Hi everyone.
Where would writers be without stationery? Well, in the digital age we could probably survive without it but why would we want to? Who wants to deprive themselves of the thrilling possibilities of that brand new notebook, the warm feel of those sheets of paper as they flow from the printer or the hours spent chewing the end of a pencil when we don’t know what to write?
So, as an avid devotee of stationery myself and also because I wanted something to blog about and we happen to be in the middle of National Stationery Week, here are 10 things you (probably) never knew about stationery.
1. Post-it Notes
Ah, the humble Post-it Note. So many colours, so little time. How on earth did we manage our daily lives before scientist Dr Silver accidentally discovered a glue that didn’t glue properly. Then, with the help of his colleague Mr Fry, the Press ‘n Peel, as they were first named, saved mankind from a world of trouble.
2. Bic Biros
Originally known as a Bic Crystal, our favourite writing implement was launched by the French company Bic in 1950. Someone, somewhere, who clearly had too much time on their hands, discovered that a single Bic Biro can write for a distance of between 2-3 kilometres. I wonder what they wrote.
3. Paper Clips
How many man or woman hours have been spent by workers idling away a boring afternoon by trying to untangle paper clips? Useful and irritating in equal measure, the paper clip didn’t come along until the mid 19th century. Before that, people used ribbon to hold pieces of paper together. Less tangling but more fraying perhaps?
4. Pencils
Did you know that you can use a pencil underwater? I’m not sure how practical that would be though. Surely the paper gets too soggy? But they don’t work well in space so astronauts have to use special pens which, unlike pencils, don’t easily break or catch fire. Oh, and pencils contain graphite not lead, so suck way to your heart’s content. (Only joking.)
5. Pens
The first pens were made from reeds or bamboo and used from around 3200 BC to write on clay tablets. Once ink and papyrus were invented by the Egyptians, the use of quill pens made from feathers taken from a live swan became the most popular pen. These were overtaken by the invention of steel-point pens in the 1820s, much to the delight of swans everywhere.
6. Paper
The feel, the smell, the joy (and fear) of a blank sheet of crisp, white or coloured A4 paper. Even in the digital age, it’s still paper products that are the top sellers in the stationery world although worryingly, around 75% of landfill is made up of paper and cardboard products. And don’t get me started on how many trees have been cut down to feed our printers. Trust me, it’s a lot.
7. Erasers
Before it was discovered in 1770 by philosopher and theologian Joseph Priestly (who presumably made a lot of mistakes) that rubber worked really well as an eraser, rolled up pieces of soft bread were used instead. However, it wasn’t until the mid 1800s when vulcanization was found to improve the quality of the rubber that workers no longer needed to use their sandwiches when they got something wrong.
8. Staplers
The first known stapler was made for Louis XV of France in the 18th century. Every individual staple apparently had the royal seal on it and were used to hold royal documents and decrees together. Presumably Louis had a specially designated servant to remove the staple when he accidentally stapled his thumb instead of the parchment.
9. Notebooks
If you can’t manage without having at least one notebook on the go, not to mention a stash in your desk drawer, then you are not alone. Famous fans of notebooks include Picasso, Mark Twain, Leonardo Da Vinci, Captain Scott, Marilyn Monroe and George Lucas. Not content with Moleskine, Queen Victoria apparently used a diamond-encrusted notebook given to her by Tsar Nicholas II. Maybe a new product line for Ryman?
10. Highlighter Pens
Green, pink, yellow, orange… we all have our favourites but did you know that like many other stationery products, they were invented by accident? In 1963, Francis J. Honn, vice-president of technology at the American company Carter’s Ink, was trying to create a new marker pen for children. He found that swiping yellow ink over black print helped to make the words stand out and a new type of pen was born. Bet that was the highlight of his day.
What is your favourite item of stationery? Let me know via Social Media or in the comments section below.
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