Kitaboshi is a Japanese family-owned business that has been making pencils for over three decades. The pencils are made from cedarwood sourced in Indonesia. The lacquered wood has a beautiful simplicity and the printed words “For Special Drawing” made me smile. They are obviously not for any old drawing. I bought the Art Set of 12 pencils containing a range from 6B to 4H from Choosing Keeping.  I have to say I really like theses pencils. I must do as I have started two other drawings with them. They are very smooth to draw with. I have had no issues with scratchiness or inconsistencies in the graphite. They are not grainy either. This makes me question the similarities I have seen pointed out between Kitaboshi and Blackwing pencils. I cannot draw with Blackwing’s as they are too soft and grainy, but these are great to draw with. They also sharpen pretty well and do not give off too much graphite dust. They also blend well, so all in all I like them a lot. My only issue was t...

  The Staedtler Mars Lumograph are the premium quality pencils Staedtler make for artists. I was curious to see how they compare to the cheaper Staedtler Tradition 110 and Staedtler Noris 120 pencils. My first impression was that they have quite a lot of resistance when you are drawing. They feel very similar to the Staedtler Tradition pencils to draw with. They do not glide over the paper like the Staedtler Noris pencils which I fell in love with. The Mars Lumograph pencils come in 24 degrees from 12B to 10H which is a really good range. They are very consistent as they go up through the grades, there are no sharp jumps in tone unlike the Faber-Castell 9000, which change markedly between the harder and softer grades. Below is a comparison between the Mars Lumograph and Tradition pencils and the Faber-Castell 9000. The Mars Lumograph also blend well and I found them good for fine detail. The only issue being that when I sharpened them, the leads started splintering, making it hard ...

I had an interesting journey with the Staedtler Noris 120 pencils. I decided that they are strange beasts, and nothing like the Staedtler Tradition 110 pencils I reviewed previously.  When I took them out of the packet they felt heavier than other pencils. This could be because, according to Staedtler, they are made from upcycled wood chips from   PEFC-certified, sustainably managed forests. They felt nice to hold so I was pretty hopeful that I would like them to draw with. I was even more hopeful when I realised that they literally glide across the paper. Initially, this felt uncontrollable, like gliding on ice. The first drawing I started on Langton Prestige hot pressed watercolour paper I gave up on. I just couldn't get it to work. I just didn't have any control over what I was drawing due to a lack of resistance from the pencils. The second drawing, in a sketchbook with smooth heavyweight paper, I initially gave up on too, but later went back and finished it.  I ...

Staedtler Tradition Drawing Pencils.   Staedtler's Mars Lumograph are their premium quality pencils aimed at artists, but I was curious to see what the Staedtler Tradition 110 pencils were like to draw with. I came across a pack of six pencils for drawing for £3.99 and thought I would give them a try.  The box was supposed to contain a 6B, 4B, 2B, B, HB and 2H, but the box I bought contained two 2H's and no 2B which was a bit odd. Ferreting around for my Faber-Castell 9000's to do a comparison with, I found another packet of these pencils and a 2B. How long I have had those I don't know. Staedtler Tradition Drawing Pencils. When I think of pencils I always think of this design with the red and black stripes or the Staedtler Noris pencils with the yellow and black stripes. I think they remind me of school, that may be why I have never tried them. I started off using the B grade pencil and was quite impressed. It was very smooth to draw with. I then tried one of the 2H pe...

Another of my favourite papers to draw on is Saunders Waterford hot pressed watercolour paper. It is cylinder mould made, 100% cotton paper made by St. Cuthbert's Mill. It is gelatine surface sized which means it is not vegan. It is also buffered with calcium carbonate to defend work from discolouration caused by acids in pollution. This makes it archival.  Saunders Waterford HP is a softer paper than the Arches Aquarelle HP watercolour paper. It also provides a smooth drawing surface. That is the only issue I have with this paper, that my drawings often turn out ghostly. This is probably because there is not much tooth to catch the graphite particles.  If you like high contrast in your drawings or deep blacks, then this may not be the paper for you. A better option could be Langton Prestige hot pressed watercolour paper as this has a bit more texture. It is also 100% cotton. My solution to this issue is to use darker pencils than my favourite Faber-Castell 9000's. I find the ...

  Why did I buy a journal covered in mushrooms? In my head I am a minimalist but the things I buy tend to be maximalist. I also like mushrooms and this is a nice design by Merlin Sheldrake. The real reason I bought the journal was that I opened it and felt the paper. The paper is smooth with a little bit of texture and is a dream to write on. I have been using it to write my Artists Way morning pages which consist of three pages of anything, without fail, every day. The more I use the journal the more I like it. I always used to write in softback notebooks as I found them easier to write in. This has a lay flat binding which is holding up well.  I can't say if it is any good with fountain pens. My writing slopes backwards and most fountain pens can't cope with that. Instead I use Oxford Helix ballpoint pens. The journal has 160 lined pages, an elastic band to keep the journal shut, inside back cover pocket and 120gsm acid free paper. The journal was £9.99 in Waterstones. Mushr...