Unlimited Pencil

Disclaimer: I did the project featured in this blog back in 2021 and I'm just getting around to writing about it because I have a horrible habit of putting blog projects in a folder and never writing about them.

Have you ever heard of unlimited pencils?  I hadn't either until I saw this listing on one of those cheap websites.  I can't remember now if it was AliExpress or Temu.

I love a novelty art supply, so I had to grab one.

On the outside it looks kinda like a fountain pen, and then the nib is kinda metal looking.  Inside the barrel is an eraser-type cylinder.  

Shock!  It writes like a pencil.  And the eraser erases like an eraser. 

The pencil went into my pile of blog-projects-to-get-around-to, and I forgot all about it for 4 months.  When I finally did pull it back out, I did my usual testing.  Scribbles and a monster sketch.

I did a quick swatch on black paper...

...and then it was time to do the full piece.  Which ended up being something a little different for me.  I was on a cabin holiday with some friends, and we were having a crafty afternoon.  I was doodling, and they were making Gundam models.  

So I drew a Gundam.  

Not perfect, but a fun exercise for me.  And the pencil worked great.  Just like a pencil.  

I didn't really use the pencil again, mostly because I didn't like how thick it felt in my hands.  So when I saw these thinner ones on Temu a year later I gave unlimited pencils another chance.  It helps that the barrels are gorgeous colours.

Like the red one, these ones worked just like normal pencils. 

And I did two full pieces of art with them.

So are unlimited/eternal/infinity pencils any good?  

Yeah, they kinda do what they say on the tin.  I haven't actually used one for an extended period to test the eternal-ness though.  Maybe I should.  

I have to admit, when I'm reaching for a pencil I do tend to grab a standard pencil rather than one of these ones.  I'm not even really sure why.  I may commit to a challenge to fill a sketchbook with one, see how it goes.  

Have you ever used one of these?  What did you think?