For our second live-streaming episode, we are finally tackling colored pencils with special guest Ana Reinert, Chair of The Well-Appointed Desk. Ana shares her expertise, and Andy and Johnny gawk in awe. We talk about the latest Blackwing Volumes edition, the 211.
Read MoreEpisode 36: The Steinbeck Stage (or, Fresh Points of Bel Aire, Part 3)
It’s that time of year again, when the air smells like pencils, PBJ and school bus vinyl. We are back from nearly a month Off the Air, since we took turns being insanely busy at the end of August. Join us as fight against Big Ink, talk about the latest Target-exclusive Ticonderogas, delicious spirits and which pencils we have in our paws tonight.
Read MoreEpisode 28: Clips, Tacks and Kraft Paperbacks
Tonight, Tim, Johnny and Andy are joined by Bryan Bedell, from Field Notes HQ. You might recognize Bryan from the amazing videos Field Notes puts out with some of their special editions. In addition to this great guest, your hosts will be briefly discussing our first Erasable Book Club Book, The Perfection of the Paper Clip, by James Ward.
Read MoreEpisode 24: The Big Notebookski
In the fourth and final installment of Erasable’s episodes on paper, Andy, Johnny and Tim explore the virtues of the large-format book. Your fearless hosts tackle over-sized journals, big notepads and even the Master of all notebooks. This is the paper episode to end all paper episodes.
Read MoreEpisode 23: Small M Moleskine
In the second Paper Episode, Andy, Tim and Johnny discuss their favorite moleskin-style notebooks for pencil. While big M Moleskines dominated a decade ago, today there are myriad elastic-closed pocket notebooks from which to choose. The guys also discuss the Pencil of the Week, the Ticonderoga Laddie Tri-Write and share three weeks’ worth of Fresh Points. Beat the winter doldrums with your favorite Graphite Trio!
Read MoreEpisode 21: Bullet (Pencil) in the Blue Sky
In the first episode of 2015, your hosts wax nostalgic about 2014 — the year of the bullet pencil — and also look forward to what the new year holds for pencildom. They discuss their holiday hauls, the new Field Notes Roastery edition and more.
Read MoreEpisode 19: The Prospector General
In this episode, Tim, Johnny and Andy put on their red, white and blue and salute their three favorite pencils which are made in the USA. While American pencil production is nothing like it used to be even a decade ago, there are still a few companies making excellent pencils on our shores. The guys also go discuss their usual Fresh Points and the latest offering from Field Notes, the Ambition Edition.
Read MoreEpisode 18: National Pencil Callus Club
National Novel Writing Month is upon us, and tonight your fearless hosts explore the best writing gear with which to bring forth your 50,000 words before the end of the month and talk about what they use for their projects. As an extra treat, Andy, Johnny and Tim are joined by Gary Varner, longtime Stationery Friend and proprietor of the soon-to-be-open Notegeist — an online shop stocking all manner of writing equipment. They’ll be talking about this episode all month.
Read MoreEpisode 17: C’mon, Baby — Let’s Do The Twist
Tonight, Andy, Johnny and Tim are joined by Jay Smith and Jon Fontane, otherwise known as Huckleberry Woodchuck and Metal Shop CT. Jon and Jay are the creators of our favorite new Kickstarter, the Twist bullet pencil. We also discuss the Pencil of the Week, the Mitsu-bishi Hi-Uni HB. Listen in for our take on this Japanese beauty and for the backstory of the Twist.
Read MoreEpisode 16: The Amazing Erase
The guys are living up to their podcast's name this week, where the main topic is about erasers! Did you know, for example, that "rubber" got its name because of how it can rub out pencil marks? From latex to plastic, from kneadable erasers to, um, bread crumbs, we're talking about our favorites. We also kick off a new feature where we all use the same pencil for a week and see how that goes. This week: The Musgrave Test Scoring 100. Plus, we discuss a new bullet pencil Kickstarter, a new pocket notebook, and more.
Read MoreEpisode 15: The Joke is There is No Joke (with David Rees)
We have hit the guest jackpot this month, as we are joined tonight by the be-smocked Mr. David Rees, of Artisanal Pencil Sharpening and Going Deep with David Rees fame. Tonight Andy, Tim and Johnny gang up on Mr. Rees on his passion for pencil sharpening, sharpeners and his veritable inclination to explore deeply issues as how to sharpen pencils and how to make the perfect cube of ice. We begin, as we always do, with our fresh points and a discussion of Field Notes’ Reticle Graph paper, a Swiss pencil and the generosity of our listeners.
