Reddit mentions: The best erasers & correction products

If you're looking at learning drawing, I recommend starting with learning perspective. Start with 1-point perspective and you can advance from there up to 3-point or whatever you think is necessary, but they are all basically the same.

This is a fundamental that you will use with almost all your drawing. There are numerous free tutorials online for you to learn from but it is pretty basic so once you understand the concepts the most important thing is practice.

Once you understand perspective you can draw things like buildings, building interiors, landscapes, cities, etc.

When you want to learn to draw people, one of the best things you can do is get books by masters. Andrew Loomis, Burne Hogarth (Dynamic Figure Drawing, Dynamic Anatomy), George Bridgman (complete guide to drawing from life), each of these guys have several books that are very popular and for good reason, I've listed a few but check out all their books if you get the chance. Use these books to understand proportion of the human body, and learn basic anatomy. Draw the pictures in the book as studies and this will help you understand.

Now for materials what I recommend is a sketch book with decent paper (I'll talk a little more about this in a second) like this one here.

Get a pencil set with different hardnesses like this one (hardness range from 8+h on the hard side to HB which is mid hardness to 9+B on the soft side. The softer the graphite, the darker of a mark it's going to leave. You can generally stick to HB and softer, especially for now. It's best to just use traditional pencils opposed to mechanical pencils unless you're just doing line work.

Get a soft kneaded eraser like this or any other one will work fine

Pencil sharpener any one will do.


Now when you've got your supplies and want to do shading, you want to start with your hard graphite (H) first. You want to work with the "tooth" of the paper, so you want to make sure not to apply too much pressure to the paper with the pencils and the eraser. Be gentle because if you press too hard or are too rough you will crush the tooth of the paper and your graphite will become shiny. If you crush the tooth it will also make erasing very difficult. When you want to make the shadows darker you then use the same pressure but with a softer pencil, working your way up the softness scale until you are happy with your value.

The other thing about paper tooth is that it will let you draw different textures. For example if you start with a hard graphite (H), the texture you draw will be very smooth, like a skin texture or other smooth surface like a window or a counter top. If you start with a very soft graphite (B), the texture you draw will be rough looking like the surface of a rock. I hope this makes sense.

There are lots of free tutorials online. For technique a good one I found that talks about a lot of the things I mentioned is the "5 pencil method" youtube channel. If you watch some of those videos you will understand much better. If you start with these materials and all the resources I've mentioned you will be busy for quite a while.

Try to practice every day even if it's only for 10 minutes. Setting aside the time and putting in the effort to practice is often more difficult and important for your progress than the practice itself.

This is the best advice I can give to you so I hope it helps.

Well, here's a list of items you'll find useful if you decide it's something you might like to pursue.

Round pegbar - get one and tape it to your desk, get another and tape it to your scanner and you'll have a very easy time keeping sheets of paper aligned. Shipping on these is expensive but I couldn't find any other place that sells them. You might be able to 3d print a couple if you have 3d printer access.

Three hole punch - anything that punches holes of the right diameter (1/4 inch) reliably with the same spacing of the pegbar is fine. You probably already have one of these.

Scanner - any scanner that fits letter paper is fine. You probably already have one of these, and if you don't you might be able to use one at a library.

Paper - cheap paper is ideal. This is the cheapest that I know of at $2 for 500 sheets but copy paper isn't hard to find for a reasonable price. Get 2 reams or a big old box. You'll go through it faster than you'd think if you want to make an animation of any meaningful length.

Pencils - It'll be easiest if you have two kinds, but the most important kind is a regular old 2B or 4B pencil. Staedtler Mars Lumographs are the best but really you can use whatever pencil you find around the house, lying on the street, and so on for practice. If you really get into it and you need a lot of pencils, you should get these. The other kind you'll want is a light blue or light green colored pencil. You can use the colored pencil to lay down really rough, quick sketches for each frame and do a refined, accurate drawing for each frame with the regular old pencil. Then, when you scan the frames in color, you can remove the colored pencil marks using a technique similar to this. I'd probably use Blender for this because it's easier to remove the blue lineswith the whole image sequence. If you need help figuring out how to do this efficiently you can PM me and I'll give you a comprehensive tutorial. After the non-photo blue is removed you can take it into OpenToonz or Krita to colorize the animation if you wish.

Erasers - it's very important to have a high-quality eraser! I recommend these. They usually erase very cleanly unless you dug really hard into the paper when drawing.

Book - For animation, start with The Animator's Survival Kit. It's got lots of good information in it. Absolutely essential book. If you can't afford it, you can find illegal copies online.

For drawing instruction, visit /r/artfundamentals and do all of the exercises. It's fine to use pencils for the exercises as long as you use them like you'd use a pigment liner, that is, pressing just hard enough to get a reasonably dark line and correcting mistakes by incorporating them into your drawing, rather than with an eraser. For this reason I recommend getting and using up one pigment liner just so you can get used to how it feels to use them. Then you can do the rest of them with pencils if you want, since you know how to use a pencil like a pigment liner, or you can get an inexpensive fountain pen that will let you refill from fountain pen ink in a bottle, which can be extremely cost-effective as long as you don't get into the habit of buying lots of expensive pens and every ink color under the sun.

All in all, including the book and excluding the items that you probably already have (scanner, 3 hole punch) you're probably looking at around
I feel like I should warn you at this point before you spend any money that you'll need to either have or acquire a pathological tolerance for tedium if you want to be successful at animating and drawing. You'll definitely be going through at least a ream of drawings before you're any good. As long as you're OK with that, go for it.

