Monthly Archives: August 2011

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The President’s Harley

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Whether it’s the freedom of the open road or the precision and distinctive beauty of the bikes themselves, motorcycle enthusiasts are passionate about the ride.

Sharpie President Ben Gadbois
Ben Gadbois is passionate about a few things: His family, his health, his work…and motorcycles. As president of Sharpie, Ben recently found a way to combine his passion for Sharpie with his love of motorcycles.
Ben worked with renowned NASCAR artist Nick Pastura to customize his own Harley-Davidson motorcyle with Sharpie art. Before getting started, Ben talked at length with Nick about his vision — juxtaposing the hard edge and rugged persona of the Harley machine with images symbolizing beauty, peace and strength — images often associated with Japanese art. In the end, Nick presented Ben with a design that included traditional Japanese symbols — dragons, Koi fish and cherry blossoms.
“I gave Nick full creative license,” Ben said. “I told him to come up with something really bold, and he definitely delivered.”
Scroll through the pictures, then read an interview with artist Nick Pastura on the project:

The bike took NASCAR artist Nick Pastura more than 120 hours and 275 Sharpie markers to complete.

In Asian culture, dragons are considered symbols of good fortune and protection. In both Chinese and Japanese mythology, the dragon is closely associated with water and is often surrounded by water or clouds.

The Koi fish symbolizes energy and motion and is sometimes interpreted to mean non-conformity. Koi also means strength in time of adversity, persistence, and the ability to overcome resistance.

According to the Buddhist tradition, the breathtaking but brief beauty of the cherry blossom symbolizes the transient nature of life.

 

 

ARTIST NICK PASTURA SHARES HIS SHARPIE SECRETS

While Nick rarely shares the secrets of his trade, he agreed to give us this interview about his use of Sharpie markers on this classic motorcycle:

After you landed on the overall design concept, what were the next steps for contributing that vision to paper?

I started out doing a lot of research on traditional Japanese imagery and colors. I wanted to stick with the classic Sharpie colors as my main stay…after that, it was just a matter of what tip shapes and sizes would work well together on each motorcycle part.

How did you transfer the design onto the bike? Transfer paper.

What type of Sharpie marker did you use to:

Were there any special techniques you used to ensure the marker ink lay down properly or covered the area properly? I used small, tight, circular motions.

Did you blend any of the marker colors to create custom colors, and if so, how? Again using three similar colors to add to the main base color to complement it and blend.

Were there any other techniques or tips in the early stages to note? Yes. When blending colors, make sure the ink is still wet in order to blend easily.  You have to work quickly.

Once you completed the finished design, what did you do to seal it?  What type of sealant did you use? First, I applied three light mist coats of Dupont 622 Intercoat Adhesion Promotor.  Then I let it sit for four hours to dry thoroughly.  The final clear coat was Dupont g2 4500S Fast Activator.

Did you encounter any special challenges with the ink application and if so, how do you suggest managing them?  Make sure the colors are dry before moving on to the next color or they will bleed.

Do you recommend lay artists give this a try on their own bikes?  Any tips for a practice run? Yes, but try to practice on an old gas tank or fender if possible.

What do you like best about Sharpie markers for creating your designs?  What makes them unique? What do they bring to the design that other art tools, i.e. spray finishing, don’t? Sharpie markers give you the ability to blend three similar colors together.  In automotive painting, it is just not the norm to blend colors like that. Using Sharpie markers was both exciting and intimidating at first but I got the hang of it quickly after a few test runs. It was great to have the markers right at your reach…the color reference is so visual that way.

Ben's sons, Helmut, 13, and Julius, 10, at the Fox River Harley-Davidson dealership in St. Charles, Illinois, just after the new Sharpie-drawn tins were installed.

This weekend, the bike will make its debut at the Irwin Tools Night Race in Bristol, Tenn., where Ben will take it for a lap around the track during pre-race ceremonies tonight.  Sharpie is a partial sponsor of the NASCAR race.  Irwin Tools and Sharpie are sister brands, both part of the Newell Rubbermaid family.  Here’s a sneak peak of Ben’s trial run Thursday night:

 

Start With Sharpie

The Sharpie Harley couldn’t have come at a better time as Sharpie launches its new Start with Sharpie campaign.

The campaign focuses on the legions of Sharpie fans (almost 2 million on Facebook alone) using Sharpie products in inspiring and creative ways, challenging them to start something with Sharpie.  To find out how you can submit your Sharpie creation to the Sharpie gallery and be part of Sharpie’s You Tube Takeover, visit www.sharpie.com.

