Colouring pencils are some of the most wonderful tools to colour that exist. They were invented in 1834, one year before Johann Sebastian Staedtler founded his popular company. The wood cylinder that covers an oil or a wax-based lead is enjoyable for both children and adults. In fact, these days colouring pencils regained some of their past popularity thanks to the adult colouring books, an activity which has been proven to be helpful for stress relief.
As for the suitable paper to use colouring pencils, any can be used (as long as it is not too shiny), because colouring pencils have the advantage of not overstepping the surface they are covering. Their scent is nice, they are durable, non-toxic and can be stored forever.
Like I said, pencils can be oil or wax-based. Wax-based pencils can be erased more easily than those which are oil-based. Oil-based pencils are harder and blend worse. Series such as Premier by Prismacolor are wax-based, that is why they are so creamy and they can blend so easily. Verithin line by Prismacolor, on the other hand, has much harder pencils, because they are oil-based.
There are several degrees of colouring pencils:
School pencils have less pigment, and therefore they are cheaper. They are ideal to colour books, for school and as an introduction to arts. In my opinion, the best school pencils are Ergosoft by Staedtler, because they are resistant and highly pigmented.
Scholastic pencils are in between school pencils and professional pencils. Their packaging is usually of better quality, and the pencils are ideal for those who already have some experience in the colouring world. Although not as cheap, they are affordable. Personally, I think the Goldfaber line by Faber-Castell is one of the best examples in this category.
Goldfaber pencils in Amazon UK
Professional pencils are more expensive because they have more pigment and therefore the result is more colourful. The essentials in a professional pencil are the pigment concentration (for a good covering and layering) and a good lighfast degree. Personally, I think the best professional coloured pencil lines are those from Faber-Castell, Caran d’Ache, Prismacolor and Koh-I-noor. All of them have vivid colours, they blend well and have different prices to adapt different budgets.
Polychromos | Luminance | Prismacolor | Polycolor
Regardless their degree, coloured pencils can also be classified in the following categories:
Watercolour pencils can be used both dry and wet, although the effect of their pigments is obviously better when water is applied. In my opinion, some of the best lines are Inktense by Derwent and Albrecht Dürer from Faber-Castell.
Lastly, pastel pencils are used for little details in large pastel drawings or simply used as normal pencils bearing in mind that they smudge. Those pencils are creamy and they have bright colours. In my experience, the best ones are Pitt by Faber-Castell and Gioconda by Koh-I-Noor.
CONCLUSION
One doesn’t need to have professional pencils to create something great. We may think we need very expensive pencils to produce serious art, but this is only true if you work on a comission. Nowadays there are many decent and affordable lines that are very competent. In my opinion, the best inexpensive lines are those from Arteza, Castle Art or Black Widow.
Arteza | Castle Art | Black Widow
There are artists who draw amazing illustrations with a set of school pencils. While often related to children, colouring pencils are actually quite versatile and a fantastic medium to create art. They are inexpensive, easy to transport, durable and do not require from other tools to be used.
Learning to draw 