For two pegbars, two reams of paper, a dozen good pencils, 4 good erasers you're looking at around $60. If you have some of this stuff around the house you might only need the pegbars, which is about $24. In any case I'd encourage you to buy the book I recommended if you can afford it. It's really helpful.

Many of my favorites have been discontinued or changed.

The Koh-i-Noor Rapidomatic was my primary pencil for my first 4 college years. I even bought a red and blue colored versions to put red and blue lead in, which was nice for graphs or occasional emphasis. Lovely pencils made in Japan. However, looking at the Amazon reviews they no longer make these, but instead something with the same name and general look, but using all new parts and process in China. You can taste the sadness in the reviews. It looks like people are happy with the Alvin Draftmatic which looks exactly like the Rapidomatic.

The Pilot Vanishing Point has been discontinued. Sad. My favorite pencil, made in Japan. See reviews on Amazon. I introduced a number of people to this, and many of them started using it as their primary pencil. My manager even questioned why I had spent $200 on pencils, when I explained I was ordering a couple of these for myself, asked around, and 10 others in the office said they wanted one or two as well (after trying mine). No drafting grip, and shorter, but really good weight, good feel, quality, and I could write well with them.

The Uni Kuru Toga is nice, but too lightweight and plastic for my taste. The price is hard to argue with. I wonder if the Roulette model would be better as it sounds like it might weigh more.

Dave's review site recommends the Staedtler 925-25. I've tried the 925-05 which is ok (my 11yo uses it) but not the 925-25.

If you have more money, the Rotring 600 and 800+ come highly recommended (lots of metal, high quality, made in Japan). I have never tried one, but I'll buy a 600 sometime soon.

For erasers, I use Staedtler Mars Plastic. They last forever -- I still have one from 1985 with more than half remaining and it works fine. I only bought more so the family can each have one of their own. My tips are (1) don't get oil on them or the paper, and get it off if you do. This means don't run your finger along the eraser part. It causes smearing. (2) erase flat if you can, to save sharp edges for fine work. If you always use the edges, then you won't have a sharp edge to change φ' to φ in the middle of an equation.

Welcome to the club! Great idea to work on your hand drawing. Sooo many people get good at computer graphics, but good hand graphics set you apart from the crowd and is something employers really look for.

You can go really over board with supplies, but i dont use a ton when i draw. Basic mechanical pencil, engineering scale, circle template, large and small triangles, t-square, fine liners (i use these), eraser (i like the gummy ones) and thats about it that i use regularly. You can buy a ton more if you plan on drafting everything by hand, but while its a great skill to have, general drafting is much easier in CAD. The marker standard where i live is chartpak AD markers. Might want to consider getting a set for a christmas present as they can be pricey.

I am learning a lot from doing the /r/ArtFundamentals lessons. Wish those existed a decade ago. Looking forward to hearing what supplies others recommend.

There's a lot of art pencil sets like this that you can find online or at art specialty stores like Michael's or Hobby Lobby that are good for beginning. Don't worry about the big pencil sets that have every grade available--you really don't need all that right away, and probably wouldn't use most of them anyway.

For pencils, I'd start with just a 2H, an HB or F, a 2B, and maybe a 4B. This gets you a decent range of light to dark. You can add in a layout or black colored pencil for when you want to go really dark.

Find yourself a white eraser or a kneaded eraser, a good sketchbook with 60 or 70lb paper (or copy paper like a printer uses is a super cheap alternative). I'd personally recommend drawing without an eraser at the ready for a while in order to train yourself to learn from any mistakes and to be more economical and thoughtful with your lines among other things.

When you get more confident using those tools, you can add in other pencil grades, blending tools (like a tortillon, stump, or chamois), or even graduate to charcoals.

I hope that helps with getting you going! Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in what we think we need in order to draw that we forget that the most important thing is to grab whatever you have at the ready along with a piece of paper and start drawing.

(Side note: I'm not selling anything and am unaffiliated with the products linked to-- they're just examples.)

I dont do too many field-fixes anymore... Im now in startup land where everything is shiny & new, and we get what we need.

 

My things that were stupid-useful that mostly haven't been listed so far:

Klein Tools electrician scissors - Most useful cutters ever. Take-a-finger-off sharp, cuts though thick cables, the top is great for straining phone / ethernet cable. A cable puller had a set, and he sold me on them in 30 seconds when he raked the wobbly cat5 strands across them, and they were perfectly straight. Would have been worth the $$ at twice the cost.

I replaced my mismatched tools in my bag w/ a iFixit toolkit when I needed to start buying new bits for iPads and the tri-lobes for macs. Ended up being about the same cost as those bits alone, and it had them, and a bunch of other stuff that was better then my cobbled together tools. The screwdriver is far-better made then the little plastic ones I had before. They have a new-toolkit, but I haven't used it.

A roll of Velcro ties Far more useful then zips. Use the scissors above to trim as needed.

Mars-eraser. Great for cleaning toner from printers, and cleaning up corroded connectors (first pass).

Melamine Sponge (aka Magic Eraser) - They clean up things nothing else does like the weird tint that macs wrist guards get from skin oil. Also great for getting toner off of the outside of printers. Also good for cleaning up cherry-coke from a $25k piece of sound gear.

