Erasers & Correction
Erasers, Correction Tape, and Dry-Erase Board Erasers
When you're writing or drawing by hand, mistakes happen. These mistakes can be erased with the tools in your stationery box, like a pencil eraser or white-out tape.
What are erasers made of?
Erasers are typically made of rubber or latex-free synthetic rubber. Designed to provide friction, erasers gently rub a surface in order to remove unwanted pencil marks. Their abrasive or gummy texture sticks to graphite particles, lifting them off the page.
Different types of erasers
Different types of erasers work in slightly different ways. Some options rely on friction alone to scrub a mark off of a page; others use their soft, gummy texture to "lift" particulates.
White erasers are the most common type of eraser today. They can be soft or hard, and are typically made from vinyl. This style of eraser is effective in removing pencil marks, and leave minimal dust behind; instead, their waste balls up, creating pieces you can brush away rather than fine particles that collect on your page.
Another common type of eraser is the kneaded eraser. Kneadable art erasers work by lifting graphite up off of the page, rather than rubbing it off using friction. They don't produce any waste, and can be used to erase or soften pencil, charcoal, and pastel marks. Art erasers and gum erasers can come in both soft and firm textures, but are most often very soft. This allows them to be kneaded and shaped, and also helps prevent any damage to the paper during use.
Can you erase pen?
We've all heard the old schoolyard tale: the blue side of an eraser erases pen!
Unfortunately, this isn't true. The blue eraser on a pink and blue eraser is meant to erase deep pencil marks on thicker paper, while the pink eraser is meant to erase pencil marks on lightweight paper. Erasable pens come easily off of the page, but regular pen marks are otherwise difficult to remove without damaging the paper underneath.
To cover up penned mistakes, correction fluid and white-out tape can be used. These methods cover up ink marks with an opaque white substance, which can be written on after the fact.
What else can you erase?
With options ranging from correction pens to pencil caps, there are plenty of things that can now be erased or covered up. One more common category is white boards and white board erasers.
Dry-erase board erasers make it easy to wipe away text and graphics when you're done with them, so you can keep your class or meeting running smoothly. For even greater convenience, magnetic options stick right to the board itself.