The new Notas de Campo edition, “Paletas”, is good enough to eat. Especially the mango con chamoy one!
The Pencil Primer returns with part two: the case of yonder pencil. We trace the wood itself — from Conté's badass eyepatch to eastern red cedar, California incense cedar, and the creeping basswood era — plus why pencils are yellow (blame a Siberian graphite strike and some questionable 19th-century marketing) and why triangular pencils are weird. But first, the summer releases: Blackwing's birding-themed Volume 458 and Field Notes' melty, paleta-inspired Paletas edition get the full review. Next time: ferrules and erasers. Patreon subscribers at any level can watch the video version.
For this episode, we recorded video, available to Patreon subscribers! If you’re a patron, head over to see our faces and visual examples of many of the things we discuss. And if you’re not a patron, join us at any level and you can see this and other supplemental content at any time!
Show Notes & Links
Blackwing Volume 458 — a tribute to birding: Clark's Grebe, Mallard, Green Jay, and Black Rail gradients (Behind the Design)
How Blackwing Pencils Are Made — the making-of video we kept mentioning (also on YouTube)
Field Notes Paletas — nine popsicle notebooks inspired by Paletería Los Magos in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood
Outshine popsicles — the official popsicle-flavor icebreaker
Nahvalur Original Plus — new sparkly colors (plus mystery jewel-tone demonstrators spotted at the NYC stationery festival)
Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-gaki ink — Andy's persimmon-orange favorite
Stationery Day recaps from Brad Dowdy and friends
Musgrave Tennessee Red — eastern red cedar, clear lacquer, glorious smell
Musgrave Single Barrel 106 — named for Erasable episode 106 with Henry Hulan of Musgrave
Pencils Past and Present — the YouTube channel reviewing the Single Barrel 106 (and lots of vintage pencils)
ForestChoice — the FSC-certified incense cedar standard-bearer
General's Cedar Pointe — naked cedar, as God intended
Koh-i-Noor Hardtmuth — where the yellow pencil (and its complicated marketing history) began
Caran d'Ache Swiss Wood 348 — reportedly discontinued; pour one out (Pen Addict review; Well-Appointed Desk review)
Dixon Tri-Conderoga — Andy's triangular gateway pencil
Ticonderoga Laddie — the bigger, soft-triangle one
Faber-Castell Grip 2001 — triangular, six design awards, formerly bubbly grip dots
Coming in Pencil Primer part 3: ferrules and erasers (the Wopex gets its own appendix)
Join the Erasable Discord (invite in the show notes at erasable.us) and the Facebook group
Support the show and get video episodes: patreon.com/erasable
Your Hosts
Johnny Gamber
Pencil Revolution
@pencilution
Andy Welfle
Woodclinched
@awelfle
Tim Wasem
@TimWasem