This post is a slight segue from my normal 'pencil specific' posts, towards a 'pencil-adjacent' post. I don't intend on doing this too often, however, should I come across something manufactured and/or marketed by any of my favourite pencil makers, it might find its way onto this blog. I have highlighted my penchant for all... Continue Reading →

From what I can gather, Blaisdell's involvement in London around the turn of the century was short and not particularly sweet. What makes this an interesting proposition for collectors therefore is the short amount of time the London-marked pencils were produced. What makes this even more interesting for a pencil collector, who happens to be... Continue Reading →

I've seen a selection of recurring markings on pencils, but one that always interested me was the 'S [Crown] O' stamping on a number of older, (mainly) British pencils. If you collect older pencils you've almost certainly come across it before. The stamp tends to sit alongside a code, for example, '48-75' on the pencil... Continue Reading →

I've always enjoyed collecting F Chambers pencils and in fact some of those pencils probably deserve a post of their own.  Many of their pencils had strange model names such as the 'WENO' and "IONA" below. I'm not sure where the names stemmed from, but according to an advertisement I've seen, the 'WENO' was for... Continue Reading →

I have a soft spot for Wolff's pencils, the pre-Royal Sovereign manufacturer who was based in London. One pencil from their lineup has always been of particular interest to me - The "J" Pencil.  My curiosity stemmed from the reading the following quotation from 'British Commerce and Industry. The Post-War Transition. 1919-1934', published in 1934... Continue Reading →

The pencil maker 'Derwent' has a particularly rich history (hence the reason they have a pencil museum, I guess) and with that comes with a bunch of name changes.  I'll try not to make this post a company-history lesson, but essentially, before Derwent there was Cumberland, before Cumberland there was Hogarth & Hayes.  There were... Continue Reading →

I don't propose to tell you the history of the American Lead Pencil Co. in this post.  That would be too long, and actually, there are probably (read: definitely) better resources out there to do that.  I do however happen to have some older pencils from the American Lead Pencil Co. in my collection and... Continue Reading →

Staying with British made pencils for my second part of pencils for Calligraphy / lettering, we have the William Mitchell's "Monk" pencil. Similar to the Druid in naming, it appears that that both manufacturers were trying to evoke the same ideas with their marketing. My box came a bit battered, however, with a little glue... Continue Reading →

This is part 1 of a series of 'pencils for calligraphy' posts. I have a few more lined up in draft, but over time, it may expand to 5 or 6 total. I'm sure there are others and so the series does not set out to present an exhaustive list. It's really just pencils that... Continue Reading →

Superbowl season is upon us and once again, my Colts aren't making an appearance... It's a good opportunity to dig out these Faber Castell NFL pencils. I don't collect novelty pencils, but these are a small exception, especially as they are branded Faber Castell. Nice to see older teams like the pre 1988 St. Louis... Continue Reading →