If the president of Sharpie can start something this cool, what are you gonna start?

 

 

 

 

 

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Houston Employees Start with Sharpie

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Last week we shared some of the amazing things one of our own is starting with Sharpie, and this week we have a whole team of stellar Newell employees who are adding their own flavor to the showcase.

Left to Right: Amy, Lea, Ruth, Jennifer (in the back), Kim, and Betsey

The team from Calphalon Kitchen Outlet in Houston, TX added some spice to a lonely lid and a slow night with some Sharpie sketches; associate store manager, Jennifer Chavez, and her team, submitted their own Sharpie doodle and are our newest Employee(s) of the Week.

Scroll on to see what this star-studded Texas team is starting with Sharpie…

Now, what are you gonna start!?

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TEEN VOGUE “It Girls” Start with Sharpie

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Get ready to wage war with the green-eyed-monster (using a green Sharpie, of course).  It’s the Sharpie TEEN VOGUE “It Girls Night In” event!

Our favorite teen fashion-centric magazine chose 10 fashion savvy young women from it’s online “It Girl” panel to host the ultimate girls-night-in for themselves and five of their closest friends.

Sharpie provided the goodies, including a Sharpie product lineup some could only dream of — all so they could show the world what they were starting with Sharpie.

HUGE Thanks to all of our TEEN VOGUE “It Girls” for sharing what they have started with Sharpie… Lia Girdano, Stephanie Maldonado, Maddi Doering, Takiara Bullock, Sarah Hass, Amanda Provost, Cassy Stone, Brigitte Dale, Octavia Childs and Alexis Martin!

For more pictures and more on the “It Girls” and the Night In event, check out the October issue of TEEN VOGUE, on sale September 13th!

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Employees Start with Sharpie

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As you know, we, the Sharpie folk, have been kicking off our new Start with Sharpie campaign and we have seen some amazing things rolling in from our biggest Sharpie enthusiasts– including our own fabulous Newell employees.

We challenged our amazing Newell family to share what they are starting with Sharpie and now we are taking the opportunity to feature one of these internal Sharpie rock stars and what they (or in this case their daughter) has started with Sharpie.

Myra Lee, Director of Marketing Communications for sister brand, LENOX Industrial Products & Services in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, submitted this adorable photo of her 11-year-old daughter, Paige, who took creative liberties when writing her name on her new bag with Sharpie markers.

It’s amazing how something as simple as labeling your stuff can turn into an outlet for self-expression!

Now that you have seen what some of us are starting with Sharpie…what are you gonna start?

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SKATEBOARD ARTIST MARK RIVARD STARTS WITH SHARPIE

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Duuuuuuuuuuuuuude! So call me lame but that’s the first thing that pops into my mind when I think about skateboarding. I’m sure the skaters of the world would prefer I not refer to them as dudes, mostly because dude has a somewhat negative connotation, as in slacker, lazy, wandering, aimless – you know, The Big Lebowski kind of dude.

Dude or no dude, fact is there are more than 20 million skateboarders in the U.S., most of them under the age of 24. These dudes (which I mean only in the coolest way) ride their boards for lots of reasons, among them this one that I thought was particularly insightful extracted from the dclaim blog: Carving out creative lines under cloudless skies.

I get it. Like sky writing and more. Skateboarding IS an art. So is it any surprise that this daring form of self-expression should also find its way onto the skateboards themselves?

Sharpie has a dude (well, we are sort of just borrowing him) — an acclaimed skateboard artist who takes no offense at the term because his amazing art speaks for itself. Meet Mark Rivard. Mark currently appears in Sharpie’s new advertising campaign alongside one of his amazing skateboards and the Sharpie MINI Markers he used to create it.

Here’s Mark’s Sharpie ad, currently running in issues of TransWorld Skateboarding magazine:

Mark got his start designing skateboards after a serious skiing accident left him with time to ponder — and practice — his art.  In his own words, borrowed from Mark’s website:

Skateboards are the cornerstone of my work.  They are what sparked my re-interest in art.  We’ve all heard skaters say “Skateboarding saved my life.”, well in my situation it was a skateboard that literally altered the direction of the rest of my life.  I don’t think I would have died if I had never started skateboarding but I certainly wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for that first board and that first sketch.

