A GUIDE TO CHOOSING
COLOURED PENCILS FOR PROFESSIONAL USE

Coloured pencils are used daily by many artists, illustrators, draughters, architects, designers and landscapers. In both creative and technical tasks, these utensils should meet the user’s specialised needs for precision, hue, and durability.

What factors make a coloured pencil right for professional use?

HOW TO IDENTIFY AND CHOOSE PROFESSIONAL-GRADE COLOURED PENCILS

Not all coloured pencils are equal, or have the same characteristics. Some are made for children, and their lead and hand grips are designed accordingly. Others are destined for hobbyists and trained amateurs.

In looking for coloured pencils adapted for professional use, here are some criteria to consider.

Purpose: comics, architecture or illustration

Are you an artist, a designer, an architect or a colourist? Each profession has its own set of tools and techniques. Identify how your coloured pencils will be used. Do your projects require watercolour pencils or simply the normal pastel pencils? What drawing and colouring techniques will you use, and what kind of grip do you like to feel in your hand?

Lead pigmentation, smoothness and hardness

The lead inside a coloured pencil is made of wax and pigments that are either non-water-soluble or water-soluble, as in the case of watercolour pencils.

Concentration of the pigments, as well as their quality, influences the intensity and saturation of the pencils’ marks and thus of your drawings. The quality also determines how much the colours will fade over time. Caran d’Ache pencil leads are made from more than 100 pure pigments that are guaranteed to be of high quality, diversity and durability.

You will want a lead that goes down smoothly on paper and is either hard or soft, according to your needs. Soft lead is suited to colouring uniform and flat areas, creating overlays and shading: it provides good coverage. Hard lead is more suited for precise lines and hatching; it also wears down more slowly.

High-quality wood housing

Quality wood housing assures that a pencil is strong and easy to sharpen. That is why at Caran d’Ache we use cedar wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC™ certified wood) for all our coloured and graphite pencils.

Resistance to fading

At the request of the Colored Pencil Society of America, the American Society for Testing and Material (ASTM) developed a standard to classify the lightfastness of colours over time. The lightfastness classification indicates the level at which colours can resist fading when exposed to light. Caran d’Ache has achieved the highest rankings by this classification system.

A diverse colour palette

While there are no limits on how colours can be mixed, it is nevertheless practical to begin from an abundant selection of colours. Having a variety of shades at the ready broadens your options when blending new shades.

It can also save time — which is an advantage if you are a press artist, for example, where every minute counts.

WHICH CARAN D'ACHE COLOURED PENCILS ARE BEST FOR PROFESSIONALS?

To meet the specialised needs of art and design experts, Caran d’Ache has created two collections of coloured pencils. The LUMINANCE 6901® and the MUSEUM Aquarelle collections are Caran d’Ache innovations, designed to supply professionals with reliable tools of the trade.

These collections offer superb pigment concentration and lightfastness, to generate works that will keep their beauty for years. They bear the Swiss Made branding, a guarantee of quality and excellence.

Long-lasting LUMINANCE 6901® coloured pencils

Our range of LUMINANCE 6901® pencils is valued by art and design experts for superior lightfastness. This collection is unique in that it is the only collection of any brand to contain 81 colours rated Lightfastness I (LFI), the highest level of resistance according to the international standard ASTM D-6901. This standard is a guarantee of longevity. Pieces drawn with these pencils can maintain their colour intensity for up to 100 years.

ΔE quantifies the difference in colour of a swatch before and after exposure to light. Only coloured pencils with lightfastness (LF) classifications I or II, ΔE ≤ 8, are compliant with the ASTM D-6901 norm.

The LUMINANCE 6901® collection stands out for its exceptional range: 100 colours, including 8 unique to Caran d’Ache and unavailable elsewhere. This variety opens up unlimited creative possibilities.

Professionals turn to these coloured pencils because they contain smooth lead and high-concentration pigments. These features generate intense and bright colours, exceptional coverage, and incomparable drawing comfort.

LUMINANCE 6901® pencils are available in sets of various sizes. Our selection of 80 colours packaged in a birchwood box makes an excellent gift for design, drawing and illustration professionals.

Complement your set of coloured pencils with our blending stumps which come in two sizes. These are sold either as a kit or separately, and are included in some of the LUMINANCE 6901® sets. Made from a base of oil and wax, our blenders will bring out the brightness and lustre in your drawings.

MUSEUM Aquarelle coloured pencils for professional and travelling watercolourists

The MUSEUM Aquarelle series is designed for nomadic watercolourists and artists with the most demanding and uncompromising standards. These are not simply water-soluble pencils: they are extra-fine watercolours in pencil form. This innovative format was developed in our workshops with guidance from expert watercolourists. The collection is perfect for itinerant artists who wish to transport their watercolours easily. The pencils can also be used for dry drawing on paper.

MUSEUM Aquarelle pencils are available in sets of multiple sizes. The largest is a cedar-box set containing 80 colours to be juxtaposed, layered and blended according to your vision. The lead’s diameter facilitates shading and maximum coverage of flat areas in vivid colour.

Other supplies to complement your professional colour palette

Whether you are looking for manual pencil sharpeners, mechanical sharpening machines, graphite pencils, watercolour paintbrushes or blending stumps—you will find a variety of professional-grade accessories in our collection. Each will expand the creative potential of your coloured pencils.

Caran d’Ache products are trusted by well-known artists and designers, some of whom have become brand ambassadors. Such collaborations have allowed our company to offer visual art supplies adapted to professionals and to build a rich legacy of creations made with our products.

Swiss made

Our colour and writing products are manufactured in our workshops in Geneva since 1915.

Delivery

Free from 80£ purchase.
Possible return under 14 days.

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Customer service

Monday to Friday from 10am to 7pm and Saturday from 10am to 5pm.

+41 (0) 848 558 558

(Calls from Switzerland : at local rate. Calls from abroad : at telecom provider’s international rate.)