But in a world bulging with Bic disposables, and stationary superbarns selling shelves and shelves of different pens, markers and pencils, I had to stop and ask - do we really need all these writing implements or would just one do? And which one, I wondered, was going to make the least impact on the planet.
Behold the humble pencil. Wood. Graphite. Clay. And the paint... My research, which as usual consists of a meander through the wonderful Wikipedia, has informed me that the pencil - pretty much as we know it today - was invented by an Italian couple. Tired of scrubbing graphite from their fingers every evening, they decided to encase the graphite rod in a stick of juniper wood. This was slightly refined when the stick was split lengthways and the rod of graphite placed in a channel and the top half of the stick was then glued on top. This is pretty much how a pencil is made today. Graphite is a naturally occurring element. Apparently there is only one source of pure graphite, in England - which during the various Napoleonic wars became a problem for Europe so a bright young officer in Bonaparte's ranks decided to mix powdered graphite with clay and bake it in a kiln. This method is still used today and the ratio of graphite to clay determines the 'hardness' of the lead.
What I love about the pencil, is that once it is finished, there isn't much left of it. The shavings have gone into the compost and the rest of it can as well. Graphite and clay are both occur naturally and wood breaks down as well. I do take issue with the paint on the outside but these days it's not hard to find plain wood pencils.
For the children I get Lyra wooden colour pencils - they hail from Austria or Germany so the air miles are not great (or too great depending how you look at it ;-) and Stockmar (also from Europe) beeswax block crayons. Textas/markers are illegal in our house and I ask that they not be given as gifts. It also won't surprise you that we don't use acrylic paints!
So, for everyday use and for writing, I've embraced the pencil and I keep a small stable of fine coloured markers for writing cards (birthday etc) - trips to Stationary Heaven are few and far between and sadly not as much fun, but I've discovered some gorgeous new shops and now have a fine collection of wooden (no paint) pencils going!
Some famous and dedicated pencil users:
John Steinbeck, Thomas Edison and Vladimir Nabokov.
Happy scribbling!
*Here is the full quote from the play:
True, This! —
Beneath the rule of men entirely great,
The pen is mightier than the sword. Behold
The arch-enchanters wand! — itself a nothing! —
But taking sorcery from the master-hand
To paralyse the Cæsars, and to strike
The loud earth breathless! — Take away the sword —
States can be saved without it!
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