Mark’s story is a good one, so we put together a video where Mark takes us behind-the-scenes and shares with us the details of how he came to discover his passion and the true mission of his life:

Something else you should know about Mark. We’ve been working with him for awhile now as part of his participation in the Sharpie Squad,  and he gets our vote for best-skateboard-artist-all-around-greatest-guy-ever!  It’s awesome to be able to point you to someone so deserving of all the praise.  Mark is one nice guy…he’s the duuuuuuuuude!

 Friend Mark on Facebook, then check out his appearance on FUEL TV:

 

Sharpie MINI markers are small enough to go anywhere. They offer:

 

  • A portable fine tip marker in half the size
  • A cap clip that easily attaches to key chains, golf bags, lanyards… and belt loops perfect for skateboarders on-the-go
  • 8 assorted colors, including Turquoise, Red, Blue, Lime Green, Green, Valley Girl Violet, Black, (and Magenta, not pictured).

Visit www.sharpie.com for more.
 

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Teen Pop Star Starts with Sharpie

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Marirose

She may be the youngest member of the Sharpie Squad, but at just 16-years-old, Marirose Weldon is already penning a name for herself in the music business with the recent release of her debut single, “I Want Love.”

Marirose uses Sharpie Liquid Pencils to write her lyrics, which is how we found her and why we decided to feature her in our new Start with Sharpie ad campaign.

Marirose joins three other Sharpie fans debuting in ads running in some of your favorite magazines, including, Seventeen, TEEN VOGUE, and Us Weekly.

Check out Marirose’s ad below:

Marirose has been hard at work establishing her music career and we hope her appearance in our ads helps her start something big.  She’s already meeting with agents and her song is getting lots of airplay on Chicago radio stations (Marirose lives in a Chicago suburb).  But fighting through adversity and meeting new challenges is nothing new to Marirose.  When she was 9-years-old, her mother passed away from a brain tumor.  The video below gives a peak inside Marirose’s life where she talks through some of those personal struggles, and her commitment to her music.

 

 

Below is an excerpt from a story that appeared about Marirose in My Suburban Life prior to a benefit concert she was throwing in her mother’s honor.

Why did you decide you wanted to be in show business?
I would always see people on TV. It would just be like a dream that I never thought would happen… I took acting classes for fun and it became something I started to take seriously. (Singing) was something if you got into you have a lot of opportunities.

What are your songs mostly about?
They’re really upbeat. They all have a really great message. There’s no swearing… they’re not about sex, guns or money. They’re songs you can jam out and dance to in your car. The songs are like Rihanna’s and Kelly Clarkson’s.

Do you still have plans to attend college, despite all your success?
Right now, I’m definitely planning on going to college. I’m not a big star right now, I’m just trying to be successful in the music industry. I’ve got to be smart. I’ll probably go to college for music to get experience.

Why did you decide to throw a benefit concert?
My mother passed away when I was 9 years old from a brain tumor. We literally had no idea. She was too afraid to go to the doctor… (She died) during a family vacation in Florida. It’s still shocking to me today… (The concert) is basically for her. Everything we do is in memory for her.

What’s your next big project?
I’m working on a deal with Sharpie, (an ad campaign) for their liquid pencil. They’re looking for brand new artists…to say that they started writing their songs with the pencil. (The ads) will appear in 17 magazines including US Weekly and on billboards.

This rising star not only has the pipes but the personality to make it big!  We are thrilled she is a part of the 2011 Start with Sharpie campaign!

Stay in tune with Marirose on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, MySpace .  Be sure to grab her single, “I Want Love” (also available on i-Tunes)!

Last but not least, check out Marirose’s writing instrument of choice – the new Sharpie Liquid Pencil.  It features a unique liquid graphite formulation that eliminates the age-old problem of broken pencil leads.  And it’s now available in four new barrel colors!

 

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Sharpie Gel Highlighter is For (Book) Lovers.

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Today is a day for the book lovers, a day for the classics, a day for the sound of cracking spines and the indescribable smell of a REAL LIVE book (remember those?!) in your hands.  To non-book lovers or the e- Reader fanatic these may seem like trivial details but WE know…it’s not just the story but the aesthetic elements AROUND the story that fuel our passion for our favorite past time. Poetic, right?

Seriously though,  there’s something about real old fashioned ink and paper that scream “MARK ME UP!” From textbooks to Tolstoy, the experience isn’t complete without a highlighter in hand.

