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Category Archives: Writing Tools

Sardines (page markers/paper clips)

words and images Posted on August 12, 2022 by dlschirfAugust 13, 2022

I can’t recall where I heard of sardines as page markers and/or paper clips, but as I can’t eat sardines and do love office supplies, I thought I’d look for some. Both of these are available from Amazon.

The page markers have the more clever marketing. You can see a variety of colorfully patterned sardines here. Coincidentally, I found a couple of items at the Morton Arboretum gift shop that turned out to be from the same company.

I like the colors and the shape, but I’ve already bent the tail of one with a skeleton design. They’re thin and lightweight (paper) and can’t be tossed into a bag (which isn’t what I did).

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IMG_3258

The sardine paper clips are more basic and less colorful, but I’m guessing the tin is more true to the shape and feel of a real sardine tin. When I looked up that link, I found I’d seen that company’s kitchen products on Amazon and even have at least one of them: Splatypus, a duck-billed spatula (well, I have two).

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Posted in Blog, Writing Tools | Tagged writing tools | Leave a reply

Pencil puzzle

words and images Posted on February 15, 2011 by dlschirfFebruary 10, 2019
Pencil with IBEW clip

This ordinary Office Depot pencil I found in the hallway outside my apartment struck me as odd. I couldn’t picture the academic and professional denizens of my building using a pencil clip or belonging to a union. You’ll note, too, that the point has been sharpened with a pen knife or the like, not a conventional school or office sharpener. This is the tool of a working man, not of a writer, artist, student, or dilettante. This is a pencil that has more important things to do than languish on a desk or in a backpack. This is a pencil with places to go, measures to mark, things to do every day. I wondered.

Working man's pencil point

When I stopped wondering, I realized it must have been dropped by one of the contractors installing The Flamingo’s new fire system. I will leave it with the manager in the hope that it will find its way to useful employment again.

Addition: See Michael Leddy’s post about the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers logo.

Posted in Blog, Writing Tools | Tagged pencil, photo, writing tools | 4 Replies

Get your peanuts here!

words and images Posted on May 4, 2010 by dlschirfJune 2, 2021

Some might think it would take a 3 mile pencil to write one of my longer blog posts. Meanwhile, the peanut erasers turned up tonight in a search of my stash.

WritersBlok Bamboo and 3 mile pencil
Posted in Blog, Writing Tools | Tagged pencil, writing tools | 2 Replies

WRITERSBLOK

words and images Posted on April 15, 2010 by dlschirfJanuary 5, 2023
Writersblok
WRITERSBLOK

Small notebook
96 blank pages (8 perforated sheets)
Made with bamboo paper (80 GSM)
ISBN 978-1-936077-03-8
4-pack for $5.99 at Blick Art (downtown Chicago)
2% of sales from WRITERSBLOK goes to helping kids to learn to read and write
Distributed by KIKKERLAND DESIGN, INC. (www.kikkerland.com)

Writing is good exercise. It’s good for your mind in the same way that riding a bike is good for your legs. WRITERSBLOK is a series of notebooks and stationery products aimed at encouraging the activity of writing.


2% of sales from WRITERSBLOK goes to literacy-related programs around the country. One place we support is 826NYC here in New York City. It’s a non-profit organization helping students ages 6–18 with their creative and expository writing skills. Thanks for helping.


Write on.

Posted in Blog, Writing Tools | Tagged writing tools | Leave a reply

In today’s mailbag

Rhodia and Quo Vadis

I found a Quo Vadis Textagenda daily planner, a Rhodia No. 14 pad, a teeny Rhodia No. 10 pad (I’d heard of it, but assumed it was a myth), and a gorgeous Clairefontaine notebook with a textured red cover, all courtesy of Exaclair, Inc. Vice President of Marketing Karen Doherty. Although I’m not an expert, and I’m also terrible at keeping a schedule, I’m going to break the Textagenda in at work over the next couple of weeks and write a review. Stay tuned.

September 29, 2009 by dlschirf Posted in Blog, Writing Tools Tagged photo, writing tools 1 Reply

O’BON eco-friendly pencils, paper, and stuff

words and images Posted on August 21, 2009 by dlschirfJanuary 5, 2023
O'BON
O’BON

Here’s one more post in pencils and things mode — if you’re not aware of O’BON, purveyors of colorful graphite and colored pencils made from newspaper, as well as other writing-related items, check them out. Here are the O’BON Wildlife and O’BONanza pencil series with an O’BONanza kiwi notebook made with bagasse (sugar-cane paper). The 2B pencils write well and are beautiful to hold and look at, plus they’re very easy to sharpen. The bagasse notebooks are smooth and lightweight, and may even serve as a conversation starter when you write at your favorite café or teahouse.

Posted in Blog, Writing Tools | Tagged pencil, photo, writing tools | 2 Replies

Looney Tunes and fuzzy pencil love

words and images Posted on August 20, 2009 by dlschirfJanuary 5, 2023
Colorful and fuzzy lead pencils

Yes, I do have more pencils than clothes, or brains for that matter. Here are the latest. I’m insane.

