The smoothest shading results can be most easily achieved by using Zest-it Pencil Blend. It is a solvent that will break down the oil and wax content of pencils, allowing strokes of applied colour to dissolve into one another in order to achieve an even layer of colour. I tried Pencil Blend with a number of different pencils on a selection of papers and cards. I compared applying with a brush with applying with a paper stump, as well as how the results compared with burnishing coloured pencil with a dry paper stump. The product fulfils its potential when used with certain papers and pencils, and with a good amount of pressure. Here is an extensive report of my findings.
Materials used
Pencils
Watersoluble Pencils:
Supracolor are a good, artist quality coloured pencil, although not top of the Caran d’Ache range. The coverage is excellent and they dissolve beautifully with water allowing for watercolour effects.
Caran d’Ache Supracolor in Sky Blue
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Swan Stabilo All Surface pencil
Stabilo All Surface pencils draw on wood, glass, plastic and metal, as well as paper! Below are the results of blending All Surface in a variety of ways.
Stabilo All Surface pencil in Blue
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Faber Castell Albrecht Durer Watercolour
Faber Castell Albrecht Durer Watercolour pencils are a professional quality watercolour pencil with good pigment saturation. The colour becomes permanent once dry, meaning it cannot be rewetted with consequent layers. These pencils are a lot harder than Caran d’Ache Supracolor.
Faber Castell Albrecht Durer Watercolour pencil in Cobalt Blue
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Pastel Pencil:
Pitt Pastel Pencils offer pastel colour in a pencil form, useful for fine details in pastel works or used in their own right. Like traditional soft pastel colour, the pencils are watersoluble.
Faber Castell Pitt Pastel pencil in light chrome yellow
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Oil based Pencils:
A 3.8mm lead, oil based pencil. Water and smudge proof, with good pigmentation and coverage.
Faber Castell Polychromos colour pencil in Blue Turquoise
Click here to go straight to Polychromos pencils test results
Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor Coloured Pencils are creamy crayons in a pencil form that allow an artist ultimate control on paper. These premium oil-based coloured pencils can be used on paper smoothly with no wax build-up.
Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor Pencil in Lemon
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Caran d’Ache Pablo (oil and wax binder)
Pablo pencils match the superior quality required for colour drawings, while the precision of Pablo leads is ideally suited to realist drawing. The covering power of Pablo colour pencils enables easy usage on a large number of backgrounds, ranging from variously textured paper and cardboard to wooden panels. Shaded, mixed and layered colours express themselves through the thick, velvety matter of permanent pencils’. I found the pencils to be comparatively hard to the likes of Luminance for example, meaning that the lead kept its point for longer, but they felt lovely amd smooth to shade with.
Caran d’Ache Pablo pencil in Grayish Green
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Although this is the soft version, it didn’t feel much softer than a polychromos pencil. I enjoyed using this pencil, nice black mark. I don’t personally like the chalky feel of charcoal so this is a great alternative – it gives you the dark black marks but with a smooth, oily feel.
Faber Castell Pitt Oil Based pencil, soft
Click here to go straight to Pitt Oil Based pencils test results
Graphite Pencil:
A high quality graphite pencil with a smooth consistency. 3B is capable of a wide range of tones.
Derwent Graphic Pencil, 3B
Wax based Pencil:
Caran d’Ache Luminance (soft wax)
According to Jacksonsart.com, Luminance pencils are described as follows: ‘In addition to the highest lightfastness, the Luminance 6901 leads benefit from an extreme softness which enables you to obtain subtle mixings and gradations, as well as blendings. Every shade has been formulated using finely-ground pigments chosen for their purity, intensity and resistance to UV’.
When shading with Luminance, the creaminess and softness are immediately noticeable. The colour crumbles slightly and produces a little dust when pressure is applied. The colour is intense. When I tilt the piece of paper I had shaded on, you can see a slight unevenness in sheen, where there is less or more of a wax deposit which is easily buffed up and made even with a light rubbing of kitchen paper on the surface.
Caran d’Ache Luminance pencil in Anthraquinone Carmine
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Derwent Studio (hard wax)
As stated at Jacksonsart.com, Derwent Studio Pencils share the same coloured core as Derwent Artists’ Pencils, but are slimmer with an hexagonal wood barrel rather than a round. This creates a coloured pencil that is easy to grip and is particularly suited to detailed illustration work, such as botanical studies, architectural drawing and graphic design.
When I tried them myself, they struck me as being noticeably harder than the other pencils I have used in these tests. The result is a slightly scratchier sensation when shading on smoother papers. It’s fair to say the hardness has a lot to do with the wax binder. When you line up Derwent Studio shading up against some Luminance shading, the difference in colour saturation is stark, with the Derwent Studio shading looking as if it has a slightly misting wax coating on it.
