Aleta from HinterlandMama sent me the following email this week:

Hello!
I have been using my pencil endlessly, but now the white chalk won’t come out when I press the end. I thought I would refill with the leads I bought from you, in case that’s the problem. But try as a might, I can’t get the lead to drop into place from the end (under the eraser). I’m sure there must be a trick to it?
I’ve googled everything I can think of for help with no luck.
Are you able to help me please?
Please, please!

The single color KARISMA pencils are fairly simple to refill; pull out the eraser and drop a few replacement leads in and you’re good to go. I hadn’t tried to refill the 3 color multicolored pencil yet, so I took a closer look to see if I could figure out the problem.

I pulled out the eraser and looked inside. The tubes that hold the leads have a small white cap on them to keep the leads from backing up and stopping the pencil from turning, so that wasn’t a good access point. I tried it anyway, pulling off the cap and spring to expose the clear tube inside the leads went into. The process felt messy and odd, but it worked.

Then I remembered seeing something about this in the Japanese product catalog I had hiding somewhere in the studio. AHA! So I had the right idea but approached it from the wrong direction. Click on the photo to see a larger version.

By the time I had it figured out and emailed Aleta back, she’s already done the same thing I had and solved the problem on her own. Never underestimate the ingenuity of a crafty mama, that’s for sure.