As Retro 51 puts it, 'Life is too short to carry an ugly pen'... or in this case a pencil. And we agree. Their bright colours and cool designs have more than a hint of nostalgia about them, and all their pencils are made with good old-fashioned values in mind.

The Tornado mechanical pencil features a lacquered barrel, an eraser-tipped knurled twist-action button at the end, to extend the lead, and a slotted metal pocket clip. It's supplied with spare leads and erasers in a themed cylinder which doubles as a pencil stand as well as a protective case. With every purchase of this Tornado, Retro 1951 are making a donation to .

Refill with 1.15mm leads.