Posted in Blog, Writing Tools | Tagged pencil, photo, writing tools | 7 Replies

Why the pencil?

words and images Posted on March 29, 2009 by dlschirfAugust 18, 2018

I wrote this around October 8, 2007, and completely forgot about it, apparently.

To write is to put clues about your mind, heart, and soul on paper or similar medium, to share yourself with the present and future through the unique combination of words and handwriting.
 
The act of writing is a sensual experience; the smoothness of the pen or pencil’s glide across the page and the appearance of letters that form words that form sentences can be intensely satisfying, while any scratchiness of graphite, point, or nib offends the senses.
 
Writing is a form of magic that connects our brains and hands in a way that typing cannot equal. When we type, at least part of our brain is unconsciously distracted by the mechanics of the action. “Where’s the backspace key?” “How do I get an umlaut?” “How do I magnify the page view?” Using the combination of hardware and software disrupts the flow of thoughts in a way that a pencil doesn’t. It may need sharpened once in a while, but we can rotate it to obtain the best point without giving it a thought.
 
There is also the question of where to write. You can take a notebook computer almost anywhere if you don’t mind carrying the weight, straining to see the screen in the glare of daylight, wondering how long the battery will last, and worrying that it may rain. It’s easier — and lighter — to pack a pencil, eraser, sharpener, and small notebook. (You can even find a waterproof version if you don’t want to be deterred by the rain.) Whether you find your intellectual and creative inspiration at a library, cafe, park, forest glen, or beach, the pencil is always ready to channel your thoughts, ideas, and feelings.
 
Like the computer with its “Delete” key, the pencil is forgiving. A good pencil writes darkly without smudging, and a good eraser allows you to tweak your words as much as you like without making a mess. When your pencil point no longer suits you, you can sharpen it to your own personal taste.
 
Just as you can choose “skins” for your computer applications to customize their look and feel, you can choose pencils whose appearance appeals to your taste and makes a statement about you. They can be round, hexagonal, or triangular, or flat in the case of carpenter pencils. They can be thin, regular, or large, especially for children. Pencils can come in virtually any color or pattern conceivable, including natural wood. Some are adorned with cartoon characters, while others sport animal patterns — striped like snakes, spotted like leopards, or dotted with the “eyes” of a peacock’s tail. Others are painted a signature color, such as Rhodia orange, while some, like the Faber-Castell Grip 2001, are metallic. There is, of course, always yellow, the established standard if you don’t want to stand out in the crowd.
 
The wood, eraser, and ferrule offer you other opportunities to show off your preferences and personality. The unusual black wood of the Rhodia and Ticonderoga Noir are sure to attract attention, while the distinctive painted brass ferrule of the Mongol indicates simple elegance. Erasers can sport interesting colors as well. The Rhodia and Ticonderoga Noir feature black erasers, while the Helix Oxford and Musgrave Natural are topped with white. Of course, many art and European pencils dispense with the ferrule and eraser, an option you may prefer for its clean lines and style.
 
The Faber-Castell Grip 2001 comes with its own grip in the form of raised dots along the sides of the triangular barrel. For other pencils, you can go without a grip, or you can choose one that suits your fingers — triangular, round, edged, or ergonomic like the Stetro. Some are hard and solid, while others are a soft gel. Some grips even double as an eraser.
 
Erasers come in a variety of sizes, shapes, materials, and colors. Those designed for children (and the young at heart) tend to be playfully colored and/or patterned, for example, Papermate’s Expressions line, while pink and white seem to be the standard for adults. Materials include pumice, vinyl, and plastic, among others. Practical shapes include rectangles, squares, and triangles, but there are novelty erasers that emulate everything from food to sea life. Some are designed to be collected as much as used. Yikes, a line of pencils and erasers designed in the 1990s for schoolchildren, is remembered nostalgically by young adults for their cool appearance that separated them from ordinary pencils and erasers. Some teachers even banned Yikes as a classroom distraction!

For the writer or artist, society’s observers of life as it happens, nothing compares to capturing the moment with jotted notes or a quick sketch. Whether for writing or drawing, completing a crossword or sudoku puzzle, or marking up papers or carpenter’s wood, the pencil is not only a useful tool, but a statement about who you are and your tastes. If you see someone on the bus working the New York Times crossword with a generic office supply store pencil, you can guess that this is a utilitarian person willing to use what comes to hand. If, however, you spot someone wielding a Palomino, Tombow, or Faber-Castell, then you’ve seen an individual willing to search for a quality tool of the trade, the low-tech equivalent of the best, fastest computer processor.

Jeep lovers have the “Jeep wave,” given to anyone passing by in a Jeep as an acknowledgment of camaraderie and shared interest. Perhaps pencil aficionados need a nonthreatening equivalent when we see someone who takes pencils as seriously as we do. What might that be?

Posted in Rumination, Writing Tools | 8 Replies

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