Swipe a favorite passage, tag a word that you only pretend to know and secretly go back and check, scrawl intellectual phrases in the margins that leave the next reader thinking you are so profound and astute it’s intimidating; it’s up to you, and the Gel highlighter is ready when you are.

It is the perfect tool when reading for pleasure or educational advancement, as it will stay as bright and fresh from the moment you uncap until you need a  reading respite (maybe more frequently when thumbing through a textbook). Although I try to avoid non-recreational reading at all costs, sometimes you have to bite the bullet and study; and if you need to do it, do it right the first time.

So, to help you do just that I have included a list of highlighting and reading tips from Studentle that are sure to make you the brightest in the classroom!

  • Read the text. The first thing that you have to do is to read the text so that you know which words and phrases to highlight. While reading, make sure that you understand the text. Take note of the important details that you need to highlight. If you already know the content of the text that you are reading, it will be easier for you to determine which words and phrases to highlight later on.
  • Highlight important parts. Now you can highlight the important parts of the text. Make sure that you leave off unnecessary parts. Highlight important terms, dates, definitions and concepts. You can also take note of the important things that the teacher discusses so that it will be easier for you to study for a text. Some people tend to highlight chunks of text and end up having a whole paragraph completely highlighted. Avoid doing this.
  • Use different colors. It may sometimes be more helpful if you use different colors for highlighting. Use one color for all the terms and another color for the definitions of each word. Use a different color for the concepts and facts. This will make it easier for you to find what you are looking for, especially if the text is too long. When using different colors, make a small note on the side of the text so that you know which colors correspond with the text that you highlighted.
  • Go over the things you highlighted. After highlighting, go over the text one more time to see if you did not skip anything important. This will also give you a chance to review the text and understand the things that are important. Afterwards, you can study your textbook and just focus on the important points that you have already highlighted. This is very useful especially if you are studying for an upcoming test.
  • Choose bright colors. Another important thing that you need to consider is the color of highlighter that you are going to use. It is best to stay away from dark colored highlighters such as blue or purple since it can darken the text and make it harder for you to study. Stick with fluorescent colors such as yellow, green, orange or pink.

 

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Our Cup Runneth Over with Cheeming Boey

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Cheeming

Cheeming Boey is a California-based artist who has gained notarity for the AMAZING art he creates on coffee cups.  By combining two very simple things, paper cups and Sharpie Pens, he ceates museum-worthy masterpieces that continue to ignite interest around the globe.  In the same way that Warhol made soup cans famous, Boey is pushing the limits of pop culture with his coffee cups.

This veteran Sharpie Squad member uses Sharpie Pens to create his intricately designed Joe-holders and then sells the cups online at iamboey.com. Beyond being featured in the OC Register and on maxim.com, he is also the man behind the cups in Sharpie’s 2011 magazine ad for Sharpie Pen as part of the Start with Sharpie campaign.

Not only has Cheeming been busy busting out amazing new work and ad campaigns, he has also just returned from a nine-week stint driving around the U.S. and documenting his travels comic book-style– complete with video highlights– while also working on his literary debut, funded completely through Kickstarter.

 

 

Follow Boey’s adventures on Twitter & Facebook and IAmBoey.com. Trust me, your cup will runneth over.

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NEW! Sharpie Highlighter Gels with Students

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…No, not the kind of gel you see on the Jersey Shore. We’re talking the bright and colorful fluorescent gel that’s perfect for highlighting notes, text and more!

Now this is a back-to-school product worth highlighting. The Sharpie Gel Highlighter promises to last long, resist smearing, and never dry out, even if left uncapped (eliminates the oops factor). It’s perfect for use on all paper surfaces, including glossy and thin papers.  It also resists smearing on pen, marker and ink-jet printouts — and is equally as fun to write, doodle and draw with.  Give it a swipe!  Your highlighting life will never be the same ; )

Uncap and give the highlighter a twist to advance the gel stick and you’re set.  It even highlights glossy magazines…wait… magazines??? I’ve never highlighted a magazine before. Excuse me while I test this out…

[tick tock...tick tock...]

I’m back! IT WORKS! Take a look at what I did to the horoscope section of the Feb issue of Teen Vogue!

The Sharpie Gel Highlighter is available wherever office products are sold in orange, yellow, pink, blue and green.  Now the only problem is deciding which color to use, when, on what surface because I’m a color-coded kinda kid!! 

 So what do you think?!