The 8 All-time Pencils for Drawing, Sketching, and Shading

For apprentice artists to professional doodlers

Theresa Holland The Spruce Crafts By

Updated on 02/16/22

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If your artistic expression involves drawing, doodling, sketching, hatching, shading, stenciling, or tracing, you'll need a loftier quality cartoon pencil. Though relatively straightforward, drawing pencils come in a wide range of styles and colors and various lead types. You will want to find the right compactness, color, and type for y'all and the art you wish to create.

From fine-tipped and mechanical to colored and graphite, there are options out in that location for every skill level and budget. Our overall option, the Staedtler Mars Lumograph Art Drawing Pencils (view at Amazon) are a no-nonsense option that won't intermission easily and piece of work for beginners and professionals alike.

Finding a good range in colors and hues is cardinal, says artist and art restoration specialist Sarah Valente. "Sets that take dissimilar colors of the same intensity are okay, but not ideal for shading and complex color schemes in fine artwork," she says. "A adept pencil set will take different shades of i color."

These are the best drawing pencils you lot tin can purchase online.

Staedtler Mars Lumograph Pencil Set

 Courtesy of Amazon

What We Like

  • No scratchy feeling

  • Easy to get a sharp betoken

  • Smoothen on paper

What We Don't Like

  • Can be difficult to erase

For a premium-quality, no-nonsense pencil, we recommend Staedtler's Mars Lumograph. This German-made cartoon utensil comes in packs of six or 12, though you can also buy singles from sure retailers. It has super-bonded lead, which wears evenly and is notably easy to sharpen. The versatile design is ideal for cartoon, hatching, sketching, and writing.

When you buy a pack, you'll receive a handy storage can, and each pencil volition accept a different hardness level, ranging from very soft (8B) to extra-hard (6H). These drawing pencils have ultra-sharp break-resistant tips—even the softest option is surprisingly sturdy. And while they don't have erasers on the ends, the lead erases effortlessly with a standard eraser.

Count: 6 or 12 |Course: Forest |Eraser Included?: No |Variety: 6B, 5B, 4B, 3B, 2B, B, HB, F, H, 2H, 3H, 4H

Blackwing 602 Pencils

Courtesy of Blick

What We Similar

  • Great for sketching

  • Extremely smooth

  • Easy to suit pressure on paper

What We Don't Like

  • Tip may pause easily

If you lot like pencils with congenital-in erasers, you'll appreciate Blackwing 602 Mattes. A unique flat eraser is connected to the finish of each piece of cake-to-grip hexagonal pencil.

Also, the actress-firm Japanese graphite pb is made of a special mixture of clay and wax for the perfect balance of force and smoothness. Each pencil has a durable cedar casing finished with multiple layers of lacquer, making them like shooting fish in a barrel to sharpen and comfortable to use.

Count: 12 |Class: Woods |Eraser Included?: Yes |Variety: Extra business firm, firm, balanced, soft

Mechanical Pencil Set

What We Like

  • No need to sharpen

  • Precise tips

  • Long lasting

What We Don't Similar

  • Tips may break easily

For those who like the convenience of mechanical pencils, nosotros recommend this prepare from MozArt Supplies. It comes with four drawing pencils, each with a different tip size. Y'all'll likewise go a lead refill pack for each size, plus iv eraser refills.

The pb in these pencils is cracking for various applications, from sketching and hatching to writing and illustrating. With an e'er-sharp, consistently thick tip, a non-slip grip, and a lightweight feel, these pencils are bang-up to utilize, no matter what the projection. While y'all won't become a variety of graphite hardnesses in this kit, you will get different thicknesses to assistance with line weight.

Count: 4 |Class: Mechanical |Eraser Included?: Yes |Variety: 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 0.nine millimeters

Cretacolor Fine Art Graphite Pencils

Courtesy of Blick

What We Like

  • Sharpen hands

  • Comes with convenient tin can

  • Polish

What We Don't Like

  • Some users found their pencils cracked hands

Cretacolor Art Graphite Pencils are the get-to for hatching and sketching. The superior-quality lead is made by grinding various types of graphite together, then mixing it with a loftier-grade ceramic clay.

