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pencils

Japanese governmental employees in frantic pencil-shaving spree to meet city election day

COVID-19 pandemic measures mean a sharpened pencil must be prepared for each of thousands of potential voters.

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No CG here – Japanese company builds ridiculously gigantic mechanical pencil【Pics, video】

Yes, you can actually write with it.

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End of an era – Japanese anime artists’ favorite colored pencils are being discontinued

Mitsubishi pencils have been “an essential necessity in animation production.”

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Beautiful cherry blossom-shaped Japanese pencils have a special surprise when sharpened

You might think they’re too gorgeous to use, but then you’ll miss half the fun.

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Japanese stationery now sprouts herbs in your garden with the Blooming Pencil

Once its life as a pencil is over, this innovative piece of stationery will colour your garden by blooming into a variety of edible plants.

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Is Japan’s combination personal cat stamp/pen/mechanical pencil the best writing instrument ever?

Keep your personal seal handy with this adorable and convenient twist on the traditional hank stamp.

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Taiwanese artist’s pencil tip sculptures are miniature masterpieces 【Pics】

You don’t make art with these pencils; the pencils are art!

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Want to help save the anime world’s favorite colored pencils? Then take this survey

Hand-drawn art may be on the ropes, but it’s not quite dead yet.

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Student takes mechanical pencil lead to the groin in a possible attempt to skip exam

When I was in school, it wasn’t an uncommon occurrence for a classmate to claim that his dog ate his homework or ask to see the school nurse about a stomachache only moments before a big test. I myself remember having to tell one of my elementary school teachers that I couldn’t turn in my math assignment because my cat had vomited all over it. (She didn’t believe me, so the next morning I bagged it and left it on her desk.)

Nowadays, it seems like students have become even more creative with their excuses, like one male university student who recently had to visit the hospital to get some pencil lead removed from his urethra.

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Artist’s amazing colored pencil drawings of Tokyo scenes look like actual photographs

Remember the joy of getting a fresh new pack of coloured pencils when you were a kid? The artistic possibilities! You were going to make masterpieces with those things, weren’t you? Unfortunately, coloured pencils are kind of a difficult tool to wield. For one thing, they’re hard to erase, meaning that whatever mistakes you make wind up lasting forever.

But this Japanese artist can make serious magic with nothing but paper and those same humble art supplies. In fact, his artwork depicting Tokyo street scenes looks so photo-realistic, we were almost fooled at first…

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Worn-out stubby pencils got you down? Bring them new life with TSUNAGO!

We’ve all been there: the pencil that you’ve been using for weeks, maybe even months, has finally been sharpened down to a barely usable nub. It’s a pain to use, but at the same time, it’s an even bigger pain to have to get new pencils. Or maybe you feel bad throwing out a perfectly good, if incredibly awkward to hold, pencil.

But not anymore! Japanese company Nakajima Jukyudo has recently released TSUNAGO, a “pencil rejuvenator” that turns small pencil stubs back into fully functional pencils. How exactly does it work? Check out the video to see how the magic is done!

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