Read MoreEpisode 14: Incense Cedar House Rules
This week, the men are joined by veritable Pencil Royalty: Charles Berolzheimer, or "WoodChuck", CEO of Cal Cedar and Zurückbringer of the Blackwing. We rap about the groovy new Field Notes edition, our beverage and graphite weapons of choice and our Fresh Points. Then we grill Charles about the rebirth of the Blackwing, pencil woods and what would constitute the Ideal Pencil. He gives us his view on the role of social media in the pencil world, and how it launched the online shop that took Pencils.com from an educational resource for teachers and pencil companies alike, to a multi-brand online storefront that launched the Palomino Blackwing.
Read MoreEpisode 13, "Fresh Points of Bel Aire, Part 1"
This week, we have lots of Fresh Points, so we’re skipping the main topic and bringing you a lot of short discussion items! From t-shirts, to stickers, to Word. notebook packs, to back-to-school, we’re on the case. Be sure to check out our TeeSpring campaign to get in on the first-edition Erasable t-shirt before the campaign closes and they’re gone forever! And — guys — we have an amazing September lined up for you. Just you wait.
Read MoreEpisode 12: Full Metal Pencil
The guys interview Jeff Grant, engineer and creator of the Bullet Pencil ST Kickstarter project. He discusses his previous Kickstarter campaigns, explains his inspiration and modern twists on his proffered bullet pencil design, and takes some questions from the peanut gallery. Before that, though, we announce our very first Erasable t-shirt campaign and the winner of the Write Notepads & Co Ledger giveaway!
Read MoreEpisode 11: Ain't Nothing but an HB Thing
The Erasable Posse is joined tonight by the Master of All Things Ink, Mr. Brad Dowdy, the Pen Addict. The men discuss excellent new stationery items, how Pen People might enjoy the wonderful and magical world of pencils, and pose some listener questions to Grand Master Ink in the name of the Graphite Brethren. We also have a giveaway and, er, some audio hiccups.
Read MoreEpisode 10: The Graphites of Wrath
Today, the hosts got a little extra cray from an additional round of cocktails, after Andy realized he forgot to hit the “Record” button about 40 minutes into the recording. (D'oh!) So, during take two, things just disintegrated. But it’s all good, because we had a very special guest, Ana Reinert from The Well-Appointed Desk with us, who wasn’t afraid to dig in and join us in cocktails. She talks about her blog, her work with Hallmark Cards, and a pencil niche we didn’t know much about — indelible pencils! Plus, we rant about Power Pencils, Word. notebooks and the RoboCop of bullet pencils.
Read MoreEpisode 9: Bullet Pencil with Butterfly Wings
On episode 9 of the The Erasable Podcast, Johnny, Andy, and Tim explore the world of bullet pencils. There’s a lot of “showing off” going on, and the guys wax on the injustice of the demise of the bullet pencil. But, fear not, they also discuss the recent resurgence in the interest and production of these uber-practical writing instruments. Also, the five winners of the Word. notebooks giveaways are announced, and the guys gush over a thoughtful listenership and the podcast’s new Facebook group.
Read MoreEpisode 8: Heroes of Pencildom, Book the First
In which we discuss the first round of Pencil Herodom, heaping praise upon some of the influential pencil-wielding individuals in our lives. We also discuss the excited new Field Notes Brand Arts & Science edition and some other general points of pencilnalia. Finally, the folks at Word. Notebooks have given us five packs of their new Indigo notebooks for a giveaway! Listen to the end to find out how to enter to win yours.
Read MoreEpisode 7: Power to the PPIL
This week, Tim is away, so Andy and Johnny discard him like old pencil shavings and invite Heath Cates, blogger at Pen Paper Ink Letter to join them. They discuss Heath’s start as a stationery blogger, and #PencilWeek, a 7-day long pencil-centric series on his blog (where Johnny and Andy guest-blogged!) They discuss some of his favorite pencils, sharpeners, and how they will fit into his workflow.
Read MoreEpisode 6: The Brotherhood of the Traveling Sharpener
What good are pencils which are not sharp? In this episode, Tim, Johnny and Andy tackle the perplexing issue of pencil sharpeners. Our lovely listeners have sharp questions, and we have pointed answers. We discuss some aspects of pencil sharpeners to watch out for, the pros and cons of the KUM Longpoint sharpener, and some of our favorite sharpeners. And Johnny and Tim each order a KUM brass wedge, LIVE! Finally, things just degenerate into a discussion about Alvin and the Chipmunks, because we put the episode out of its misery.
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