Monday, September 5, 2011

Colored Pencil Surgery

So today I feel like talking about how to get the most from our colored pencils. Although they're tons cheaper than copics, its amazing how fast you can plow through the leads. (especially prismas since they're so soft and break notoriously easy) Before you know it you have dozens of tiny of stubs that you can barely hold.
Some of these you can remedy with a handy dandy pencil extender. They'll run you back about 3-5 dollars apiece. But its well worth it to keep at least two in your stash.


The pencil just fits into the sheath like so...


But eventually the pencils get too small even for extenders.
Look at these poor little guys....awwwww


But never say die. All you need is some super glue.

Just glue your old stub onto the end of your new pencil. (make sure you leave the pencil number at the end that won't be sharpened.) You can see the cream pencil that I glued a couple of weeks ago...the tip is absolutely miniscule now but you can see how  this method ensures that absolutely none of the pencil lead is wasted. You can sharpen straight through the glued portion.

They are a little long at first but will soon wear down .
By the way, not all pencils are suitable for this. Lyras, for example, have rounded ends which can't be glued together. 
I hope this is useful to someone else. :-)




19 comments:

Arlene said...

What a great tip! I'm always looking for ways to extend my products.

Rachel G said...

What an awesome tip. Thanks.
Hope you had a blessed weekend! :)

Elaine L. said...

Very frugal, Dorcas! Are you sure you're not a thrifty Yankee?! LOL!

Debra said...

Awesome tip Dorcas! Thanks I use mostly Prisma colored pencils so thanks a bunch!

Danielle Daws said...

Awesome! I had no idea you could glue them together! Thanks so much!

Stacey G.-2 Craf-t-4u said...

So cool! Your the greatest!

Cheryl said...

Thanks so much Dorcas, really great tips. I am only just starting to use pencils and I love them so it won't be long before some are little stubs lol. TFS.
Hugs Cheryl

Kelly Schelske said...

That is so neat Dorcas....I would of just tossed them, but not now!

Kate said...

Thank you for the great tip. My 13 yr old will be getting his soon, so this will definitely save me some time and money running to the store buying replacements.

Hugs,
Kate

Mote_sale said...

Glue pens a very interesting idea.:)))))

PinksyDoodles said...

Thank you Dorcas, this is definitely useful to me.
Clare x

Jess said...

Another fantastic informative post Dorcas! Ingenious! I haven't gotten to the nub stage with any of my pencils yet but have a holder on hand ready to go. :) Once they're too small for the holder I am so giving them this treatment! Thanks so much! :)

Daniele said...

what a brilliant idea Dorcas, I thought it was just me breaking my prismas I've had 1 colour that breaks every time I sharpen it ....its getting frustrating as I don't think I will ever be able to colour with it, I'm down to the last 3 inches already
hugs

Trina said...

How clever you are!

BUZZY BEE DESIGNS and GRAPHICS said...

What an awesome tip. Thanks

Laura said...

Hahah that's just damn smart!!! :) I have the small pencils... though I am not coloring as much as you do :)... I never throw them away because they're too cute! :)

Anniebee said...

Add genius to your creative resume! I had never even HEARD of pencil extenders until I read your post and gluing pencils together... well, that is truly a stroke of genius! Thanks for sharing these nifty tips with your readers. I'll not throw away another pencil because it's too short for me to hold.

Hugs,
Anniebee

Jovita @ Inky Impressions said...

Wow thank you for all the wonderful tips one using your pencils up until the ends... I would have never thought to use Super Glue! Next time I'm at the art supply store I'm definitely picking up a few extra pencil extenders.

Unknown said...

Thanks for the tips

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