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When you compare brands, you’ll find that they all have a unique combination of price, consistency, permanence, color range, and pigment concentration. Some brands are objectively better than others, but when it comes to the leading brands, much of the difference is down to personal taste.
In general, my favorite brands are prismacolor, caran d’ache, faber-castell and derwent . They have a proven track record and offer high quality products for artists.
You are reading: What are the best colored pencils for coloring books
Because different colored pencils of each type can be used in the same artwork, you don’t need to feel pressured to pick one brand and stick with it. It’s a good idea to buy a few individual pencils from different brands, so you can try them out and see what you like. once you discover a particular brand you prefer, it may be worth the investment to buy a game.
best colored pencils
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My overall choice is the premium soft core prismacolor colored pencils, which represent the best combination of price and performance for most people.
I own and enjoy numerous brands of colored pencils, but I’ve been using prismacolors the longest – 25 years! I have the 132 pencil set and they are the ones I reach for most often when creating art with colored pencils.
Prismacolors are among the softest colored pencils you can buy and I love their creamy consistency. The wide range of 150 colors, which can be purchased individually or in sets, are vibrant and blend easily. They’re also cheaper than many other artist-grade pencils and are widely available in stores.
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but they’re not perfect: their softness means they won’t hold the tip as well as harder pencils, which can be a pain for artists who enjoy detailed work. To counteract this problem, I also have a set of Prismacolor Verithin pencils that work well with soft core pencils whenever I need a sharp point for detail. However, for proof that amazing detail can still be achieved with soft prismacolors, check out this Morgan Davidson artwork that he was able to create with just a set of 12 colors!
Another complaint with prismacolors is that their softness means you’ll need to sharpen them more often and they can break easily, so treat them with care. its lightfastness is also not as good as that of more expensive brands (such as caran d’ache), probably as a result of prismacolor’s very competitive prices (the best pigments are expensive!).
My choice of best oil-based colored pencils are the faber-castell polychromos pencils. I have the complete set of 120 pencils and they are a joy to use. they outperform prismacolors in several areas (permanence, durability), but cost significantly more. check them out if you are worried about wax blooming or if the prismacolor colors are too soft for your liking.
My upgrade option is the caran d’ache luminance pencils. These wax-based pencils are arguably the best colored pencils you can buy, but also the most expensive. In exchange for their higher prices, you get higher quality pigments that are more lightfast and wonderfully vibrant. they are not as smooth as prismacolors (but still quite smooth and creamy), and they suffer less from waxing. Unless you’re a professional artist or blessed with an unlimited budget, these are overkill, but I couldn’t help but mention them as the crème de la crème.
My inexpensive choice is premium prismacolor soft core colored pencils. As discussed above, these pencils are not without their flaws, but the value for money they offer is hard to beat. I haven’t discussed prices much in this article because they tend to fluctuate (and blick always has sales), but at the time of writing, you can get a set of 24 prismacolors for anywhere from $20-$25! considering what you can accomplish with these pencils, that’s quite a bargain!