Deoxit - You can use the cheap stuff that was like $5 a can at any automotive parts store, and that will work for most things. This is for more sensitive stuff. I used this repairing contacts in audio-control-surfaces, rebuilding DSLRs, etc. Its for when more then a mars-eraser is needed.

At this point, I've used each pencil on at least one full section of Logic Games. Here's the exhaustive list:

Palomino Blackwing
Palomino Blackwing 602
Palomino Blackwing Pearl
Palomino Golden Bear Blue
Palomino Golden Bear Orange Jumbo #2
Palomino Forest Choice #2

Staedtler Norica
Staedtler Wopex

Mitsubishi 9850 HB
Mitsubishi Hi Uni HB

Dixon Ticonderoga
Dixon Ticonderoga Black
Dixon Tri-Conderoga
My First Ticonderoga

Caran d'Ache Grafwood H
Faber Castell 9000 B
General's Cedar Pointe #333 - 2HB
Musgrave Pencil Co. Test Scoring 100

I went ahead and put stars next to the models that performed best. Each had strengths and weaknesses, though the Mitsubishi Hi Uni HB and Mitsubishi 9850 HB stood out as first and second place finishers respectively.

No matter how well a pencil performed, I found the need to sharpen multiple times per section. All of the pencils chipped or broke at some point: some in ways that unremarkably altered performance, others hindering progress to the extent of chunks of lead flying out. I recommend avoiding this variance altogether by having at least six sharpened pencils prepared for each Logic Games section. Drawing some light squiggles before using the pencils in action can drastically lower the chances of breakage.

As mentioned earlier, I'm happy to give comprehensive reviews of each model or certain individuals if there is any significant interest. I'd like to review a few more models down the road (particularly Towbow pencils) so let me know if you have any particular requests.

I've tested a bunch of erasers as well! Far and away, the best erasers I tested were the Sakura Foam Arch, and the Uni Boxy. These imported models erase quickly and cleanly, even on LSAT-style "tissue paper."

I recommend bringing one of these to the test even if you're pursuing a no-erasing strategy; there's always a chance you mess up a LG diagram and want to start fresh. These erasers will make starting blank a breeze. I also tried cutting my erasers into rectangles that fit into the Blackwing ferrules so I can use them without putting down my pencil.

https://www.amazon.com/Sakura-Evolutional-Erasers-5-Pack-White/dp/B0174KSUVY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1499443427&sr=8-2&keywords=sakura+foam

Here's a link to the Sakura Foam Arch erasers. This pack that Amazon carries contains rather small erasers, so consider getting the larger varieties from JetPens if you intend to use these on the exam.

Now you're talking one of the biggest problems I always had as well! Drawing white hairs/details was easily one of my biggest roadblocks. I tried white pens and such, and personally didn't like it.

I 100% recommend a "Tuff Stuff" eraser stick. The stick itself is no different than any other mechanical eraser, but the eraser itself is a godsend. It is extremely durable and tough. I cut the end of it with scissors to create a sharp edge, and then I use it to eraser white lines into my graphite. It's best used on light graphite to get your white guidelines set, and then you darken the area around after drawing your white lines. Regular erasers sticks are generally no good because they're too soft. They just can't get the sharp, crisp erase lines like the tuff stuff ones do.

Unfortunately they aren't easy to find any more, and can be quite expensive now.

https://www.amazon.ca/Eraser-Refillable-Rubberized-PAP64801-Papermate/dp/B00N6G3Z4I/ref=sr_1_cc_4?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1469119898&sr=1-4-catcorr&keywords=tuff+stuff+eraser

The stick itself I've seen range anywhere from $10-$100.. It's pretty ridiculous, you should definitely look around for awhile before you buy. I bought mine long ago for $8. The refills are what is really important though. The best deal I've found is here for 24 sticks: https://www.amazon.ca/Paper-Eraser-Holder-Refill-64818/dp/B00006IFAZ/ref=sr_1_1?s=office&ie=UTF8&qid=1469120190&sr=1-1&keywords=tuff+stuff+eraser

I couldn't recommend it enough, but again, it's personal preference =].

I'm a composer and have decided to stop using my computer program to compose and arrange. I want to handwrite anything that printed parts aren't required for.

The clarity of my scores have improved a lot from a few simple things:

-Using a ruler

-Using 4b pencil and sharpening it frequently

-Slower, more deliberate hand movements (I'm still impatient though!)

Some challenges I'm having are:

-Hand is too tight and gets tired after just 45 minutes or so

-Erasing accurately without smudging (using this )

-Consistent sizes with note heads, accidentals, and stem lengths

I have no idea if this is an appropriate post, but I love r/penmanship. I thought some of you guys might also be musicians and could offer some help. I don't consider my handwriting or notation aesthetically pleasing, but I hope that will come with time and practice. Thank you!

Colored safety glasses as party favors!


I loved the "touchable" test tube bubbles when I was a kid, perfect for your theme!


Plastic magnifying glasses


Atomic Super Balls!

Eyeball rings

Microscope center piece.


Brain pencil toppers


If you have time to make cookies!

