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Tibaldi Impero Celluloid and Its Imitaors Tibaldi Impero celluloid is regarded by many pen collectors as the most beautiful material ever used for fountain pens. OMAS Arco Bronze may be the only other material in its class. Although the original Tibaldi company has been out of business for some years, rods of the Impero material have been somewhat available until relatively recently. The unavailability of genuine Impero rods may be why some resins that more or less explicitly emulate Impero celluloid’s appearance have appeared in several pen makers lines. I have a couple in my collection, and I will share photos comparing them with the real thing. The first of these to come to my attention was the “Blue Sorrento” resin used by Leonardo Officina Italiana in one of their Momento Zero issues. Leonardo did not promote this as resembling Impero, but the material reminded my of Impero, although it was more blue and a lot less black. The second was a Carina 14 from Atelier Lusso (Eric Sands) in the very attractive “Faux Tibaldi” resin cast by Jonathan Brooks. Although that material had some sparkly bits, it did have more of the Impero “feel” than the Italian resin used by Leonardo. Most recently, Brian Gray, owner of the Edison Pen Company, announced a new material in their “Production” Collier series, carried by their dealers. Brian called the material “Nighthawk.” He explicitly compared and contrasted this material to Tibaldi Impero.I found the photos most attractive and ordered a Collier in this material. When I put it side-by-side with my Leonardo Momento Zero Blue Sorrento, I discovered the two pens were made in the exact same material. The general feel of both Brooks’ Faux Tibaldi” and the Italian resin used by Leonardo and Edison are similar. Putting them next to each other, you see their differences quite clearly. I hope you find the photos interesting. Top to bottom :Lusso Pens Carina 14, Edison Pen Company Collier, Leonardo Momento Zero, Stipula for Mercury (a LE of 50 started by Tibaldi itself but completed by Stipula after Tibaldi's demise.) All these pens have italic nibs are a pleasure to write with, but that's another story for another day. David

I've been fortunate enough to get my hands on some rods of the splendid Tibaldi Impero Celluloid. It took 5 months and filing a PayPal claim before I was actually able to receive the material I'd paid for. When it finally arrived, I couldn't resist taking time the very next day to make a pen for myself. I chose a Medium Idyll, clipless, with a black Japanese ebonite section so I wouldn't risk staining this lovely celluloid. I filled it up with Sailor Yama-Dori, and it has quickly become my personal favorite pen. (Edited to correct spelling.)

http://i.imgur.com/Rztd5EX.jpg My Scriptorium custom arrived yesterday! I was at school when it arrived and then had work immediately after, so it was past midnight when I could finally ink it up. It's beautiful! The camphor smell is just beguiling. The pen has a sterling silver roll-stop, which Renee commissioned from her silversmith. I ordered the pen with two nibs, a fine and a medium - both are rhodium-plated 18kt gold. You can see the Scriptorium "S" shield logo engraved on the nib. Being celluloid, it could possibly stain. I ordered a spare black ebonite section, to prepare for that possibility. I could not find any instances of the Tibaldi Impero celluloid staining, but it's a possibility and I figured a spare section was a good idea. http://i.imgur.com/UJxnbon.jpg It's really hard to capture the depth of the material. This photo is taken with as much focus as I could get with my shaky hands. I had asked for a pen in the flat-top Romillo style with a circular roll-stop. This was a custom order but Renee liked the model and added it to her lineup under the name Aeterna, which means "everlasting, eternal" in Latin. This is a medium-size pen on her pen dimensions chart. Renee did a fantastic job. I've been fortunate enough to own custom pens by some of the other pen craftsman and Renee's craftsmanship definitely holds its own. http://i.imgur.com/lP9TXFw.jpg This one is taken with HDR on. As you turn the pen in you hands, light plays inside the chipped ice pattern with deep blue veins and it's just stunning. I've so far just used the medium nib and inked it up with Diamine Damson. It's a wonderfully smooth writer! http://i.imgur.com/FkpI5dJ.jpg Here's the Aeterna compared to a few other pens I had close by. From left: Hakumin/Edison Pearl, Shawn Newton custom, Romillo Eo #9, Scriptorium Aeterna (medium-size), and Eboya Kyouka (medium-size). I'll do an in-depth review when I've had some more time to use it.