Derwent Studio pencil in Middle Chrome
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Papers
Stonehenge White, 250gsm
The cover of Stonehenge states ‘This studio workhorse provides a supple surface that’s agreeable to myriad creative disciplines. Originally created for printmakers, this cotton paper soon spread across all drawing techniques, especially coloured pencil’.
Stonehenge has a pale ivory colour, and a vellum surface that is less visible than the heavyweight cartridge paper. Very slightly more textured on one side than the other, but you can work on either side.
Daler Rowney Fine Grain Heavyweight Cartridge, 200gsm
The heavyweight cartridge paper is whiter and with a more pronounced vellum texture than the Stonehenge paper. A standard, good quality sketching and drawing paper. Very slightly more textured on one side than the other, but you can work on either side.
Clairefontaine Pastelmat, 360gsm
Pastelmat has a unique velvet texture on one side, and is backed with glossy white card which minimises buckling if the paper is wetted. The texture on the front side is coarser than velour but nothing like sandpaper – a clipped velvet texture that has just enough resistance to pick up colour as you drag your drawing media across it.
LuxArchival (Polychromos only), 400 grit and backed with 300gsm paper
LuxArchival is coarser than Pastelmat – 400 grit – the texture of the finest wet and dry paper. If you were to rub your finger across the surface you can really feel the texture resisting your movement. It’s this texture that will grab and hold your colour and keep it in place. Backed with 300gsm paper – Light washes could be applied to this without any buckling.
Daler Rowney Bristol Board, 250gsm
The smoothest of all the surfaces I used – no texture at all. Also the brightest white yet still 100% archival.
What is Pencil Blend?
For my tests I used Pencil Blend (Citrus Free).
Pencil Blend is a solvent that would dilute any oil based media. I found it to have very little odour, just a feint solvent-y scent. Use in a well ventilated room if you are working for a long session, or are particularly sensitive to fumes. The solvent is completely clear and is available in 125ml and 250ml bottles with a plastic safety cap, in citrus and non-citrus varieties.
The Tests I Carried Out
For each pencil, I shaded 6 squares, each with a gradation from dark in the bottom left corner to light in the top right corner.
Top left: Left unblended, to show how the pencil appears on the surface as is.
Bottom left: I burnished the colour with a dry paper stump, to see how much softening I could achieve without Pencil Blend.
Top middle: I used pencil blend with a size 0 Jackson’s Studio Synthetic brush
Bottom middle: I dipped a paper stump in Pencil Blend to blend the shading.
Top right: 3 layers of shading on top of one another, using the pencil blend with a brush to burnish between layers.
Bottom right: 3 layers of shading on top of one another, using the pencil blend with a paper stump to burnish between layers.
The Results, Pencil by Pencil
The first 4 pencils I tested were all watersoluble: Caran d’Ache Luminance, Supracolor, Stabilo All Surface Pencils and Faber Castell Pitt Pastel pencils. I wanted to see if these pencils could also be dissolved with Pencil Blend, as if this was the case it would be possible to blend watersoluble pencils with regular coloured pencils. The Zest It Pencil Blend (CF) did not dissolve these watersoluble pencils as well as water does and so blending both watersoluble and non-watersoluble pencils combined would not be possible.
Here are my findings:
1. Caran d’Ache Supracolor Soft Watersoluble Pencil on cartridge paper
Top left: pencil only; bottom left: pencil blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil with water and a brush; bottom centre: 1 layer of pencil with water applied with paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with water and a brush; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended with water and a paper stump.
When I had applied 3 layers of pencil with a brush I found there was plenty of colour left on the brush that would enable me to paint strokes around the shaded area as if I were working with traditional watercolour. I also discovered that water dries a lot slower than Zest-it Pencil Blend (CF).
2. Swan Stabilo All Surface pencil on Pastelmat paper
Top left: pencil only; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top right: blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom right: blended with water and a brush
As you can see, the water really unlocks the colour of the pencils giving a really deep, intense hue. The fact the dry paper stump did not have much impact on the colour is down to the Pastelmat paper I was working on, which really is designed to hold dry colour in place. The Pencil Blend (CF) did dissolve the colour a little, but the water was infinitely more effective.
3. Faber Castell Albrecht Durer Watercolour Pencils on Stonehenge paper
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: pencil blended with a dry paper stump; top right: pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom right: pencil blended with water and a brush
Burnishing with a dry paper stump gave a nice smooth result but lifted a lot of the colour away judging by the amount of colour on the paper stump afterwards.
When blending with Pencil Blend (CF), the solvent evaporated really quickly and didn’t really soften the pencil strokes. After usage I noticed a halo on the back of the paper where the solvent had bled into the paper around the edges of the colour. I had clearly applied quite a lot of Pencil Blend (CF) but it had little effect on the pencil marks. When I then tried using water instead the results were even more apparent than with Supracolor – the water appeared to completely unlock the colour which appeared ten times more vibrant.