If you have time to make jello




You can use these bio-hazard bags as goodie-bags! :)



I tried to look for everything in packs of 12 or more, so hopefully these help you! :)



item

So, first I would like to say that I can see you are using the classics for reference - this is great! I highly recommend looking at Michelangelo. One thing to keep in mind when studying the masters (and when doing it yourself) is shading - think about how the shadows are causing the object to look 3-dimensional. So before we talk about anatomy, think about light source. If you look at your shading on this piece, I can't tell where the light is coming from. Getting your anatomy to appear 3D, even if its off, will greatly improve the overall feeling. So the areas here that appear flat to me especially are the knee, and the left arm (the figures right arm technically). A couple more practical tips- working with colored pencil is great - but its harder to erase, and you don't want to damage the paper. So, try to work light to dark in layers, and use a kneaded eraser . When erasing, do it as gently as you can (try blotting in instead of rubbing across the paper). Anyway, hope that helps. Good effort and keep going!

EDIT: Added some clarification on the kneaded eraser.

It looks like you are painting in watercolor? If so then I can give you some advice.

1: remember to have your drawing complete before you start painting, I made alot of mistakes thinking that could fix something later and when I started painting I had completely forgotten about the problem and would end up painting wonky anatomy and perspective, it seems like a basic thing to know but it's actually really hard to remember.

2: make sure you have the proper paper for painting, this is really important especially with watercolor I know people say materials don't make the artist but if you don't have the proper materials the paint won't work right moleskin watercolor is my go to sketch book you can even use things like oil and acrylic
Moleskine Art Plus Watercolor Album, A4, Black, Hard Cover (12 x 8.5) (Professional ... https://www.amazon.com/dp/8862931948/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_c_api_EbxLxb6SCGGCC

Here's another one that I use strictly for watercolor And inks
Bee Paper Super Deluxe Sketch Pad, 11-Inch by 14-Inch https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0027A7AKE/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_c_api_TqxLxbXHJPFSQ

3: Draw lightly and with a moldeble eraser
Prismacolor Premier Kneaded Rubber Eraser, Large, 1 Pack https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006IFAJ/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_c_api_etxLxbGMBG12H

4: Remember to ALWAYS paint from light to dark, this is something I forget when I've been working in other mediums.

5: learn at least a little bit about the color wheel you'd be surprised at how far a little knowledge could take you, James Gurney has a blog with some great information for traditional media he works in watercolor, oil, and gouache.
http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/?m=1

7: you shouldn't be worried about what brushes you have yet however a brush I would highly recommend picking up a round number 8-10


http://www.dickblick.com/products/blick-studio-sable-brushes/

My husband and I are working on designing our next home at the moment so this would be super useful or these. The first is a really useful tool in figuring out what is and isn't going to work with spacing. The second is because I tend to make a lot of mistakes. A lot. I'm not very good at this stuff but I'm determined.

Thanks for being awesome and hosting this contest. But that's pretty normal for you ma'am.

I like 0.7 mm lead and I find that these feel the most comfortable in my hand. The most important thing for me, though, is a clean erase. I tend to have at least one of these on hand all the time.

My SO likes these. They're okay.

>Yeah I'm treating it as a project, so I will just mess around with it.

Sounds like a plan!

I've done the same (Found a dead copy of a game I'd already re-bought :P )

There's already some great advice here.

Here's some extra stuff I'd suggest:


(Feel free to skip this, Sometimes I prefer tinkering on my own too!)

• Remove the battery Their's like a 0% chance it still works. I'd leave it off until you can get the game running.
  
  
• Work on the corrosion first, I've heard baking soda works, but I use 99.7 isopropyl,
  
  
• The cartridge contacts look like they could use some work too.
  
  I've heard using an artist's eraser, will work great, as they don't leave a film, or tiny crumbles behind.
  
  Give it a try after those steps, if you can get the 'nintendo' logo to show property, then the contacts are good, and it can at least try to read the cart.
  
  If after this, it still can't read the cart at all, there are more drastic options, I've heard people suggest sand paper, but I'd really say brass polish may be better.
  
  -If after all that you still can't get it to show the logo, It's likley the game is dead. as it can't read the rom at all. As the logo is used for verification.
  
  
• If you can get the game to read, ('nintendo' logo shows up) but...
  
  Issue: | Try:
  ---|---
  Instant White Screen Crash| Reflow the mm1134 chip (maybe the rom too)
  Graphical Glitches|Reflow the rom chip
  Corrupted Undeleteable save (even with the battery removed)| Reflow the sram chip
  Missing sprites entirely (Black boxes)| Reflow sram (Some say it could also be an MBC issue, may depend on the game.)
  
  [GB/GBC chips diagram] (https://www.insidegadgets.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/IMG_1992.jpg)
  
  
  
• If you're feeling really crazy, and the above process didn't work, if you have a fine tipped soldering iron, you could try removing the chips to clean under them. (I've never needed to do that, but I don't know how bad the corrosion is.)
  
  
  ---
  
  ^Please ^Note: ^I ^am ^by ^no ^means ^a ^professional, ^and ^I ^don't ^mean ^that ^in ^the ^fake-humble ^way. ^I've ^only ^been ^working ^on ^gameboy ^games ^and ^systems ^for ^a ^little ^over ^a ^year ^now, ^these ^are ^just ^suggestions, ^it's ^not ^meant ^to ^be ^a ^guide. ^Just ^some ^things ^that ^have ^worked ^for ^me ^in ^the ^past. ^and ^it's ^not ^a ^perfect ^setup, ^For ^example, ^a ^messed ^up ^'nintendo' ^logo ^could ^also ^be ^a ^problem ^with ^the ^rom ^chip, ^I've ^just ^seen ^it ^more ^often ^as ^dirty ^contacts.
  ^If ^one ^of ^the ^mods, ^or ^modders ^here ^post ^later, ^and ^make ^a ^suggestion, ^it ^may ^be ^better ^to ^try ^what ^they ^suggest ^instead.

