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Omas “The Cinema” in grey celluloid I found this piece towards the end of the year in a frantic search for ever declining Omas stock on eBay. I got it at a great price too, so was a little apprehensive at first as to the condition of the pen. The Omas “the Cinema” pen arrived in a somewhat unobtrusive 80’s looking plastic box, but when I opened the lid…bam! What a celluloid this is! I haven’t heard much talk about the grey celluloid in general, let alone the Omas Cinema in particular, so really didn’t know what to expect. As mentioned below, I have a number of the arco celluloids that people rave so much about, but I have to say this grey celluloid (what I can only describe as crushed black velvet, but shinier, and more impressive), is spectacular! It has a unique cap band as well with little film cameras and film reels etched onto it, in lieu of the usual greek key design. It sounds weird and blingy but doesn’t look tacky at all. The gold is a bright and shiny contrast to the deep black/grey celluloid body of the pen. Nib: The 18ct gold nib on this Omas Cinema is Fine. However, it is no ordinary Fine. I believe this is not a Bock nib at all but one of the Omas nibs made in- house. It looks fantastic and is a real joy to write with. I don’t know how, but it just feels like I’m writing with pure gold. Has a lovely ebonite feed too. Verdict: So sad Omas are out of business- but so glad I managed to grab this pen. I’d give the Omas “The Cinema” 5*…and an oscar too! Photos: Here it is taking centre stage, with my new Omas Princess and my trusty favourite, arco-verde Paragon… Finally, all the Omas celluloid’s together…

Omas Bologne in Burkina celluloid This is the last of the three Omas celluloid fountain pens I managed to grab in a frenzy towards the end of 2016. I had been labouring under a self-imposed fountain pen-buying ban since the Summer, when I had taken steps to reduce and consolidate my collection. That consolidation process resulted on a focus on Italian and Japanese fountain pens, but mainly Italian fountain pens, and mainly Omas fountain pens. The “Bologne” from Omas is a large fountain pen with a piston- filling mechanism like the other high- end models. However I believe it is less favoured among Omas collectors, as within the Bologne range exist a number of cheaper resin fountain pens with a cartridge- converter filling mechanism, some of which are in rather garish colours. I know these models are popular with some enthusiasts, though they never really appealed to me. This Burkina celluloid model on the other hand, together with its Lucens counterpart, are very appealing. Like the Lucens, it has a sterling silver section (a no-no for some, not a issue for me), a nice balance, and is surprisingly light weight, without feeling cheap. Unlike the Lucens design it doesn’t have the Omas “O” logo on the finial. It also does away with the thick greek key design band in favour of a thinner sterling silver band with Omas engraved on the front side, and Italy on the reverse. A smaller portion of the greek key design is engraved in between. I believe this cap band design is also used in the 360 Burkina model, which looks spectacular. The “Burkina” celluloid obviously takes its inspiration from African print design. A vibrant yellow, with black square dots and long black strips darting in and out of the golden celluloid. It looks like pure sunshine. Very unique indeed. I like it. Nib: As with the Omas Cinema, the Omas Burkina Bologne has a Medium nib. It’s a Bock medium, but is smooth and wet enough and is also nice to write with straight out of the box. It is also one of the larger nibs, with ebonite feed as standard, and rhodium plated to match the cap band and clip. Verdict: A bright, sunny addition to my Omas collection. Photos: I found it difficult to capture the bright golden yellow of the celluloid, but hopefully these pics will give some idea... Not the best pic but shows the celluloid at the finial and some of the cap band... Here it is pictured with my Hobonichi Techo Knit Up! and a writing sample using Montblanc's similarly sunny "Golden Yellow" ink, which I don't get nearly enough use out of...

Omas Princess, Blue- Royale celluloid Another quick & picture heavy post! I found this piece towards the end of the year in a frantic search for ever declining Omas stock. I hadn’t had the blue-royale celluloid on my radar at all, favouring the more obvious arco-bronze and arco-verde’s, but I found this Omas Princess at a decent price (well, decent given the stratospheric rise of Omas over the past 12 months since closing business!) on eBay. It has an old- school vintage look with a blue cotton tassle (tassie?) attached to the finial. It is a very small light-weight fountain pen, with the typical piston- filling mechanism. It isn’t a design I would normally go for with more modern pens, but I have bought a few vintage pens with a similar look in the past. As for the celluloid, blue isn’t really my favourite colour, except for the Ao-tamenuri of Nakaya, but due to aging(!) exposure to light (oxidation? I was never good at science…) it has turned a kind of purpley- blue. Nib: This Medium 18ct gold nib is smoooooth! Has a nice juicy 8/10 ink flow and is just a joy to write with. I think was one of the in- house Omas made before they started using Bock nibs. It’s a lot smaller than the nib on my Paragon, but still, wonderful to write with. Verdict: A great little pen for the price, adds a nice variety to my Omas celluloid collection. Photos: This photo doesn’t show the colour but gives some idea of the depth of celluloid… This photo is a somewhat exaggerated representation of the blue/ purple colour, without demonstrating any of the depth or shininess of the celluloid material… Last attempt…I think this is the most accurate representation of the blue-royale celluloid.