4. Pitt Pastel Pencils
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: pencil blended with a dry paper stump; top right: blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom right: blended with water and a brush
Although Pitt Pastel pencils are also watersoluble I tested them with the Pencil Blend (CF) as well as I thought they might behave a bit differently to a conventional wax based watersoluble pencil.
The pastel pencil blended beautifully with a dry paper stump. Burnishing removed all the texture of the drawn lines to leave smooth colour.
Applying the Pencil Blend(CF) using a brush did not move the colour around and you can still see a trace of the drawn lines. The square appeared darker than it did before the pencil blend was applied, even once dry. It did some blending, but the colour did not dissolve as easily as in water.
Applying water to the square below with a brush clearly dissolved the colour into the water as it lifted off on to the brush. It was easier to blend away the drawn lines and move the colour around. Consequently I will stop the experimenting with Pitt Pencils here as it’s apparent that water is the better medium to use for blending, but the absolute best blend was achieved with a dry paper stump.
These findings were sufficient proof that Pencil Blend doesn’t work with watersoluble pencils, so at this point I stopped testing the Supracolor, Albrecht Durer and Pitt Pastel pencils.
5. Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils
5a: Polychromos on Stonehenge paper
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending I noticed this was easier to blend than the other pencils by itself, just as I put the colour on. Lovely medium – hard consistency.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump the colour lightened and saturation was reduced, but it softened the pencil marks well, although you could still see a trace of the drawn lines.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) Maintained the intensity of the darkest area and blended nicely through the gradation to the lightest area. However you can still see a trace of the drawn lines. Adding the pencil blend gave a warmth to the quality of the square.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) It was much much quicker to blend the square. I used the paper stump at an angle to make use of the whole of the angle on the stump. It instantly melted the drawn lines, however it was harder to control and the square largely looks uniform in tone and saturation when I wanted one corner to the dark and the other light. Trying to lift some of the colour using a stump dipped in PB from the lightest corner doesnt seem to work, and rubbing the square with a piece of kitchen towel only lifts the colour marginally. If I want to regain the tonal variation I’ll need to add more pencil and pencil blend to the darkest corner.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) When I applied 3 layers of pencil with PB I found that I could start to manipulate the colour a bit and move it around on the surface of the paper, to make an even gradation. I could achieve a really dark intense area in the darkest corner.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) Again, I felt the surface was smoother than when I worked with a brush, but I couldn’t get the dark corner to be as dark as the corner I made in the square using a brush to apply the pencil blend. The lightest corner appeared smoother than in the square with the brush + PB.
After leaving the squares overnight to fully dry I noticed marks where I had perhaps used too much Pencil Blend – most apparent in the square where I applied 3 layers with a brush. The strokes appear slightly milky on the surface, possibly the binder from the pencil re-solidifying on the surface of the paper having been wetted by the Pencil Blend.
5b. Polychromos on Cartridge paper
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – Very similar results to applying on Stonehenge, slightly more textured as a result of the texture on the surface on the paper.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – could not blend the colour as much as on the Stonehenge. Drawn lines still very visible.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Paper stump was better – the drawn lines were smoothed out, didn’t need as much Pencil Blend. Gradation was kept easily even with the paper stump.
- Blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – Very similar results, although because the paper stump was pushing the colour into the paper the darkest corner appeared darker and more even. In the brushed square you can see traces of the brush dipped in PB moving the colour around on the surface of the paper, so it is very slightly more uneven.
5c. Polychromos on Pastelmat
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The texture of Pastelmat accentuates the drawn line naturally and brings out more of the colour than smoother surfaces such as cartridge and Stonehenge. It’s easy to get a very warm, soft appearance with the pencil without any blending whatsoever. The texture of the paper does quickly eat up the lead of the pencil though, in comparison to cartridge or Stonehenge.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Blending with a dry paper stump is easy, there is a slight indentation in the surface of the paper which was accentuated by the colour applied to it (the dent didn’t pick up as much colour and it really shows). The dry blended square brings out the colour of the pencil and looks dramatically different to the first square. The colour could be mistaken for soft pastel.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Pastelmat instantly feels like the ideal surface for blending with Pencil Blend and a brush. The solvent stays wet for longer than the other papers I’ve tried so far, meaning you can blot the colour and lift it, move it around, and the drawn lines dissolve really easily. The end result could be mistaken for watercolour. The colour does bleed out ever so slightly which is something that doesn’t happen with Stonehenge or cartridge paper. Blending with a paper stump delivers a similar looking result, although the stump is less able to lift the colour and move it around. It looks more like a drawing based application of colour than the painterly brush and Pencil Blend combination in the square above.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The Pastelmat could take 3 layers, with the darkest corner becoming really intensely dark. It was easier to control the blend with the brush – with the paper stump the gradation got lost a little bit as colour spread into the lightest corner.