I second the prismacolors, I swear by them as an artist and an art teacher. I also suggest a battery-operated electric eraser, they are a game changer in prismacolor drawing. Here's a cheap one:


Depending on your mom's taste and sense of humor, here are 3 of my favorite off-beat coloring books (way better than just mandalas and stuff):


This crass one is my favorite

Unicorns are Jerks - funny but not offensive

[Thrill Murray, the Bill MUrray coloring book (weird but fun, lots of Wes Anderson film stuff) ] (https://www.amazon.com/Thrill-Murray-coloring-book-Coley/dp/0957490909/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1482086999&sr=1-1)

You could also consider making her your very own coloring book. One of my art students made me one that was all pictures of dinosaurs and cats riding on bicycles (my 3 favorite things). If you can't draw, it's super easy to turn photographs into drawing pages with Adobe Illustrator or similar.

You could also get her some frames so she can display her favorite completed pages.

If she's into drawing, I highly suggest a kneaded eraser or two (they actually last a really long time unless you lose them or use charcoal), but check your local art store because they're usually less than 2 dollars. A set of tortillons for blending, and maybe some oil pastels or colored pencils. They also make watercolor pencils, which are colored pencils that are water soluble. I found them kind of difficult to work with though, not my favorite medium.

If she does embroidery, you could also get a set of embroidery floss. I'd go to the store though, they're cheaper there.

If she's a knitter or crocheter, a row counter would be perfect. Stitch markers are essential for knitters and they constantly get lost. Honestly if she's a knitter, I would definitely give her some stitch counters, but the best thing is, all they are is an enclosed circle. You could make your own very easiliy, out of any number of materials.

For me though if I win, I'd like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. It was my favorite book in elementary school, and I think my kids would get a kick out of it too.

Yes, 2b is a really appreciated and standard darkness for leads, but the thing is if you go darker the lead will wear out faster as it leaves more graphite on the paper eveytime you use it.


https://www.amazon.com/Sakura-Color-Foam-Eraser-RFW100-5P/dp/B004VKIUOS/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?keywords=sakura+foam+erasers&qid=1575155981&sprefix=sakura+foam&sr=8-3

That is the link for the erasers Im talking about!

And yeah Ahaha there is so much to consider, but it’s always a matter of personnal choice at the end of the day. The grip can be a problem for some if they have sensitive skin, if you have « moist hands » it can be a plus to have more agressive grip, etc. And the color in itself really is a personnal esthetic choice, but from experience and owning a few rotring in both black and silver, the black ones looks better I think but scratch a bit more easily.

If you want to know anything else, let me know ! And also, there is much more pencils brand than rotring, and some REALLY great models out there !

I really like sketching with a fountain pen - the Lamy Safari and Rotring ArtPen are good, relatively inexpensive ones - or with my beloved Pentel Pocket Brush Pen. A brush pen takes a bit more time to learn to use but you get really great, expressive lines with it. Throw a white-out pen into your toolkit, like these, and you draw in white back on top of your ink lines, add highlights, or make small corrections easily. Most pens won't draw back on top of the white-out fluid, though, so save it for the very end.

Pencils: F pencils. I find these to be the best.

Pens: Nib Holder. Nibs. Any of the nibs will do depending on the lines you want to make. This next tool is a mix of o brush and a pen. A Kuretake fountain brush pen. Also there are pens called Micron Pens that are great for detailing and paneling.

Brush: I use Windsor Newton #4 brushes for everything i do. I use Wisps for a more organic crosshatching.

Markers: Prismacolor are the best, as they work like paint. After you color, you can color over to make a darker shade.

Paints: I use Windsor Newton gauche watercolor paints.

Ink: I use Dr Martins Black Star matte black ink.

Other: Liquid Frisket is used like painters tape except you can make any shape out of it. You let it dry then ink. After Inking you use a Kneaded Eraser to take it off. On the topic of erasers: I use a magic rub eraser.

Ill edit if I think of anything else.

I like these the best and find them the best for making the long eraser strands vs dust.

these are also nearly the same in performance and have a cool retracting holder.

Either will be a million times better than rubber.

They have a grit in them that acts as an abrasive, which makes them great if you're using really heavy drawing paper with a thick tooth & good graphite that you're not jamming into the paper, then you use it very lightly. But I agree, they still smudge and are overly aggressive.

I prefer these, they don't have any abrasives and smudge way less

http://www.amazon.com/Staedtler-Latex-Free-Eraser-White-STD52650/dp/B0006IK4BG

But a lot of people like these as well

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kneaded_eraser

These are my preferred mechanical pencils with mars plastic erasers

http://www.amazon.com/Pentel-GraphGear-Automatic-Drafting-PG525A/dp/B0006HXQXA/ref=sr_1_4?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1413523441&sr=1-4&keywords=mechanical+pencil

and use good paper

http://www.amazon.com/Canson-400014970-Arches-Sketch-10X14/dp/B008NA891G/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1413523545&sr=8-3&keywords=arches+drawing+paper

Voila

Edit: IIRC, most royal blues will work, but there are specifically ones labeled "washable". Not common here in the States, but they can be found I believe. They are pretty awesome though. Definitely less of a hassle than erasing a pencil mark.

