A pen that’s dressed like a pencil

Things have been quiet around this blog for the last couple of years, but it’s not for lack of effort and interest in the pencilsphere.

One big thing that’s happening in my world is that my Erasable Podcast (130 episodes strong!) co-hosts and I are going to be going to the 2020 Baltimore/Washington International Pen Show to do a live episode on Friday, February 28!

Yes, we’re infiltrating the inky enemy and pronouncing our graphite propaganda. It’s been my (admittedly limited) experience that while the majority of pen show attendees don’t give a shake about pencils, there are a small but interested contingent who have just never thought about good-quality pencils. All they need is a little education and encouragement, and we’ll get them well on their way to regular graphite usage.

In order to raise the money to get to Baltimore (I’m flying in from San Francisco, and Tim from East Tennessee), we partnered with our friends at Baron Fig to customize their fantastic (and highly collectible) Squire pens and give it a makeover that’s relevant to our interests.

Introducing the Baron Fig X Erasable Number Two Squire!

The Baron Fig X Erasable Number 2 Squire Pen

This baby has ALL the features:

  • A bright #2-pencil-yellow anodized aluminum body
  • An eraser-pink anodized twist nock at the top.
  • A rollerball refill with a rich blue ink, in tribute to our favorite mass market pens, the blue Bic Cristal: the pencil of pens.

Baron Fig x Erasable Squire - Detail - 01

So here’s the rub: We have to place the order with Baron Fig all at once, so if you’re interested in getting one, you need to order it by this Friday, December 13, 2019 (five days from this posting). We might do it again, but we have no idea!

And for those of you looking for a nice Christmas gift for the pencil lovers in your life, I’m afraid this isn’t going to work for you — we’re not expecting this to be ready until late January.

But otherwise, we’d love your support, and in turn, you get a pen that when you know you must use a pen, you’re still supporting independent pencil media ventures.

Check out the Erasable Shop to buy a Number Two Squire for $60 »

The Pen Type-A

While I love pencils, and use them as much as I can, sometimes you need a good, sturdy ink pen. And I’ve often run into the problem of a disposable pen that has a great ink cartridge and rollerball, but is encased in a crappy barrel.

That’s why I got excited when I surfed The Pen Addict the other day, a great blog I check every day that feels about pens the way I do about pencils.

Apparently there is a pen called the Pilot Hi-Tec-C, a gel pen I haven’t tried (but the Pen Addict really likes!) Unfortunately, the barrel is a bit cheap and plasticky.

There’s a small design firm in Brooklyn called CW&T who found a solution to this problem — they started a Kickstarter projectfor a product called the Pen Type-A, a stainless-steel replacement barrel for the Hi-Tec-C cartridge.

The Pen Type-A

This thing is really beautiful. It’s milled from a single block of stainless steel, and the minimalist barrel fits into a square sheath (that has a ruler on the side!) so well, it almost has a pneumatic sliding effect.

If you pay $50 towards the (fully funded!) Kickstarter project, you’ll get one of these pens, which is a deal, because it’ll retail for $99.

I’ll admit, I’m thinking about it. It’s supporting a small, creative venture, and this thing really is gorgeous.

Check out CW&T’s Kickstarter Project to watch a quick video about why they decided to make this thing. And if you’re on Twitter, go follow Che-Wei Wang, the CW of CW&T: @sayway.

 

 

 

Lego pen actually writes!

Yeah, I know this post is about pens. You should know by now that I don’t stick exclusively to pencils. But this is about something greater than a mere ink transference utensil. It’s about a pen made OUT OF LEGOS.

That’s right. I love me some Legos. I don’t even know how much money my parents spent every year when I was a child to keep me in Legos, but I have a whole bin full of them.

Etsy.com seller derekseiple creates customized Lego pencils that actually write. And for just under $14 per pen, it’s not a terribly high price, either. Though you might be able to go to a Lego store yourself and buy the parts to make your own, you’d have to drill a core and stabilize the reservoir, and you don’t want to do that, do you?

Link to Etsy store. Found via Wired GadgetLab.

Ask Woodclinched: The perfect, minimized desk

A letter came in from one of my many, many adoring fans:

Dear Woodclinched,

My lease is up at the end of the year, and I’m looking to create the perfect office. I can handle the desk, the artwork, and the liquor cart but I’m a little stuck when it comes to my writing utensils and accessories.

Here’s the problem: I have a hard time focusing on getting stuff done. If I know there’s a pencil or notepad I want to use and it’s not right in front of me, I can’t get anything done.

So… If I’m going to outfit my office with one type of pencil, one pen and one notepad/notebook… what do you recommend?

Thanks!

Alex Jonathan
http://www.expeditiousculture.com

A nice, clean desk, via iDesk, a great Tumblr about Apple-accessorized desks and offices. Yes, I know that I am an Apple fanboy.

Excellent question, Alex! I completely understand your quest. I’ve been trying for years to minimize my desk. I am, by nature, a cluttered person. As much as I strive for a “less is more” mantra, I have realized that more often than not, I’m going to trend to “more is more”.

That being said, I have learned to pair things down to a few essentials. And when it comes to my writing paraphernalia, I’ve thought a lot about it. More than most sane people should. Read on for an exhaustive list. Continue reading