5d. Polychromos on LuxArchival
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – A much coarser sandpaper- type surface, LuxArchival really picks up the colour. It easily makes the colour look very saturated and intense. Shading accumulated a lot of dust and ate up the pencil a lot more quickly than the other surfaces. It really felt like I was working with pastel pencils rather than Polychromos. The sensation of drawing on this paper is very chalky.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Lifted a lot of the colour away again, leaving a very soft powdery/soft pastel like effect. Accumulated more dust than the other papers.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – I did not use my usual circular movement with a brush on the Lux Archival because it would damage the brush hairs, so instead I used short strokes in one direction. As well as blending the colour it also partially lifted the colour with every stroke, leaving a bit of a watery dappled effect. Pretty amazing how different all the outcomes are. Using a paper stump gave another really different effect again – it took a couple of goes to find a way of working that didn’t just lift the colour up. I found a bit of pressure into the paper in a circular motion worked to achieve a really intense, rich blend. I found that when I rubbed the pencil in with the stump it was initially moving it around on the surface leaving pockets of the white paper showing through, before the solvent helped to press the colour into the surface. This makes me think it’s not a very controlled way of blending as colour ends up being in a different place to where you intended to have it. However the end result does look rich and intense.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The paper was able to hold the colour really well, so after 3 layers the intensity of the colour was very apparent. Once dry you can rub your finger over the paper and the colour hardly comes off at all. In the square with PB applied with a brush the brush marks show and the colour could be mistaken for gouache. I used a lot less Pencil Blend when using the stump and as a result that square dried much more quickly, and the colour looks more powdery than painterly.
5e. Polychromos on Bristol Board
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
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- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The smoothness of the paper means that there is a lower friction when pencil is applied and as a result the colour appears less saturated and more feint. I had to apply more pressure in order to get the colour comparable to other papers.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – I needed to apply a lot of pressure with the dry paper stump to burnish the shading. The feint lines still show but I managed a bit of softening of the drawn lines. However the darker lines are more stubborn and cannot be softened with the stump. The gradation from dark – light became less subtle after working into the shading using the paper stump.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The brush doesn’t offer the pressure needed to soften all the drawn lines, but it does go some way to blending the colours. The paper stump is much more effective.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The solvent evaporates much more quickly than on LuxArchival. More colour is hard to get on the surface after the second layer. Between the brush and the stump, the stump works much better. However it is hard to get the intensity of the darkest area that I achieved on the other papers.
6. Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor Pencils
6a. Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor on Stonehenge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The pencil itself has a soft creamy consistency and so it’s easy to lay colour on in a blended way without the aid of Pencil Blend but it will be interesting to see what happens when I use it anyway. In the first square you could see a slight trace of the drawn lines.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – When I used a dry paper stump to burnish it easily softened any traceable drawn lines.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The PB with a brush did not break down the drawn pencil lines as much as I would have expected – only very slightly. Using the paper stump was more effective but I think that was wholly because of the pressure I was applying with the paper stump.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – After 3 layers there is very little different between the brush applied square and the paper stump square. They appear very even and matt and solid in their colour.
6b. Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor on Cartridge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – Similar results to the Stonehenge.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Both pencils burnish well with a dry stump.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The brush just soaked the paper and it made the paper transparent – like a greasemark on fish and chip paper. It will be interesting to see what happens after some time – if it evaporates and shows differently. Paper stump blending much more effective – the paper did not saturate because less PB was needed to blend. After drying over night the square with the PB + brush is discoloured and the drawn marks are still visible – it hasn’t worked at all. I wondered if the brush was unclean so I washed it and tried again but the same thing happened again. The paper can’t seem to withstand the PB which only has little effect in blending the Lyra pencil. It works much better with the pencil stump, although it is hard to control the gradation from pale to dark in the square. After a couple of days the paper looks much better – the solvent appears to have evaporated fully and the colour looks a lot purer and blended. When I did the same test with the Pablo pencil, the same discolouration occured, but then after a few days it went away. I imagine this could be quite difficult to work with, as it would be hard to know what your true colours will be. This issue did not occur with my Polychromos pencil test, but I think that’s because it was a darker colour pencil. Having done these tests I would assume PB is not recommended for use with a brush on cartridge paper with the lightest colours.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The colour does look significantly more saturated after 3 layers have been applied with the Lyra, so the paper is able to take more colour. The gradation is maintained more successfully in the square where the PB has been applied with a brush. However with the Pablo it was a struggle to even put the second layer of colour on – the paper didn’t seem to have any more capacity for holding colour. I did find that I needed to change my brush technique when blending to get the best result. If I move the brush in a circular motion on the surface it helps the solvent work into the drawn lines and soften them. I have learned that the build up of friction is necessary in dissolving the pencil, you can’t just expect one brush stroke to smooth the lines. With both the Lyra and Pablo pencils it was very difficult to maintain the gradation from dark – light when blending with a paper stump dipped in PB, but it was successful in softening out the drawn lines to make solid squares of colour.