Blowing on the games doesn't really do anything. Best way I have found to clean them is to open them up and rub the contacts with a MARS plastic eraser to clean off corrosion. You can also get a replacement pin set for your NES to replace the default pin set. If you replace the pin set and clean off the contacts of all of your games, everything will work like brand new.

Faber-Castell is an excellent brand, no worries there. So they like pencils? Moleskine and Paperblanks sell nice sketchbooks. Fixative is a good idea. And erasers, like kneading erasers and pen erasers are useful.

They're weighty, solid, high quality, well-manufactured, and very very pretty. You'll buy a single pencil and then just buy refill graphite for the rest of your life. Honestly losing it is more of a concern than breaking it. If you want to try a step up without spending too much money, you can try a Pentel GraphGear 500 or 1000

Also, built-in erasers are often crap, so I use a standalone. I'm partial to these but there are a lot of good options. If you really need a pencil with a decent eraser built in I'm sure there are good options though.

I used one of these for 3 years of my undergraduate physics degree, and then for all the classes in my phd time. Still have it, love it. If I need to write something in graphite, this is my go to tool.

Also, if you need to do precision erasing, pair it with one of these:(https://www.amazon.com/Tombow-Pen-Style-Eraser-Refill-Refills/dp/B00ZZ4PJRA/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=mechanical+eraser&qid=1571968831&sr=8-7).

The mechanical eraser isn't as high of quality as the mechanical pencil, but for precise erasing like I sometimes needed to do in equations, its the best I've ever seen. Obviously use a regular eraser for bulk erasing (or just toss the paper lol).

Something that can be used at work is often a good idea for work secret santa.

Unicorn tape dispenser

Floral mug

Sites like Boots and M&S have secret santa sections on their website you could look at for ideas.

I always think it's a good idea for secret santas to include the receipt, especially if you don't know the person well. They already know roughly how much it cost and it makes exchanges easier.

BRAINS!!

Our gaming group bought these, they are a little big and bulky for a small filler games, but makes it so much more fun when we play.

If you like erasers you'll love this - it's a pen that's ALL eraser :) I've used these for years, too.

Read the title and came here to recommend getting a mechanical pencil, and it looks like you were already thinking about it!

My rOtring 600 should be here tomorrow. Pretty psyched about it.

A good eraser is also a life changer.

You'd be surprised. I'm a full time college student with depression. I'm still managing to pull off art on the side.

Initial costs are a box of pencils, erasers and a notebook.

Canson Artist Series Universal Sketch Pad, 9"X12" Side Wire https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004IXJ7CM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_mtWJzbS3BS01W

Palomino 2B Pencils Orange Set Of 12 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007P50UTE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_KuWJzb7MTP1WQ

Staedtler Mars Plastic Erasers,Pack of 4 (52650BK4) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006IFAN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_ZvWJzb48BV8JQ

There's more affordable options but these are my favorites so far.

It's probably best to stop by a superstore and pick up whatever they have on the cheap.

Edit: Tacklebox has been drawing for four years. Think about it. You can do this. You can get the skills you want if you practice.

You're saying the blemishes are the ceramic coat that got on the trim? Ooof. Typically the only thing you can do to remove a ceramic coat is abrasion/polishing. About the only safe thing I would suggest is this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002VCV4OQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

They work perfect for getting dried wax off of trim, so I can vouch that it will be safe (and is "abrasive"), but won't scratch your trim. I've used this on the CX5's wheel arches before without issue.

If that doesn't work, I'd ask for some advice from r/AutoDetailing before doing *anything* drastic, they'll set you straight.

I, like you, enjoy unicorns so here you go! :D

Unicorn tape dispenser

Drunk Unicorn wine holder

Unicorn hoodie

Unicorn Pusheen

Personally I have found that the Staedtler Mars plastic eraser is best. You want to do it evenly across the length of the book as to not create a "clean" area. Additionally it does not require scrubbing with it, just use it like you would with a pencil mark on paper... there are also youtube videos on this:

https://youtu.be/d399AFqTzVY

STAEDTLER Mars Plastic, Premium Quality Vinyl Eraser, White, Latex-free, Age-resistant, Minimal Crumbling (526 50 BK) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006IFAN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_oaXACbRK5R447

For all those oopsies!

This!

Write on!

Post card would be awesome! We have a lot of them, here.

You can trust me, I have erasers on my wishlist. I will use it for my GED studies and not putting eraser burns on /u/FredWampy's desk. :)

https://www.amazon.com/STAEDTLER-Plastic-Latex-free-Age-resistant-Crumbling/dp/B00006IFAN

This is what you need bro, way way better erasing than any tiny pencil eraser can do and one eraser will last you more than a year easy

You might also want to look into erasers. The erasers on the kuru toga's are very small since they're hidden under the cap.

You could either buy a refill for the erasers or buy a block eraser...or both...both is good.

I bought a package of sakura color foam erasers. They'll make it look like you never wrote anything.

Or you could buy the refills.

Refill s for the pipe slide.

Refill c for the roulette

Doesn't really matter what you go with, but any of these 3 are better erasers than on any wooden #2 pencil you've ever written with.

I use Sakura Arch Foam Erasers for my 2B mech and it works perfectly fine.

Try buying a better eraser. If you're using the one that comes on the back of the pencil, then step up to the next level and get a dedicated eraser

Sakura Color Foam Eraser W 5P RFW100-5P https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004VKIUOS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_b6yJBbYE1QR95

Amazing eraser that blows the Pentel ones out of the water. More expensive though, when I bought them they were $6 but it looks like the price went up a little bit.

