(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- Objects of obsession tend to be flashy—watches, jewelry, cars—but the humble pencil is not immune to fetishization. Caroline Weaver, owner of CW Pencil Enterprise and author of Pencils You Should Know (Chronicle Books, $16.95), credits their sensory appeal. “A pencil feels different,” she says. “It smells like something. It sounds like something.” Blackwings, a favorite of John Steinbeck and Bugs Bunny creator Chuck Jones, are a case in point: While vintage specimens can go for more than $40 each on EBay, new versions ($25 for a set of 12) are beguiling a generation of contemporary devotees with their pedigree and smooth-as-silk writing quality.
THE COMPETITION
• Pencils have been made under the Viarco banner in Portugal since 1936, and its classic red Desenho 250 with gold foil ($9 for a set of 12) is a “deep cut” among cognoscenti. “They have this audible scratchiness that people really like,” Weaver says.
• Mitsubishi Pencil Co.'s Kohitsu Shosha sells for $8. “People who love them hoard them,” says Weaver. They're graded 10B, which indicates a wide core of the softest grade of lead available—more than 90% graphite.
• Most quality pencils are produced from California incense cedar, but Switzerland manufacturer Caran d'Ache makes its Swiss Wood pairing out of beech and pine ($26). The sharpened tip of the beech pencil, Weaver says, “smells like brown sugar.”
THE CASE
Since it was restarted in 2010 by California Cedar Products Co., a major wood supplier to the pencil industry, Blackwing has made deep inroads in the arts and design communities. That's largely thanks to its Volumes limited-edition series, which is also available by quarterly subscription. The most recent (pictured), a tribute to Bauhaus design, comes with the brand's rectangular, replaceable eraser. It uses a soft graphite ideally suited to sketching, but it will give your handwriting a lift, too, whether you're churning out the next Grapes of Wrath or scribbling a reminder to buy actual grapes at the supermarket. $25 for a set of 12
To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Gaddy at jgaddy@bloomberg.net
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