This unique batter makes the tips actress sturdy, and difficult cedar casing makes them easy to sharpen. You can buy these pre-sharpened drawing pencils individually to cull the exact hardness yous're looking for, or get a variety pack of six or 12, which come in can carrying cases.

Count: 6 or 12 |Grade: Wood |Eraser Included?: No |Variety: 2H, HB, 2B, 4B, 6B, 8B

Premier Colored Pencils

What We Similar

  • Extensive colour range

  • Vibrant colors

  • Protective packaging

What We Don't Like

  • Can be hard to sharpen

Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils are a not bad choice if you're looking for the best colored pencils for cartoon. This 72-pack comes with a wide assortment of richly saturated colors—from terracotta to cool grey to parrot green and everything in betwixt. We besides like that they come up in a convenient tin can box.

The soft pb and semi-thick tips are like shooting fish in a barrel to acuminate and resist great. The pencils utilise smoothly and evenly, making them ideal for shading, shadowing, blending different colors, and gratis sketching.

Count: 26-150 |Form: Forest |Eraser Included?: No |Variety: 72 colors

Sketching Artist Set

Courtesy of Amazon

What We Like

  • Everything you demand for sketching

  • Suitable for beginners

  • Perfect for practicing dissimilar techniques

What We Don't Like

  • Pencils tin exist difficult to sharpen

Imperial & Langnickel has been making elevation-tier art supplies for more than one-half a century, and you tin remainder assured the brand's drawing pencils are upwardly to par. The Essentials Creative person Set is chock full of carefully curated tools for sketching, doodling, and costless-hand cartoon.

You'll get eight standard graphite pencils of varying softness, one woodless graphite pencil, three charcoal pencils, three charcoal sticks, three sketching sticks, 2 types of erasers, and a sharpener.

Count: 21 |Form: Woods |Eraser Included?: Yes |Multifariousness: 4H, 2H, H, Hb, B, 2B, 4B, 6B

Drawing Set

Courtesy of Amazon

What We Similar

  • Affordable for all of the materials included

  • Great for beginners testing unlike skills

  • Suitable for various ages

What We Don't Like

  • Charcoal can break easily

The 19 Piece Drawing and Sketch Kit from Norberg & Linden is perfect for beginners. With eight standard graphite pencils, an ultra-soft woodless graphite pencil, 3 charcoal pencils, ii charcoal sticks, 2 sharpeners, two erasers, and a sketch pad, y'all'll have everything you need to go started.

You tin effort out various leads and utensil styles to encounter what you like all-time while you explore the world of drawing. The spiral-jump sketchbook is just 6 x 9 inches, making it a skilful portable option to take with you wherever you get.

Count: 19-piece |Form: Woods, Graphite |Eraser Included?: Yeah |Variety: 8B, 6B, 4B, 2B, HB, F, H, 2H

Premium Quality Drawing Set

Courtesy of Amazon

What We Like

  • Convenient carrying case

  • Perfect for all levels

  • High-quality pencils

What We Don't Like

  • Not as suitable for professionals as more expensive options

This twoscore-piece drawing set from Castle Arts pulls out all the stops. It comes with several different graphite pencils, pastel pencils in varying shades, and charcoal pencils, plus charcoal, graphite, and willow sticks.

You'll likewise get blending tools, multiple sharpeners, a couple types of erasers, a sandpaper block, and a pencil extender, plus a zilch-up carrying case with a place for each piece. The set up is bully for intermediate and established artists, though ambitious beginners might love information technology too.

Count: xl-slice |Form: Wood, Pastel |Eraser Included?: Yes |Diversity: Not Listed

Last Verdict

For premium-quality, dependable, and versatile cartoon utensils, y'all can't go incorrect with Staedtler Mars Lumograph. These German-made pencils contain super-bonded lead, which wears evenly and resists breaking (view at Amazon). However, for those who similar a born eraser, we recommend Palomino Blackwing 602 Graphite Pencils. Aside from loftier-quality flat erasers on the ends, they're made with extra-house yet incredibly smooth Japanese graphite lead (view at Amazon).

Toll

As with all art supplies, the more professional and high-grade products will be more than expensive. For beginners just starting out, a more inexpensive student-form pencil might be ameliorate. Once your skills develop, you can splurge on a more expensive and all-encompassing prepare of graphite or colored pencils.