I had been assuming "Gummy Eraser" meant kneaded eraser and I didn't understand why it didn't quite seem to be as awesome as everyone claimed. Then I came across a "Gum Eraser". Perhaps this is the magical eraser everyone is talking about?

Yep! I didn't know those were a things until one of my punk friends told me about them. Before that, I was using Wite-Out because that's all I had.

If you want to clean up those sharpie lines, get like a white eraser and use that to rub off the excess.

I keep one of these in the shop:

http://www.amazon.com/Magic-Rub-1954-Block-Eraser/dp/B002VCV4OQ

It erases most pencil marks on wood and paper nearly completely. Better than both pink erasers and the Mars plastic. I use all three for sketching. The Magic Rub is the nuclear option.

EDIT: don't buy it from that amazon link. I think I last bought a 3-pack for $3 at an office supply store. Not hard to find.

If anyone is curious about refill erasers like I was, the Sanford Tuff Stuff eraser sticks are the right diameter, and you can just use a razor to cut them to a desired length.

Kneadable Eraser

After I am done using it for art I usually make something sill out of it like a goat, dice, face and leave it till next time. Thank you for the contest. :3

I hate that! I've found that by rubbing it on some fabric first it removes that surface layer and will create a fairly non-smudgy surface.

Best by far is the "Magic Rub" That thing is frickin' magic. I've used them since college (for decades). The Magic Rub will remove pencil completely, cleanly, leaving only the impression in the paper.

Nice collection! I have a few more items for you to consider adding, should you be so inclined:

• Uni Kuru Toga Pipe Slide: Plastic variant of the same line but with a retractable tip. Although I prefer the feel of the Roulette (which you already have in silver), I carry the Pipe Slide in my shirt pocket every day because it won't poke holes like the Roulette does. For those unfamiliar with the Kuru Toga line of mechanical pencils, they automatically rotate the lead every time you press it to the paper, avoiding flat spots and keeping it sharp on all sides. Note that this occurs each time you press down, not as you keep pressing. Thus, drawing a line rotates one notch (because you only set the tip to paper once), whereas writing letters, dots, etc. rotates multiple notches as you continue to repeatedly press the tip to the paper for each character.
  
• General's mechanical eraser: finer tip than most mechanical erasers, and nice pen-style grip. Refills are also available but I've found they're often cheaper locally. (Amazon sells 3-pack refills for ~$4 but my local college art store sells them for half that.)
  
• Tombow Mono mechanical erasers: Extremely fine erasers for detail, more than even General's, for uses such as erasing small lines while drawing. You can order sets of both shapes (round and rectangular) or just one, and they're available in silver or black.

My Holy Trinity: Mitsubishi Pencil 9000 HB Two Point Sharpener Mono Eraser

​

They have the Mitsubishi Pencil 9850 HB, which has an eraser on it, but I would suggest using a pencil without an eraser since erasing can be a time waster. I found it really motivating that what I write is final, but I also prefer a separate eraser anyways and without an eraser on the pencil I don't risk smudging the lead with an inferior pencil eraser. (although the Mitsubishi pencils are alright)

Yikes!! You've probably tried different ways of cleaning that up... one suggestion I have, as a last resort and strictly in an experimental sense, is that you get one of those premium, hi-polymer white erasers (see links below) and gently rub the darkened areas with it... in a sense, trying to erase that material off, especially if it turns out to be a residue from your black microfiber cloth.

Those white erasers have been remarkably successful at removing toning, milk spots, and other stains from metallic surfaces (silver, copper, gold) when other cleaners and chemical solutions have failed... so it may work out on Alcantara too, but I don't know. Try at your own risk!

https://www.amazon.com/Staedtler-Mars-Plastic-Erasers-52650BK4/dp/B00006IFAN/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1501042975&sr=8-3&keywords=white+eraser

https://www.amazon.com/Pentel-Hi-polymer-Block-Eraser-ZEH10BP3-K6/dp/B001Q4HQVU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501042975&sr=8-1&keywords=white+eraser

I have a powered drafting eraser I use for just this purpose. Though mine is a 120v corded monster which takes 6" long erasers, not this modern fancy battery powered one. ;)

And, yeah, Pentel hi poly is my compound of choice for this sort of thing too. Very smooth compound, "grabs" the paint more than "abrades" it.

STAEDTLER premium quality vinyl eraser, Mars plastic, white, phthalate & latex free, age-resistant, minimal crumbling, blistercard of 4 erasers, 526 50 BK4 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006IFAN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_pDMZAbCCEC8YD

I got mine from a japanese stationery store, but you can get it online too. Here it is on amazon with refills. It comes in handy a lot for fine detail erasing.

I've tried a few different models:

• Pink Pearl
  
  
• Black Pearl
  
• White Pearl
  
• Art Gum
  
• Pentel Hi-Polymer
  
• Pentel Stic Eraser
  
• Tombow Zoro
  
• Rite in the Rain mechanical pencil eraser
  
  Thoughts: Of the options above, I've most liked the black pearl, art gum, pentel hi-polymer, and RITR pencil.
  
  I've least liked the Pentel Stic, Tombow, and White/Pink Pearls. The narrower point of the Pencel Stic and the Tombow just don't do the trick with our paper. The White/Pink Pearls seem to smudge more than erase.
  
