable tanned cow leather
• Hand stitched using waxed polyamide thread
• The edges are beveled, waxed and burnished for a finished look

The Packaging

Galen Leather is one of those brands who add an incredible amount of thought in their packaging. When you receive your pen case, you will receive a nice and durable cardboard box with the Galen Leather logo printed. In the box, you will find:

• Galen Leather 10 slot pen case
• Canvas cloth pouch (with a bonus Turkish instant coffee)
• Galen Leather info
• Discount voucher
• Evil eye charm

On the outside

The vintage feel of the material is what makes the Crazy Horse Brown special. The Crazy Horse Brown is described by Galen Leather as “distressed brown color showing a lot of different brown under-tones including tan, mocha and, hickory. Ages and softens quicker compared to regular leather. Suede feeling finish.“

Even after having read the product information, I was expecting it to be a bit larger. I was surprised that the pen case was quite small – especially for a ten pen capacity.

By the way it’s been stitched and put together, you can tell that it’s of high quality and that they have paid close attention to detail.

When the pen case is full, the zipper still glides smoothly and fastens securely.

The Inside

Once you’ve opened the case, you will see 2 suede flaps that act as additional protectors for the pens. There are 10 gartered slots that seem to be big enough for standard sized fountain pens.

The pen loops are not made for slim pen but it will hold a gel pen – just not firmly enough.

This pen case is a bit short – the TWSBI Eco fits just about right but there is minimal allowance in terms of space.

Opening the case is easy but zipping it closed with 10 pens inside is a bit of a struggle. It’s not exactly difficult but one must be careful when closing the pen case especially when the pen capacity is maxed out.

Overall Thoughts

The Galen Leather zippered case is an excellent daily carry. The material is strong and of high-quality and will last a long time. Its slim design was a nice surprise, albeit a bit snug when capacity is at a maximum. The simple and rugged leather finish adds so much character to the pen case and is what gives it the timeless look.

Galen Leather values their customers and it is apparent from the entire product as a whole. The customer experience is outstanding and intentional from start to finish.. This definitely makes a great gift for you or for someone else.

Where to buy?

You can buy this for $59 on the official Galen Leather website. Since these are handmade, please expect a couple of weeks for them to get your order ready.

Disclosure: This product was sent to us for free in return for my honest review. Photos are ours unless otherwise stated. All opinions expressed here are the author’s own and are not in any way influenced by the aforementioned organization. For inquiries, please visit our Partnership and Advertisements page.