"Higher end pencils are very waxy, which can result in your drawing looking hazy afterward a while if it is non framed and exposed to air," says Valente. "The wax can easily exist rubbed out with a tissue, whereas cheaper pencils are less waxy because they are harder."

Type

Graphite pencils have a special kind of lead made of basis graphite (crystalline carbon) and clay. Nearly graphite pencils don't have attached erasers, merely you can find high-quality options that do.

And so there are mechanical cartoon pencils, which commonly come with graphite lead. With the mechanical variety, you tin count on a consistent, always-sharp tip, whereas standard pencils need to be sharpened. Both types of drawing pencils come in varying tip sizes.

Firmness

The lead in drawing pencils ranges from very soft to extra-hard. Yous can buy them individually based on your preference or how nighttime of a line you lot need to draw, but sets often come with a variety of options.

With high-quality cartoon pencils, softness doesn't equate to flimsiness. You can usually count on even the softest leads to be sturdy and resistant to breaking. The difference has more to practice with the effect they create. Softer pencils brand darker marks, whereas firm pencils will produce lighter lines.

This varies between graphite and colored pencils, says Valente. "When you are buying a prepare of cartoon pencils, you want a set that has either a range of hardnesses(in graphite pencils), or an overall soft quality (in colored pencils). The softer the pencil, the more intense the pigment. If you lot buy pencils that are also hard, they volition be harsh on the paper, dull, and near impossible to erase if you make a mistake," she says.

Colour

Most drawing pencils have relatively dark charcoal-colored atomic number 82. All the same, there are too options in varying shades of gray and pearly white, as well as lead that'due south a fleck closer to black.

And so at that place are colored pencils, which usually come in sets consisting of a broad range of hues. Colored pencils can be used for cartoon and sketching. Simply since the lead is typically a little softer, they're meliorate for shading, shadowing, and coloring in illustrations.

FAQ

  • How do yous hold a drawing pencil?

    Concord the drawing pencil between your thumb, index, heart, and ring fingers—similar to how you agree a pen or regular pencil, merely at a slightly different angle. When drawing or sketching, your outer two knuckles (on your pinky and ring finger) should graze the newspaper. Unlike writing, your elbow and arm will lead virtually of the movements.

    Where your place your fingers will affect the corporeality of force per unit area on the page. "The closer you lot become to the point, the more pressure level on the pencil. That's how tips break and your fingers balk. When sketching, it'southward ameliorate to hold the pencil in the middle or college, because information technology prohibits you from pressing too hard. Eventually, you lot will exist covering upwardly those sketch lines and don't want them to be difficult and visible," Valente says.

  • How do you sharpen a cartoon pencil?

    Drawing pencils can be sharpened with pencil sharpeners, but yous'll desire to utilise one specifically designed for cartoon pencils. Often called a "long-point pencil sharpener," the tool is designed to minimize breakage when sharpening graphite pb. Some options allow you to customize the signal. You tin also use sandpaper to reshape softer lead pencils when they become edgeless.

    Valente recommends using manus sharpeners. "Electrical sharpeners go deadening against colored pencils, and oftentimes over sharpen them, causing you to replace them more oft,"" she shares.

  • What type of newspaper should I utilise with drawing pencils?

    You tin use any type of paper with drawing pencils—even printer paper. However, you'll probably want to use heavier, firmer paper for detailed drawings, illustrations, and hatching. And if you lot're looking to do some expressive sketching, slightly rough and gristly newspaper is best.

    You should look for a different tooth, or texture of the paper, depending on the medium y'all are using. "Paper with more than molar is for pastels and chalk, because information technology holds the pigment better. For drawing pencils, information technology is all-time to have a smooth, medium weight paper. Pencils amplify texture in newspaper," Valente says.

Theresa The netherlands has been writing for The Spruce since 2019. She'southward e'er loved craft and has a deep appreciation for loftier-quality writing utensils. You tin can check out more of her piece of work on MyDomaine. Additional reporting was done by Julia Fields, a lifestyle writer for The Bandbox brands roofing all things surrounding toys, gifts, and the holidays. She's too covered similar topics in other roles, including toy reviews, product circular-ups, expert-focused articles, and more.

Good advice was provided by Artist and Art Restoration specialist Sarah Valente.