Example of melting

Those of us who started our eraser collections in the late 70s and 80s will have learnt some serious lessons about caring for erasers, and in particular how to store them. But for the people who began collecting more recently they may not be aware of some of the potential storage dangers, so this page offers some helpful hints.

The first thing to think about is original packaging. We loved our erasers, and were often all too keen to remove them from their packets and wrappers the moment we got them home. We wanted to admire them, sniff them and feel them. That’s why today, it’s not common to find 80s erasers still in their original packaging, and when we do find one it’s delightful. Erasers kept in this way tend to still be in excellent condition, and have avoided the pitfalls of careless storage. Plus, everyone knows that ‘vintage’ items are worth far more when ’still in the box’ so to speak!

So a message to all new collectors is to keep your erasers in their original packaging if you can.

Of course many erasers don’t have packaging, or they’re old erasers that have lost their wrappings many years ago. There are steps you can take to protect these erasers from any future damage.

Of course the very first thing to mention, if it needs mentioning at all, is never use an eraser! It may seem an obvious thing to say, and I’m sure none of you would ever consider actually using one, but how many times have you come across a super eraser in a job lot, only to find those tell-tale signs of a missing corner and the remains of the pencil it has sadly removed?!

But by far the biggest problem when storing erasers is melting. Melting affects mostly lipstick erasers and others in plastic cases. You can see an example of melting in the picture. Melting isn’t just caused by heat as you might imagine – yes, it’s true that storing erasers in hot attics didn’t help them much, but heat itself is not the only problem. Most melting occurs because of a chemical reaction caused by the plastic being in contact with another eraser.

This chemical reaction can also occur when two erasers with different ‘ingredients’ and plastic levels are stored in tight contact over a period of time – they become melted and fused at the contact point. Again this isn’t all about heat – you can store a single eraser in a hot attic for years and it won’t melt – but if it’s contact with plastic or a different kind of eraser, then the chemical reaction can cause melting to occur.

Storing erasers in contact with each other can also lead to colour transfer, and you often find old 80s erasers with ’stains’ in another colour that have leaked from another eraser.

When storing erasers I would suggest the following:

• Store lipstick and other plastic cased erasers together, and away from other erasers.
• Store lipstick erasers standing up if possible – this avoids the eraser inside coming in contact with the inside of the plastic casing (it’s not too bad if a lipstick erasers ’sticks’ in the base, but you don’t want it melting onto the side or into the top).
• Store erasers in boxes, a layer at a time, with space between each eraser.
• Store erasers that ‘feel’ the same together. (You know what I mean by this – some erasers are grainy, some rubbery, some plasticky etc.
• Put a sheet of kitchen towel between layers.
• Keep at room temperature if possible.

Of course, some people prefer to display their erasers on shelves or in cabinets. This avoids melting, but does put them at risk from light damage and colour fading. However, I always think it’s great to see erasers proudly shown, loved and enjoyed, rather than hiding away in boxes :)

If you’d like to share your own experiences of caring for erasers and avoiding damage, I’d love to hear from you.