Graphite Tools
Somehow 50% of my artworks now are made with graphite on paper. So I though I could share the tools I use for making these drawings.
Drawing tools
1- Tortillon : for smudging and blending some areas. For bigger areas, you can use paper tissue or your fingers, which I don’t do anymore because my fingers are stained with graphite powder and I put some on the drawing even if I use another piece of paper to protect my drawing. I prefer to stay clean!
2- Mechanical pencils by Alvin in different size : 0.3 mm, 0.5 mm and 0.7 mm. I love them so much, especially the 0.3 mm that I use all the time because it’s perfect to draw the details. I put a 2B graphite lead in the 0.5 mm so I can have a darker tone.
3,4 and 5- Another batch of mechanical pencils by Pentel. I bought another 0.3 mm, a 0.5 mm with 4B lead and a big 0.9 mm with 2B lead so I can cover more black areas quickier. I couldn’t find darker leads than 4B.
6- Wooden graphite pencils are still useful. A 4H allows me to make very light streaks. A 4B will to cover black areas and will spare my 4B leads in my mechanical pen.
7- Some of my lead packs.
8- I bought this because they are supposed to get darkest black shade without the glare of regular graphite pencils and they should be blending well with lighter lead. I haven’t tried these yet, so I’ll update and give my impressions when I do.
Eraser tools
1- Eraser pen 2.3 mm : the finest eraser I found for very small details.
2- Eraser pen 4 mm : another fine eraser, I use it all the time.
3- Plastic eraser by Staedtler.
4- Kneaded eraser can be shaped and lift graphite from paper without rubbing. So you can lighten a precise area or to catch some graphite dust.
5- Eraser shield: I don’t use this often but it really helps to erase fine details.
6- This black eraser is helpful for erasing on colored paper. When you use the standard eraser, it tends to leaves a light white mark on colored paper. I don’t use it for my graphite work but I wanted to show you this one anyway.
7- A fluffy paintbrush to brush off the crumbs or the graphite powder without touching the drawing and smudging by accident.
