Gold Top, please

There's perhaps not so much new news to share about Palomino, as they're discussed so often around these parts - but that's because they make great pencils and we keep finding more of them to share. So, you doubtless already know that they come from California, and are made of rather splendid (and nicely aromatic) cedar. You probably know that, like their Blackwing-branded cousins, they are filled with graphite rods sourced from people in Japan who really know what they're doing. You're surely expecting that they will write well - and you'd be right.

Maybe the best insight that can be offered here is a brief manual test of the pencil itself, and there's one right here. If you happen to live in a wing of Versailles or just really dig the gold bling vibe, a pack of ten will set you back £25. They're officially HB, but honestly they write so smoothly that you would be forgiven for thinking that it's B lead in there. The chances are that these will sell out sharpish, so we'll conclude with a link to the rest of the goodies from Palomino offered by Nero - as there's bound to be something else fabulous along in the blink of an eye.