6c. Lyra Rembrandt on Pastelmat
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The texture of the paper really picks up the colour and allows it to look very vibrant with a powder like texture,, a trace of the drawn lines are visible in the shading.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Didn’t blend as easily with a dry stump, the texture of the paper started to chew up the paper stump, but it did soften the drawn lines, which were more noticeable in the green shading of the Pablo pencil.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – My brush, despite being rinsed, still clearly had a lot of colour from the polychromos pencil in it, and so this discoloured my first attempt with the Lyra. It’s key to use a really clean brush, washed with soap and water if you are dramatically changing colour! Brush using a circular movement gave a better blended result than the stump, more control and more blended. Unfortunately I suspect it could wear a brush out quite quickly though.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The colour appears markedly more vibrant and strong after 3 layers of application – the paper can hold a lot of colour. Again it was easier to maintain the gradation from dark – light when using the brush rather than the paper stump.
6d. Lyra Rembrandt Polycolor on Bristol Board
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The pencil has sifficient hardness so the drawn lines are quite prominent.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – only had a little effect and the drawn lines were still quite visible.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – blending with the brush dipped in Pencil Blend did very little apart from saturate the paper and leave a grease mark. The lines werent really softened at all. By comparison the paper stump dipped in Pencil Blend was much more effective, the lines were softened and gave a nice blend.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – even after 3 layers you can still see the drawn lines when using a brush, didn’t really work at all. Much better with the paper stump, its clear you need the pressure for the solvent to help break down the pencil marks.
7. Caran d’Ache Pablo Pencils
7a. Pablo on Stonehenge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – the vellum texure of the paper accentuates the texture offered by the pencil when shading dry and unblended.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – It was easy to soften a lot of the shading, save for some of the heaviest drawn lines in the darker corner of the shaded square.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The Pencil Blend broke down the colour a little when blended with a brush, but not all the drawn lines were softened by the Pencil Blend.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – Both squares were blended beautifully, however it was harder to control the gradation from dark to light when blending with the paper stump.
7b. Pablo on Cartridge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – As expected, the texture of the paper accentuated the texture of the drawn lines and a good tonal range could be achieved in the shading.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – It was possible to soften out most of the drawn lines, although some remained in the darker corner of the shading.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Blending with a brush did not have much impact and looks similar to the unblended square of shading. However when using more pressure with the paper stump most of the lines were softened out.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – Both squares were softened out completely, although the gradation of tone was maintained more with the brush. The paper stump made most of the square tonally uniform, and also lightened the value of the colour overall because a lot of the colour was lifted from the paper by the stump.
7c. Pablo on Pastelmat
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The texture of the Pastelmat brings out the tonal depth of the pencil
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The dry paper stump was able to soften most of the square but the shading kept a powdery look as some of the colour is held in the crevices of the paper’s texture.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – There’s very little difference between the brush and paper stump after one layer – both ways of blending were able to soften the drawn lines. It was easier to maintain the gradation of tone from dark to light when blending with the brush rather than the paper stump. The white line seen in the paper stump square is the result of an indentation in the paper – a warning that Pastelmat needs to be kept flat!
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – After 3 layers the shading in both squares appears intense and rich and smooth, with a great tonal range.
7d. Pablo on Bristol Board
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – On this very smooth paper, the drawn lines are very visible.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The paper stump is able to smudge some of the colour but the drawn lines are still very visible.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – With the brush, the shading looks almost untouched and very similar with the unblended square. The greater pressure that you can apply with a paper stump softens the lines in the square below.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – If you compare this square with the Pastelmat equivalent above, you can see how much texture will hold colour in place. On this very smooth paper the colour is easily lifted by both the paper stump in particular. The brush has not been capable of smoothing the drawn lines over at all.
8. Pitt Oil Based Pencils
8a. Pitt Oil on Stonehenge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – A good tonal range from dark to light, the subtle texture of the paper is reflected in the drawn lines.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – As soon as I started to burnish with a dry paper stump I loved this pencil even more and will definitely be adding some to my armoury. It blends really easily with a dry paper stump, the drawn marks just fell away, I guess a lot like a charcoal mark. However when burnishing the darker corner it did lift a lot of the colour off the paper so if one wanted to establish dark marks you would need to work back into dark areas with more colour.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – When blending with the paper stump dipped in PB the drawn lines dissolved effortlessly and the blending looked very smoky and smooth. More of the black stayed on the paper in the darkest corner than when burnishing with a dry stump. The drawn lines did not dissolve as much when using a brush, and surprisingly the hue of the square looked cooler/more grey than when burnished with a clean paper stump dipped in PB, which started to look slightly warmer/browner.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – It was most satisfying using the paper stump and PB on the oil based pencil. What’s more the colour that rubs off on to the paper stump can be drawn with so make soft smoky lines. After the 2nd layer the paper appeared saturated with colour and I couldn’t make the black any blacker in the dark corner of the square. As I’m beginning to expect, the paper stump is better than the brush in removing the drawn lines, but it is harder to keep control over the gradation from dark to light that I want in each square. Conversely the brush is good at keeping control of the gradation but the drawn lines do not get dissolved as much.
