Sort by:

19 Products Found

About Bruynzeel pencils

Did you know that the Dutch people use red Bruynzeel pencils to indicate their vote in the Netherlands? These red pencils are often called “voting pencils” and are used because their vibrant colour is hard to erase and makes it easier for the votes to be counted. Ballots that are marked with a different colour are invalid and will not be counted.

Starting in 1966, the ‘old-fashioned’ system of voting ballots and coloured pencils was gradually replaced with an automated system, but when it came to light that these systems were not as reliable and sensitive to hacking, the pencil was brought back in 2009.  

The shade of the pencils, called Vermillion (931), is the same shade of red that is used in our national flag! The pencils are sharpened before use and shaped like a hexagon, which makes it less likely to roll away.

After sharpening the coloured pencil, the tip breaks off. Why is that?

All of our pencils are double-glued: the core of the pencil cannot break, even if you drop it. If the tip breaks off after sharpening, it could be due to the pencil sharpener you are using. The importance of using the right pencil sharpener is often underestimated.

There are two different types of pencil sharpeners: one for graphite pencils and one for coloured pencils. The angle at which a graphite pencil is sharpened is different to that of a coloured pencil. This is because a graphite pencil is harder and you can therefore work with a longer tip. If you sharpen a coloured pencil with a graphite pencil sharpener, the tip will be too long and will break when you apply pressure to it. We therefore recommend that you sharpen coloured pencils with a coloured pencil sharpener.

What is the difference between oil and wax based pencils?

All of our pencils are wax based, which includes pencils for the very youngest users as well as our professional quality pencils. Wax based pencils glide over the paper slightly more easily than oil based pencils. Wax based pencils also produce a shiny layer on the areas that are coloured in; this effect is less pronounced with oil based pencils. Wax, however, can build up (depending on how much pressure you put on the pencils and how opaque you make the layers), so it is possible that after a number of layers less colour will be transferred.

How many layers of varnish are applied to Bruynzeel pencils?

As standard, around 7-10 layers of varnish are applied to pencils. This depends on the colour used. Lighter colours normally require 9-10 layers of varnish, while darker colours normally require only 7-8 layers.