The often quoted phrase: "when one door closes another opens" sometimes sounds trite, but here is a case where it is very true. As OMAS, the iconic Italian pen company closed, a new company emerged - Scrittura Bolognese, or SCRIBO. The employees of OMAS had a passion, and were deeply disappointment at the decision made to end the company and sell the brand. Taking this passion forward, the day OMAS ended, SCRIBO started.
I am fortunte to have the opportunity to meet with the Co-Founders of SCRIBO in 2018, 2019 and 2021. Luca is dynamic and full of enthusiasm. As he talked about SCRIBO, the current pens and the pens they are planning to release. I am impressed. Luca is not a dry numbers-based CEO. He is a person with a passion for fountain pens. After the initial meeting I believed he definitely had the energy and vision to make this new company a success. Leana, Co-Founder and CFO if also far from a "numbers" person. She is involved in all aspects of the company has has a strong passion to writing instruments, inks and pens.
Flaminia, the Designer SCRIBO bringa here expertise from the jewelry and pen industry. She also worked with OMAS. I enjoyed my conversations with Flaminia about her values and vision in design and shared some concept drawings of future lines of pens. I like what I saw and look forward to the future lines.
In all may discussions about the pens they create, the attention to detail clearly comes across. SCRIBO has a passion for pens and an appreciation for the important role pens play in our communications. Flaminia talked about her vision for the design of pens. I liked what I heard. She talked about the design of the final pen of being a process of subtraction. That is, eliminate the unnecessary to arrive at a design with the essential elements to the final product. As a photographer, that approach is similar to photography composition. Often the challenge is to eliminate what is not needed in a scene, eliminate what does not support the message the photograph is to communicate.
In my early meetings, Luca explained the thoughts that led to SCRIBO being started. Now, a well established company, he talks about staying true to their values. He talked about the growth of the company in very thoughtful terms. He wants to maintain the product standards that have already been established. It was refreshing to hear that his goal was not to make SCRIBO a "big" company. For him, it is not just about increasing the number of pens produced, or the number of stores that carry the pen. He likes the idea of SCRIBO being a company known for the quality of their pens, not the quantity of pens produced. He explained some of the ideas they are working for in the future, but there was no sense of pressure as to how fast to get there, rather it was to continue with their careful approach to produce pens that support the experience of writing.
In 2021 when we met I had the opportunity to look at the prototypes of pens to be leased this year and early next. SCRIBO works on a general timeline of one year for design to production for their pens. But they also work across a multi-year schedule involving the design of new lines.
SCRIBO initially produced private label pens. The the next venture involved creating SCRIBO’s first Limited and Special Edition Pens. Then SCRIBO worked to develop and produced its flagship regular production pen for the company - The Feel. The Feel was expanded to included limited production of Feel Pens, with a specific theme. These pens are produced in a limited quantity of 219 pens for each colour. Typically the limited production pens sell out rather quickly.
The limited production issues of the Feel fountain pen include:
I am a proud owner of a nu,mber of the Feel fountain pens. A review of the pens is found in the Pens of Note Section.
In May 2021 SCRIBO issued a new line, the Piuma. The pen is designed to be lighter in weight than the Feel.
The pen has an oval shape with two facets. The cap and barrel of the pen are handmade from natural resin. When visiting SCRIBO I was able to hold the body and cap to get a sense of the size of the pen. It is not a pen that I have written with so I can't comment on writing experience. I can say the pen did not feel as differnt in size that I originally though.
In comparison to the Feel, this lighter Piuma ranks as follows:
| PIUMA | FEEL | |
| Length | 144.5 mm | 148 mm |
| Diameter (maximum) | 15.6 mm | 17 mm |
The Piuma uses a cartridge/converter ink filling mechanism, while the Feel used a 1.4 ml piston.
As with the Feel line, each colour is limited to 219 pieces.
In November 2021 SCRIBO a new line, La Dotta.
This pen is similar in size and shape to the Feel except the body is round with no facets. This creates a very smooth shape when the pen is held in the hand. I had the opportunity to write with the La Dotta when I visited SCRIBO in November 2021. I must say I liked the feel of the pen in my hand. It was a pleasure to write I used the pen to make notes as we talked. While the pen is substantially the same size as the Feel, the diameter has a maximum width just a a bit smalled, at 16.75 mm. You will not notice the difference. As with the Feel, the pen uses a 1.42 ml piston fill mechanism.
This pen gives the user a slightly different experience in in the hand, due to the round shape with no facets. The first two models are green tones, the ai Giardini having a beautiful pattern of green and white resin; and the ai Colli having a green and mother-of-pearl tones. The pens a beautiful.
For SCRIBO, it is about the writing experience. The company also has also a line of inks. The ink comes in a stunning glass ink pot. The large ink bottle sits on your desk looking like a classic glass ink well. This is just one more aspect of SCRIBO that sets the company apart from others.
SCRIBO is looking at the experience of writing from different approaches. Of course there is the pen, the need for a quality ink and the experience of writing on fine quality paper. The next aspect that work is underway is to review paper operations to ensure that a good quality paper is available.
SCRIBO – Scrittura Bolognese S.r.l.
studio Via Frassinago 18/2
40123 Bologna – Italy
+39 051 0474806+
ciao@scritturabolognese.com
Luca Baglione, CEO, Co-Founder, Scrittura Bolognese, SCRIBO
Flaminia, Design, Scrittura Bolognese, SCRIBO
SCRIBO The Feel, Blue-Grey
In Spring 2019 SCRIBO issued the Feel Verde Prato and the Feel Verde Bosco. Only 219 pens in each colour were produced. To no surprise the pens quickly sold out.
The Verde Bosco is a deep rich green with light yellow gold trim. The Verde Prato, a lighter colour green with ruthenium trim. Both are stunning and I can say, it took me quite a while at Novelli Pen in Rome to make the decision on which of the greens to select. I selected the Verde Prato. I have information on the pen in my Pens of Note section of the site. The nibs are 18-carat gold available in Extra Fine, Fine, Medium and Broad widths. The Flexible nib is available in 14-carat gold, in the same four sizes. I choose the 18-carot nib in a broad width. What a smooth writing pen.
In Fall 2019 SCRIBO announced the new Grigio Giorno and Grigio Notte Feel pens. Again, the pens have a limited production of 219 pens in each colour. I saw the mother-of-pearl grey in June 2019 when I visited the studio offices in Bologna. A beautiful pen. The Giorno has light-yellow gold trim, the Notte has ultra-black ruthenium trim to bring out the dark tones of the pen. The nibs are 18-carat gold in Extra Fine, Fine, Medium and Broad widths. The Flexible nib is available in 14-carat gold, in the same four sizes.
Since my 2019 visit SCRIBO has continued to issue different models of the FEEL, each with a limited run of 219 pens. This include the FEEL Mediterraneo, FEEL Oceano, FEEL Melograno, FEEL Amarena, FEEL Zucca and the FEEL Foglia.
SCRIBO also release two pens with special purpose. The FEEL A Riveder le Stelle. Ten percent of the revenue from sales of this pen is donated to the Cinteca of Bologna to contribute to the recovery and restoration of the projects of the film restoration and conservation laboratory that is part of the Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna.
The FEEL Togther, now out of stock, fitted with a special nib, the 52 Degree nib with 50% of the profit to the Sant'Orsola Foundation in Bologna to support “più forti INSIEME” fundraising project and fight Covid-19.