8b. Pitt Oil on Cartridge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – As expected, drawn lines are visible and there is a fair amount of texture.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Dry paper stump does a good job of blending as it is. Lines are softened and the burnishing brings out a warmth in the colour.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – You can still see the drawn lines but it does soften a blend a little when using a brush. With the paper stump, as with the Stonehenge paper, the colour appears warmer and the drawn lines are smoothed almost completely.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – Drawn lines are dissolved with the brush and the gradation is maintained. With the paper stump the gradation is harder to control, and gets a bit lost. But the square looks very blended and smooth.
8c. Pitt Oil on Pastelmat
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – A good range from dark to light, as expected.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The darkest area becomes slightly lighter after burnishing, but more solid, as to be expected. Burnishing with a dry stump creates a smoky soft blend and the pencil lines are softened away completely.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Results are as expected, although the dark areas take on an intensity, far blacker than on the cartridge or Stonehenge.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – By applying 3 layers the dark areas start to look slightly shiny as the oil became caked into the surface of the paper.
8d. Pitt Oil on Bristol Board
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – Although you can get the intense black marks down on this paper, it requires a lot more effort than a textured paper like Pastelmat. Has a nice lithographic, crayon like texture to the drawn lines, a softer version of what is achieved on the cartridge paper.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The drawn lines soften with a paper stump but the intensity of the dark marks is lost when the paper stump is rubbed over – the stump seems to pick up quite a lot of the colour.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The intensity isn’t lost as much, but some of the drawn lines are still visible when using a brush. With a stump the drawn lines disappear but the darks are lost a bit.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – hard to get the colour on after 2 layers – felt like the paper couldn’t hold anymore. Very little difference in appearance between 1 layer and 3 layers. 3 layers on Bristol board isn’t even as dark as 1 layer on Pastelmat.
9. Derwent Graphic Graphite Pencil (3B)
9a. Derwent Graphic on Stonehenge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – As to be expected, it doesn’t feel as oily as the oil pencil, it has a more brittle feel than the oil pencil.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The paper stump lifts the graphite away quite easily from the dark corner, and softens the drawn lines with ease.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The pencil blend with a brush struggled to soften the drawn lines, which proves added pressure is more effective. Using the Pencil Blend increased the darkness and intensity of the graphite, but didn’t do much in terms of softening drawn lines. The paper stump softened the lines more than the brush.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The paper struggled to take 3 layers of shading, as result the 3-layer squares are only marginally darker than the 1 layer squares.
I then thought I would try blending with water to see what results occurred in comparison. The water went some way to blending but it was very uneven. Some drawn lines were completely softened but it accentuated other areas where the graphite was less dissolvable, creating interesting textures but a no means smooth, blended, burnished square.
9b. Derwent Graphic on Cartridge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – As expected, visible drawn lines and a fair amount of texture as accentuated by the grain of the paper.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Burnishes well with a dry paper stump, the paper stump fills the gaps between the drawn lines and the result is a solid and intense application of graphite.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Fairly comparable, graphite dissolves nicely and the gradation is maintained, although the blend is easier to control with the brush.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – With the brush, you have more freedom – it’s possible to lift the graphite and move it around, similar to a watercolour pencil and water. You have more control and so you can blend with quite painterly effects. Once the solvent has evaporated the pencil is still smudgeable and erasable. With the stump it is a little less easy to control but you can still achieve a really nice blend and control the gradation. Also smudgeable and erasable.
9c. Derwent Graphic on Pastelmat
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – As someone who only really draws on cartridge paper usually, working on pastelmat is like driving a Rolls Royce! Graphite marks have a look that reminds me of very soft mezzotints or lithographs.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Blending with a dry stump works really well, so there is an argument for not using any PB at all. The result is a soft powdery, smoky blend.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Using the PB brings out the intensity and darkness of the graphite in the darkest corner quite dramatically in comparison to the square that was burnished with a dry stump. More control with the brush than the stump dipped in PB.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – I found that I couldn’t get it much darker than I achieved with just one layer, the graphite was already as dark as it could be (which was pretty dark!) The strokes of graphite where the paper could not take anymore are visible as slightly shiny streaks.
9d. Derwent Graphic on Bristol Board
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – Darks nowhere near as dark as can be achieved easily on cartridge, Pastelmat or Stonehenge. However the pencil shading has a gentle soft quality.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Worked pretty well -softened well with a dry paper stump although some drawn lines were still visible in the darker area.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – When applying PB with a brush, drawn lines are still visible, there is not enough pressure to dissolve them. Working with the pencil blend was more effective with the paper stump.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – With the brush, the graphite started to move off the surface of the paper, and meant that I could create some painterly brush marks with the graphite, and move it around a bit. With the paper stump I managed to get it considerably darker after three layers than just one- the paper held the graphite better than the oil based pencil. Lovely smoky blend.
