The Lepine Indigo is the perfect pen for impressing the proprietor of a pen shop in the French Alps even after botching every other part of the interaction

The pen that makes French people forgive your idiocy

You blew it. YOU BLEW IT. You stupid idiot. What is wrong with you?

You practiced your basic French for months before this trip. You scoped out the shop online. You even psyched yourself up before leaving the hotel so you were prepared to have an awkward interaction where you butchered the French language but got credit for trying. 

And then you got to the shop, chickened out, and spoke in English like the ugly tourist you didn’t want to admit you are. 

Ugh. 

You can try and blame it on the fact that you were tired from the train into Annecy. Or that Grenet Shop had a shockingly deep selection that you were not expecting. Or that another customer brought a poodle into the shop and you got distracted wondering if it is ok to pet other people’s dogs in France.¹ 

Explanations, certainly, but not excuses. 

But that’s not the worst part. 

The worst part is that you got overwhelmed and, in a panic, bought a pencil.

A PENCIL. 

Was it a curiously-designed clutch pencil? Yes. Did the proprietor complement it? Yes. Was it still the equivalent of going on a private tasting tour of the Macallan distillery and asking the master distiller if they had any ginger ale? Also yes. 

You got lucky, though. Because you had one step left in the interaction: to pay. And when the proprietor gave you the credit card receipt with a look of what could only be described as kind-hearted pity, you declined his pen and produced an Indigo from Jean-Pierre Lepine. 

“Ah, you have a Lepine!” he exclaimed with surprise—and you were immediately grateful that he did, because you thought it was pronounced Luh-pawn and not Luh-peen and thus you were saved one more small humiliation. 

“I do,” you said as you signed the receipt, and he gave you a nod of respect. You nodded in return and left, feeling redeemed for the moment.

Merci, Monsieur Lepine.

The Indigo is the perfect pen for when you want to impress the proprietor of a pen shop in the French Alps but have punishing social anxiety. Made in Lepine’s workshop in the Upper Jura region of France, its distinctive shape and clip are instantly recognizable among pen connoisseurs as belonging to this most French of French pen brands. Crafted of cellulose acetate and trimmed with nickel-plated brass, you will find the quiet strength of this small pen more than compensates for the crippling insecurities of your neurotic inner life.

The Indigo is available in both full-size and pocket versions; the pocket version, shown here, extends to a size comfortable for longer writing sessions by posting the threaded cap. Its compact, durable construction makes it the perfect way to be prepared for an interaction with someone you have never met before and will never meet again but nonetheless need to impress with your knowledge of pens because you are an endless feast of doubt and self-loathing.

The Indigo comes in both rollerball and fountain versions; the fountain pen nib is steel and features a custom Lepine design, packing a truly impressive amount of detail into the small space. 

The rollerball version uses a Schmidt Mini 8126 refill; the fountain pen uses a standard international short cartridge. The versions are sold separately, but the rollerball and fountain sections are interchangeable and if you have sufficient charm (or awkwardness) you might be able to convince a retailer into selling you a spare section rather than two separate pens.²

If you pursue this route, note that you would need to purchase the complete rollerball pen and then the fountain pen section, as the body of the rollerball pen contains the spring needed to hold the rollerball refill in place.³

Also note that, if you choose to use the fountain pen section with the rollerball body, the rollerball spring puts a very slight amount of pressure on the ink cartridge that may cause you to obsessively fear that it will explosively rupture in your pocket in a public situation and your pants will be full of ink and some teenager will make a viral TikTok showing how it looked like you wet yourself in Poussière de Lune and then you will be forever known as Purple Pee Pants Fail Guy and no one will feel bad for you because it’s your own fault for being too cheap to buy two separate pens.

Although this scenario is unlikely because of how physics works, we recommend buying separate rollerball and fountain versions of the Indigo to be safe, just as they come from Monsieur Lepine.

In sum, the Jean-Pierre Lepine Indigo is a pen that you will find as pleasurable to use as it is to carry. There are many pocket pens on the market, of course, but the satisfying heft of the Indigo in your pocket acts as a constant reminder that everything is OK—because, no matter how much you are a bottomless pit of need that requires constant validation in every other aspect of your life, you at least know that you will always be prepared to prove that you possess an unusual knowledge of fine writing implements to the French.

The Jean-Pierre Lepine Indigo is available at Papier Plume in the US and basically everywhere in France.

Your Turn: Discussion Questions

Man, it sounds like you’re going through some stuff. Have you tried journaling? Maybe therapy? I hear those apps are good.

Have you been to Papier Plume? If so, on a scale of 1-10, how much anxiety did you have about botching the pronunciation of the name?

What pen brand do you think fulfills this same purpose, but for Italy?

1. No, it is not.

2. The pen shown was purchased at Papier Plume in person and they were accommodating, but that was years ago so no guarantees.

3. Alternatively, you could buy the complete fountain pen and then try to find a very tiny spring, which avoids the Purple Pee Pants problem discussed in the next paragraph.