Pen Addict blogger Brad Dowdy is making a pen case!

/ Andy Welfle / Leave a comment

My internet-friend and inky colleague Brad Dowdy of The Pen Addict blog and podcast just announced something really, really exciting — In September, he’s launching a Kickstarter for a pen case!

Nock Co. prototype. Image from <a href="http://nockco.com/blog/">the Nock Co. blog</a>.

Nock Co. prototype. Image from the Nock Co. blog. Click the image to visit Nock Co.’s website.

Teaming up with Jeffrey Bruckwi, a tailor who specialized in sewing bags, they’re creating Nock Co., a company specializing in little pen/notebook holders that fold up into a bag! This is great for those who — like me — travel with several different writing instruments to use in case the situation or my mood changes.

One request, Brad: any chance there might be one for wooden pencils in the future? The sleeves would have to be slightly taller and skinnier, and the bottom might need to be a bit stiffer to prevent bending and breaking of the pencil tip.

In any case, this is very exciting, and I can’t wait to pledge once the Kickstarter launches! Everyone congratulate Brad and Jeffrey over at The Pen Addict!

Co-founder of Moleskine discusses her productivity habits on Lifehacker

/ Andy Welfle / Leave a comment

Maria Segrebondi of Moleskine

I love it when worlds collide. I am a big fan of Lifehacker’s “This is How I Work” series, and I love Moleskine notebooks. So when the co-founder of Moleskine (and currently the “VP of Brand Equity and Communications”), Maria Sebregondi, spoke at length about how she stays organized, what tools she uses, and how she bridges the analog/digital gap in her workday, I was fascinated.

Although this doesn’t really have any mentions of pencils (it’s clear Sebregondi is a pen fan, but I won’t hold that against her), Moleskines and pencils go very well together, so this might be relevant to your interests as well.

When she was asked about gadgets she couldn’t live without, I especially loved her answer. She speaks of an “analog cloud”:

I like to think of my bag as an analog cloud. It follows me wherever I go and carries my most important objects—identity markers that anchor me to the real world, while my phone connects me to the digital cloud through the computer files, emails, and megabytes it stores. [Link]

While I don’t necessarily carry around as much stuff as she does (the contents of her bag are impressive — and makes my shoulder ache just looking at it), I understand what she’s saying. Though I use my iPhone and laptop all the time, with instant access to my files, it’s fulfilling to just bring a pencil and a notebook somewhere with me (though with me it’s often a Field Notes book rather than a Moleskine cahier). She’s right — it anchors me to the here and now. I know exactly where that data lies, and I know that, save for a fire or rainstorm, it suffers zero percent downtime.

 

A Palomino Blackwing Pearl review

/ Andy Welfle / 9 Comments

I’ve been a bad pencil blogger, folks.

Pencils.com introduced the Blackwing Pearl back in early May — more than two months ago. I posted two different preview articles about them then, but have been silent since.

It’s not through lack of interest. I’ve used the Pearl almost exclusively since then, switching away to a different Blackwing or a Golden Bear just to compare and contrast.

Box of Palomino Pearl pencils by Pencils.com

I’ve gone through three pencils, and I finally think I’m ready for a review.

Aesthetics

I have to admit, the Blackwing Pearl is gorgeous.

The owner of a local winery (and a client of my employer) took notice of this pencil and bought several dozen to use in the wine tasting room. It compliments the minimalist style of the facility, and a good friend of mine who works there tells me they are running out — patrons keep taking them!

Two-EEs Winery bought a bunch of these pencils because of their style.

Two-EEs Winery bought a bunch of these pencils because of their style.

Visually, this is a logical follow up to the PB Classic and the PB 602 — the pearlescent lustre (that’s right, I spelled that like a British person) looks really nice next to the grey sharkskin of a 602, which sets off the matte black of the original PB.

The Palomino Blackwing family

You can tell which of the Blackwings is most loved in my arsenal.

I have a little bit of an OCD eye twitch that goes off when I think about how, from darkest to lightest, the color of the barrel is:

  • PB Classic
  • PB 602
  • PB Pearl

Yet, from darkest to lightest, the marking of the graphite is:

  • PB Classic
  • PB Pearl
  • PB 602

One thing I got wrong in my (otherwise amazing) mockup of the Pearl was the words stamped on the side. Rather than gold foil, it’s stamped with black, which provides a strong contrast to the barrel paint. And, it matches the black eraser, which brings a little continuity. It’s the little things; I love that.

The barrel of the Palomino Blackwing Pearl

The element that feels out of place, though, is the brass ferrule. I think a steel one would look better, and make the barrel look more pearly. The ferrule here isn’t too gold, though — it’s more subtle, so it still looks really, really good.

Performance

The Palomino Blackwing Pearl writing test against its siblings.

Pencils.com refers to the Pearl as “balanced and smooth”, as a medium ground between the soft PB Classic, which is great for sketching, and the harder PB 602, which is best for writing.

I’ll definitely agree with this assessment. It feels like a great balance between the two previous pencils. In fact, I’d say that it tends to run almost as dark as the Classic, but holds a point much longer, close to the 602.

The eraser does leave dust, but it erases pretty clearly.

The eraser is the same as what comes with the 602 — a black, pumice-like “dust free” eraser. It works great (though it’s not dust free), and it looks beautiful; in high-contrast glory with the white barrel.

Conclusion

I’m a big fan. For my purposes, it’s miles ahead of the PB Classic.

My go-to Blackwing of choice is still the 602, however. I’m more than happy to sacrifice a bit of darkness in my markings to keep the tip as sharp as possible for as long as possible. But then again, I use pencils almost exclusively to write. Coworkers who scribble notes as well as sketch have remarked that they love this; it truly is a great balance between the other two.

The Palomino Blackwing Pearl can be purchased from Pencils.com for $19.95 per dozen, or if you’re feeling ambitious, you can get a gross (that’s 144 pencils) for $163.98.

Elsewhere

There’s a few other pencil and scribomechanica bloggers who were on top of reviews. Check out their posts:

Man Finds 15 Years of Ailments Due to Pencil Stuck in Head

/ Andy Welfle / Leave a comment

A friend sent me this article from the Latinos Post, about a man who found he had a 4-inch pencil stub stuck in the back of man’s throat.

[S]urgeons at Aachen University Hospital, the largest hospital in Europe, successfully removed the pencil from the head of the young man, who reportedly recovered successfully from the procedure and left the hospital in only a few days, despite lingering blurry vision. The man cannot remember when or how the writing implement ended up in his head, although he recalls taking a serious fall when he was young and then having a significant nosebleed.
[Link]

Typically, I would say that a nice, freshly sharpened wooden pencil will cure what ails you, but I think this is definitely an exception to that rule.