Keyring in Soft Orange Leather, with Lalex Ball Pen

In Spring 2008, the Carbolic Smoke Ball buying team - Philip Jenks, his wife and three children - holidayed in Southern Italy. One of the reasons we were there was to visit the Lalex leather works at Pastorano, where they cut and manufacture calfskin accessories using traditional techniques.

We watched the leather being dyed in casks, then cut to pattern, then shaped by steam on wooden moulds, and finally stitched together - all by Italian craftsmen and women who took enormous pride in their work.

The result of this visit was that Lalex agreed to make a range of products for Carbolic, each branded with the scales of justice.

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The first design was this keyring, a soft leather pouch which contains a high quality Lalex mini-ballpoint, attached to a smart plated ring.

We liked the idea of the keyring-cum-pen because it just seemed so eminently sensible: two things you don't want to be without – your keys and a pen. When Lalex sent us a prototype, we were bowled over. The pouch is made from soft calfskin, it has an elegant suede inner lining, a deeply satisfying popper, and at 9.5cm long it fits easily into a pocket or handbag, with no sharp edges.

Inside the pouch is a smart Lalex ballpoint – a work of art in itself. With the cap closed, it measures just 8cm. Take the cap off, and screw it on to the other end of the barrel, and it becomes 10.5cm, which is comfortable in the hand. The ballpoint barrel matches the colour of the leather pouch, and, like the pouch, it has an elegant scales of justice on the cap. Exquisite.

If you appreciate good design, and functionality matters as much to you as form, you will be delighted with this keyring. Everything about it is perfect.