10. Caran d’Ache Luminance Pencils
10a. Luminance on Stonehenge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The intensity of the colour is helped by the vellum texture of the Stonehenge. The colour glides on, it’s a very creamy texture pencil with the ability for a wide tonal range.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The dry paper stump had minimal effect on the shading, you can see that the drawn lines have smudged a bit, but the drawn lines are still very much visible.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – When I first applied Pencil Blend to the shaded square with a brush, the drawn lines did not instantly dissolve. I worked the liquid into the shading with the brush and although some of the colour clearly broke down to soften the shading, it was far from the extent of dissolving you would expect when applying a wet brush over a watercolour pencil. If anything these was less effect using a paper stump dipped in Pencil Blend, which is surprising as in the past the greater degree of pressure you can apply with the paper stump meant that drawn lines had a tendency to break down further than when PB is applied with a brush,
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The results were surprising in that I expected the Pencil Blend to have a much greater effect on the shaded squares than it did, even when applying it with a lot of pressure and a paper stump. Looking at these squares now it’s almost as if Pencil Blend wasn’t applied at all.
10b. Luminance on Cartridge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – Because cartridge paper is smoother than Stonehenge the tonal range was not as wide from dark – light when shading the dry pencil. Drawn lines are still apparent, and the colour still appears very intense and creamy.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – There is a slight softening of the drawn lines where blending with a dry paper stump. This is most apparent in the dark corner of the square.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – A slight softening of both squares occurred, but no more than the results found on Stonehenge. Consequently the tonal range of the squares from dark – light narrowed slightly. In the square burnished with the wet paper stump it was difficult to control and so the tonal range of the whole square became almost uniform.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – Again, surprisingly the Pencil Blend failed to soften the lightest drawn lines although it did have a slight effect in the lighter corner of both squares. The square where I used a brush to work the Pencil Blend into the shading appeared slightly more blended than the square that I used the paper stump on.
10c. Luminance on Pastelmat
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – As expected, shading with Luminance on to Pastelmat really shows up the dimpled surface of this paper. The tonal range is wide, and the shading takes on a pastel like quality. Also, as to be expected, the friction caused by the texture of the Pastelmat meant that a lot of pencil was used up when shading – a lot more than on the cartridge or Stonehenge.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The paper stump had much more of an effect than on the Stonehenge or cartridge. Although the drawn lines were not softened completely there was clearly enough of the colour laid on to the surface of the Pastelmat to be moved around by the paper stump.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Pencil Blend has more of an effect on this surface, with the majority of the drawn lines softened completely when it is applied with a brush and the shading taking on a more painterly quality. When applying the Pencil Blend with a paper stump the shading kept more of its pastel like texture.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – Applying the Pencil Blend with a brush for 3 layers gave a really smooth paint like quality, with a real depth of colour that has a velvet like texture where the colour is applied at its heaviest. When I applied 3 layers of colour, burnishing with Pencil Blend and a paper stump between layers, the resulting square is less smooth looking and still pastel-like in its texture.
10d. Luminance on Bristol Board
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The smoothest of the papers, the Luminance glides on. The tonal range is narrower as a result, as there is no texture to grab the colour and hold it on its surface. But the shading appears smooth.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – Hardly any effect at all, although the tonal range is narrowed with the dark corner losing some of its colour and consequently appearing lighter.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – Very little difference when using the Pencil Blend with a brush. The paper stump seemed to just remove the colour from the surface but did not smooth out the drawn lines.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – After 3 layers of colour and pencil blend, the colour freely moved around on this very smooth surface. As a result with the brush and PB the square appears pretty uniform in its colour and tone, with my gradation getting lost in the blending. When the paper stump square, the drawn lines are still visible. I would say Pencil Blend doesn’t work too well with Luminance on this surface
Conclusion with Luminance – by far most effective on Pastelmat, didn’t really work on the other papers, which implied it may not be suited to use with wax pencils. Testing its efficacy with a harder wax pencil – the Derwent Studio – will offer a useful comparison.
11. Derwent Studio Pencils
11a. Derwent Studio on Stonehenge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – As expected. Good tonal range, drawn lines are visibile on the slightly textured paper.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The dry paper stump was effective particularly in the lighter corner of the shading. In the darker corner it was not possible to burnish away the darkest lines.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The paper stump was more effective at burnishing away the drawn lines, however, it also lifted away more of the colour than the brush did. As a result, the tonal range was maintained better in the square burnished with Pencil Blend and a brush, but the square blended with a paper stump appeared smoother with less visible drawn lines.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – After 3 layers, the two squares look equally smooth to one another, but the brush has lifted less of the colour away in the darker corner and so has a greater tonal range.