  The black pearl and the pentel hi-polymer are nice choices for a block eraser. The Art Gum erases great, but leaves behind a TON of eraser debris. The RITR mechanical pencil comes with a few backup erasers (and these erasers are ridiculously good), so that actually can serve a similar function as the Pentel Stic or Tombow Zoro for more precise erasing (but nowhere near the exacto-knife precision of the Tombow).

These probably aren't things every DM "should" have but they are cheap and useful:

• Mardi gras dice beads; cut into long strips to throw down wall effects on a map, short pieces to track doorways (and which way they open), single pieces to use a markers for tiny creatures, etc.
  
• Stone counters for invisible characters and such.
  
• 3-D printed spell templates
  
• kneaded rubber erasers to sculpt things on the fly at the table.
  
• Some tokens or condition cards

I went in the UK and still remember the exciting transition from pencil to fountain pen. I felt it marked me as officially 'old'. I think it was around 7 or 8 yrs old? Any other Brits remember the erasers?! Made your work look like shit! http://www.amazon.com/Lamy-Eraser-Blue-Overwriter-fine/dp/B005BWVL6E

OCD activating:

1. Initial lowercase r is the same y-height as the uppercase R. Subsequent r's are half y-height.
   
2. Ripped out notebook paper.
   
3. Eraser scuffs. Get a proper eraser and use harder lead for lighter lines (4H and up).
   
4. T-squares/graph paper will help you ^keep ^a ^^straight ^^line .

Here is my December EDC/pocket dump. Look out for a reoccurring theme/brand. Enjoy!

• Item 1:Regular black sharpie
  
• Item 2:Field Notes Pencil
  
• Item 3:Tech 21 phone case and Iphone 6s
  
• Item 4:Expedition field notes
  
• Item 5:Chicago field notes, got this one as a guest pass when going to the HQ
  
• Item 6:Field notes band of rubber
  
• Item 7:Wallet that I received from my aunt with a custom sanic sticker I got.
  
• Item 8:Leatherman style
  
• Item 9:Original chapstick, lable taken off.
  
• Item 10:Staedtler eraser
  
• Item 11:Field notes space pen, matte black
  
• Item 12:Field notes/DDC pocket ruler
  
• Item 13:DDC pocket first aid kit, contents shown
  
• Item 14:Apple earpods, 3.5mm version.
  
• Item 15:Spinner
  

This as well if you want a pen style eraser

Sakura 50254 Refillable, Retractable Pen Style Eraser https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01NCXAZN7/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_d9RZAbZGV06WM

Amazon has little brain erasers. $10.99 for 36...
http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Shaped-Pencil-Top-Erasers/dp/B004EV59HA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342031278&sr=8-1&keywords=brain+erasers

[This] (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00006IFAJ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2HTHRVKNRES31&coliid=I42W0U4X7T6T5) is something that I've been wanting since I am getting back into drawing.

$2.49

$4.47

$4.67

$4.35

$5.00

$5.82

Codename Duchess

https://www.amazon.com/Sakura-Evolutional-Erasers-5-Pack-White/dp/B0174KSUVY/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?keywords=arch+erasers&qid=1563747041&s=gateway&sr=8-1

https://www.amazon.com/Sakura-Color-Foam-Eraser-RFW100-5P/dp/B004VKIUOS

The Palomino Blackwing 602 gets my nod. Pair it with a nice Staedler eraser and a Blackwing sharpener.

Pencil: Pentel Graph Gear 1000 0.5mm

Eraser: Staedtler Mars Plastic Eraser

Calculator: Casio fx-115 MS

In the US the only places I found were JetPens and Amazon

I don't think that's blue tack. It's probably a kneaded eraser based on the way its shaped and left out of the package.

Or This

$0.70 eraser!

https://www.amazon.com/Staedtler-Mars-Plastic-Erasers-52650BK4/dp/B00006IFAN

These soft erasers have been doing wonders for me.

I had the same issue, but with these putty-like erasers you can reach all those hard to reach spots.

https://www.amazon.com/Prismacolor-Premier-Kneaded-Rubber-Eraser/dp/B00006IFAJ

In my preference, the best I’ve found is Uni Kuru Toga Roulette and Staedtler Erasers

The Kuru Toga pencil automatically rotates the led so you always have a sharp tip, and Staedtler erasers are able to erase damn near anything.

I’ve tried more expensive mechanical pencils like GraphGear or Rotring and the Kuru Toga beats them out no problem. You have no idea what you are missing if you haven’t tried it, I’ve convinced 5 other peers to use the Kuru Toga by letting them use it for a couple days.

Will this do, and how many should I get him? Have no idea how long they last or anything

This: http://www.amazon.com/Sanford-SAN70531-Design-Kneaded-Eraser/dp/B00006IFAJ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1420674849&sr=8-1&keywords=kneaded+erasers

You're going after the wrong problem.

The problem isn't the pencil so much as it is the erasing.

What you want is the Stadler eraser. Do not substitute or cheap out. They're as cheap as can be and you only need one. I barely used one for three years of grad school.

https://www.amazon.com/STAEDTLER-Plastic-Latex-free-Age-resistant-Crumbling/dp/B00006IFAN/ref=mp_s_a_1_15?keywords=eraser&qid=1555958207&s=gateway&sr=8-15

Buy the four pack and give some out to nerdy paper friends and keep one or two as back up.


Also try to work on easing up on the death grip. It's not a contest to break pencils and you're going to be writing for the next 50 years or so. It's a marathon not a Sprint.