emma96•2mo ago

Visited an old drafting supply shop in Chicago last weekend

I was in Chicago for a weekend trip and stumbled into this tiny drafting supply shop near the Loop. Place looked like it hadn't been updated since the 80s, but the guy running it knew everything. He showed me these vintage German lead holders that felt way better than anything I've used from Amazon. The weight was perfect and the grip actually let me shade without cramping after 20 minutes. I ended up buying three different hardness leads that he said were discontinued but he still had boxes of them in back. Made me wonder if I'm missing out on older tools just because they aren't trendy anymore. Has anyone else found a hidden gem like that at an old supply house?

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3 Comments

robinp892mo ago

Three bucks says the nostalgia is doing most of the work here.

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davis.olivia2mo ago

Nostalgia is a weird thing, @robinp89. It smooths over all the rough edges of the past, you know, the bad traffic jams and the crappy customer service. I see it everywhere now, like people going crazy for cassette tapes and old video games they barely played back in the day. It's like we want the feeling of a time without all the actual baggage that came with it. The comfort is real, but it's definitely a trick our brains play on us to make the present feel less messy.

8

lewis.brian2mo ago

Yeah, the whole "trick our brains play on us" thing really hit home, @davis.olivia. I used to think nostalgia was harmless but now I'm not so sure, it's like we're just lying to ourselves to get through the week.

1