11b. Derwent Studio on Cartridge
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The pencil shows its drawn lines crisply and sharply, with a good tonal range.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – This buffed up the shading and gave it a glossy surface, as well as softening the drawn lines in the lighter corner away completely. It was not possible to completely burnish away the lines in the darker corner.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The paper stump was more effective in burnishing the shading, although it was not possible to soften some of the heavier drawn lines away completely. With the brush, none of the drawn lines were softened away. Some of the colour did smooth over to give a more even gradation from light to dark in the square, but I would say overall the Pencil Blend and brush had only a little effect.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – The ‘brush’ square looks a little rougher than the paper stump square, with traces of brush marks and drawn lines. The paper stump square appears completely smooth and deep in colour.
11c. Derwent Studio on Pastelmat
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The texture of the Pastelmat gives the Derwent Studio pencil shading a more pastel like quality. The drawn lines are less prominent than on smoother surfaces such as the cartridge and the Stonehenge papers.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The paper stump is capable of smoothing all but the very heaviest drawn lines. The tonal range is reduced as some of the heaviest colour is lifted from the surface by the paper stump, but the square does look smooth and well blended.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – The brush blended square still has traces of drawn lines in it. The tonal range is still as wide as the completely dry unblended square. There has been some blending and softening but it hasn’t been entirely successful. There’s a much smoother result in the paper stump blended square, although again the tonal range has been reduced where the stump has lifted some of the darkest shading.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – There is such a difference between the 2, 3-layer squares! The brush blended square has a much greater tonal range and you can see traces of the brush marks – it has taken on a painterly quality. The paper stump square looks completely smooth but is almost a completely different colour. It is much more yellow than red.
11d. Derwent Studio on Bristol Board
Top left: pure pencil; bottom left: blended with a dry paper stump; top centre: 1 layer of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush; bottom centre: blended with Pencil Blend and a paper stump; top right: 3 layers of pencil blended with Pencil Blend and a brush between each layer; bottom right: 3 layers of pencil blended between each layer with Pencil Blend and a paper stump.
- Shading with the pencil without any blending – The shading appeared with less of a tonal range than on papers with a slight tooth such as the cartridge and Stonehenge. Drawn lines are visible.
- When I burnished with a dry paper stump – The paper stump has able to soften the lightest drawn lines, but in the darker corner the lines would not soften.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (1 layer) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (1 layer) – When blending with the brush and Pencil Blend, very little happened. In fact this square looks pretty identical to the square that has not undergone any blending at all. When the paper stump is used, the lines are softened and the tonal range reduced. You can still see some of the heaviest drawn lines, but a lot are blended away in comparison to the square where a dry paper stump was used for blending.
- When blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a brush (3 layers) vs blending with Pencil Blend (CF) and a paper stump (3 layers) – Again, the tonal range is greatest in the square that is blended with a brush, however only by a fraction. You can see traces of drawn lines in the square blended with a brush as well. In comparison the square blended with a paper stump is much smoother.
The Pencil Blend works best on the Pastelmat paper with Derwent Studio pencils, and only really has a good effect using the greatest amount of pressure with a paper stump dipped in Pencil Blend on all the other papers I tried it with.
Conclusion
Pencil blend works best with darker colours, and gives different qualities depending on the pencils and surfaces you are working with. Papers with a greater amount of texture, such as Pastelmat, yielded the best results, because the friction between the colour and the surface allowed more of the colour to be deposited on to the paper, and so there is more pigment for the Pencil Blend to break down.
A brush offers a more controlled blend but the lack of pressure you can apply means that drawn lines are often visible.
A paper stump allows you to apply more pressure and so the colour is better burnished, but it can be hard to control a gradation of tone.
Pencil Blend does not work on water soluble pencils. Pencil Blend works best with soft, oil based pencils such as Faber Castell Polychromos or Faber Castell Oil Base Pencils. It only works to a degree with wax based pencils such as Luminance or Derwent Studio pencils.
For highly blended work with maximum colour depth I would choose to work with Polychromos pencils on Pastelmat, using the Pencil Blend, or for monochrome work I would use the Faber Castell Oil Based pencil, also on Pastelmat. However if I needed a smoother surface in order to have more control over details, I would then choose a smoother paper such as cartridge or Stonehenge.
Jackson’s Studio Synthetic Brushes
Pencils:
Faber Castell Albrecht Durer Watercolour
Swan Stabilo All Surface pencil
Papers:
7 Comments
Thank you Lisa for the thorough article on the Pencil Blend (CF) I hope it helps people choose the best pencils and paper for use with the Pencil Blend (CF).
Tip: the Blending Sponge is a valuable asset for controlling the amount of fluid.
These in depth articles really explore and help so much in educating us about art. Thank you.
Thank you Christine!
Thank you so much for this exercise,it saves
me a lot time and money! I am a bit confused
as what the letters CF stands for? Thank
you, I always look forward to your examples..
Hi Judith! Thanks for your comment, the CF stands for ‘Citrus Free’, i.e. odourless (there is also one that has a citrus scent).
Merci très très bien
Thank you so much!