19 Friday Jul 2024
Posted in Pens
Right from the start Venvstas have taken a different view with the design direction of their pens, some times a little controversial as architectural and design directions have been taken rather than looking at usability. Over time the company has learnt and a few years back they launched the second generation of their piston filler pen. Here I get the chance to test it.
Continue reading14 Friday Jul 2023
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Aurora is one of the oldest surviving pen makers in Italy. Founded in Turin in 1889 as an importer of Remington typewriters, come 1919 they started to make fountain pens (history taken from the Aurora website). These days they are probably best known for two related models, the cigar shaped 88 and the flat topped Optima. Many, like this pen, are made using Auroloide, a form of celluloid, which over time has been reformulated to be more stable.
Continue reading17 Friday Dec 2021
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What is better to most petrol heads than one Pininfarina designed car? Two Pininfarina designed cars. Perhaps the same may be the case with the products of their Segno subsidiary and perhaps I should be nervous if they expand their range of fountain pens, for having bought a PF Two on International Fountain Pen Day, come the Black Friday week and a PF One followed its way in to my collection.
Continue reading26 Friday Nov 2021
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fountain pen, Italian, Pininfarina, Pininfarina PF2, Pininfarina Segno PF Two, Pininfarino Segno
It is an often mentioned convention that you can not be considered a true petrol head until you have owned an Alfa Romeo. Now you might be wondering why I have mentioned this and you may also be wondering if this in connection with me having previously described certain Italian fountain makers as being like Italian car manufacturers. Thing is I did own an Alfa, really enjoyed it, and like so many of that brand it was designed by the automotive studio and former coach builder, Pininfarina.
While there have been various high end collaborations over the years, in recent times Pininfarina have expanded out from the automotive world and now have a number of sister companies, one of them concentrating on writing equipment, Pininfarina Segno, working with a number of other Italian design brands.
Continue reading22 Friday Oct 2021
Posted in Pens
Scrittura Bolognese are keen to emphasise that while they have DNA from OMAS they are a new company with new products. After a number of successful years with their first consumer offering, the Feel, rumours started to emerge of a new pen that would again surprise us. In early 2021 the Piuma was launched in four limited edition finishes, offering a deceptively sized pen with some unique elements to the design.
Continue reading24 Friday Sep 2021
Posted in Pens
I would argue that the Homosapiens Oversize is Visconti and Dante Del Vecchio’s signature pen. The looks, the feel, the use of a lava basalt based resin, it all adds up and ‘just works’ both from a tactile and visual perspective. Who would risk playing with a successful formula ….
Continue reading17 Friday Sep 2021
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Bronze Age, fountain pen, homosapiens, Italian, visconti, Visconti Bronze Age, Visconti Homosapiens, visconti oversized
Why, some of you may be thinking, am I reviewing a pen model that’s close to a decade old, in a range that’s even older. The reason being for the last year or two Visconti have been using up the last of their stock of 23k palladium nibs, with 18k in-house ones being gradually rolled out. The loan of this pen has allowed me to compare and contrast old and new.
Continue reading29 Friday May 2020
Posted in Pens
In the last few years Leonardo Officina Italiana (to use their full name) have been building quite a reputation through their Momento Zero, Furore, and Momento Zero Grande models. All are of the same basic design with the differences being in the finials and size. Now in 2020 they have released a new model, the Messenger, with just 366 examples being made in each of five translucent colours.
15 Friday May 2020
When is a Dolcevita not a Dolcevita, when it’s a Frederico, or is it? Towards the end of Delta, in 2014, a range of ‘cut price’ pens was offered through a partner site, Martemodena, both direct from their website and through certain auction platforms. Visually these were very similar to the originals, so how was the price brought down? In the last eight months I’ve been fortunate to pick up the stantuffo (piston filler) version of both the Dolcevita and the Dolcevita Frederico allowing me to compare.
08 Friday May 2020
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There is something about Italian engineering that pulls on the hearts strings and overrides the head when it comes to purchasing. It was Bertone, Farina, or Gandini who came out with the quote that you can either design beautiful cars or you can design reliable cars, but you can’t design both at the same time*. At times it can seem the same in the pen world, but in many respects we are all the better for it, or at least our hearts keep telling us it is so…
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