New Lights

 

12/11/25 Maple Leaf neighborhood

More extravagant with lights than the house I sketched last week, this family also likes the freeform look on their shrubs and trees. They put up a few more strings of multi-colored lights than they had last year, and a small, illuminated snowman, too. My favorite part is the quiet tree in their upstairs window.

Moral Dilemma Evaded: New Colors of Derwent Drawing!

 

72 colors at last!

Once in a rare while, my blog pays off in unexpected ways.

When I first reviewed Derwent Drawing Pencils back in 2018, I mentioned what many fans of these pencils have long complained about: Why hasn’t the British pencil manufacturer expanded the color range of this long-standing, unique line of colored pencils? (Though with good humor, some of us regularly pestered the company on social media whenever they promote the Drawing line.) With a muted, earthy palette that’s great for landscapes and animals, the range is still lacking some obvious natural hues – greens, a few yellows, one or two blues. Don’t landscapes usually include skies, foliage or water? Not to mention flowers! And wildlife sketchers might as well forget about birds!

With so many colored pencil lines offering a full range of hues, why do we care whether Derwent Drawing stays with its 24 earthy hues? I care because these pencils are unique in having a whopping 5mm core – thicker than any colored pencil I’ve used. And not just thick – it’s also amazingly soft and creamy. Because of that super-soft core, it’s my favorite for life drawing. At times, it’s almost like crayon or lipstick in its smooth richness of application.

A whopping 5mm core

Derwent Drawing Chinese White:
used more than any other single color of any line.

In addition, based on my stubs, I’ve used Derwent Drawing Chinese White more than any other single colored pencil (although I have a couple of greens in the Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle line that might come close). It’s still my most opaque white pencil. If only Derwent would add just a few more useful hues to the line, I would reach for these luscious pencils way more often.

You can imagine my ecstasy a couple of months ago when I saw Derwent’s announcement: The Drawing line has been expanded to 72 colors! Finally!

Then immediately following my initial excitement, I was beset with a moral dilemma: With my commitment to downsizing and staying downsized, could I justify buying the complete set of 72? I looked closely at the new colors, which I knew would be available open stock. When I started checking off the ones I “must” have, hardly any would be left behind! I might as well buy the complete set! But is that excessive? Would I be sliding back down the slippery slope? But how could I not buy all 72 colors of pencils I love so much! Aughh, the turmoil!

Blick’s website said the new colors and set of 72 would not be in stock until January, so that gave me time to wring my hands a while longer.

That’s when the most astounding colored pencil miracle occurred:

An image that probably caught the rep's eye

I received a message through Instagram from a Derwent representative in the UK who provides product training to retailers. She had found my 2019 blog post in which I talked about how vintage Derwent (called Rexel Cumberland then) Drawing pencils were the same high quality as contemporary ones. This was unusual, as most contemporary colored pencils are better than their vintage predecessors. The Derwent rep asked permission to use some of my images “in a training presentation about the heritage of the range.” I blushed with pride at that; it’s not often that my colored pencil history geekiness is acknowledged that way! I happily granted permission (with credit, of course).

As we further exchanged messages, I couldn’t help but express my excitement that the Drawing color range had been expanded. That’s when it happened: She offered to send me the full set of 72 in appreciation for the use of my images! (Thank you so much, Justine and Derwent!) 

Ahhh...that Good & Plenty scent!

So here I am, delighted owner of the complete set, moral dilemma evaded (at least this time). It’s been so long since I unwrapped a brand new set of pencils that I nearly swooned! The scent when I first opened the lid was very close to the intoxicating scent of vintage Prismacolors – which I can only describe as Good & Plenty. Since they are both soft, wax-based pencils, perhaps there’s something about the wax binder that evokes licorice (which I don’t like to eat but I love to smell)?

The original palette included lots of browns and
and other earth tones. (I've used these pencils for many
years; they show what I think of as Derwent's main
appearance flaw: The end caps chip with very little use.)

OK, enough about their scent – let’s talk about the new colors. Other than my daily-carry Chinese White, I hadn’t used Drawing pencils in a while – maybe since the last time I went to life drawing. It was like being reacquainted with an old friend to swatch all the colors. Included in the grid below are the original 24 along with the new, but you can see from my small “bouquet” image (at right) that the original range was mostly earth tones and white. 

I’m most excited about all those new natural greens in the bottom row – and not a single recycle bin green or traffic light green that so many large colored pencil sets include! All of these greens could be used directly for foliage and fir – a beautiful selection.

A few much-needed yellows are included, as well as several blues. With a couple of pinks, a lavender and a few orangey reds (some of which are questionably similar), even florals are now possible. I can also see that several skin tones have been added for portraiture. (All those new grays are the only ones I would have skipped if I had bought the new colors open stock.)

The complete 72-color range (swatched in Stillman & Birn Epsilon sketchbook)

In addition to the original Chinese White, two new whites are included: a cool Arctic and a warmer Oyster. On black paper, they look quite similar, but their differences show better on white paper (in the fifth row). All three are equally opaque.

Two new whites, plus the original Chinese white (swatched in Uglybook)

Updated 12/15/25 I don't typically swatch colored pencils on black paper for reviews, but these Drawing pencils are so opaque that I thought it would be useful to see the whole range (especially given my penchant for nocturnes). Some very nice colors on black here! 

As I’d hoped and expected, Derwent is keeping the Drawing line focused on a natural palette. Although an urban sketcher might still need recycle bin and traffic light greens (though one of those new yellows could easily pass for heavy equipment), if all you sketch is nature studies, landscapes, animals and portraits, I daresay that the new Drawing collection is the only colored pencil set you would need. 

(Maybe it’s the only color range any of us need? I’m curious; I think I’ll make some mixing swatches to see how these natural hues come together. With such a limited range, the Drawing pencils had never been an all-purpose line, but now with a full palette, how do they compare with other favorite colored pencils? Hmmm . . . some interesting testing ahead!)

My new pencils arrived only a few days before I had received a commission to draw Ginger, a friend’s Papillon. I had never done a pet portrait using Drawing pencils, and it was a bit risky to do a commission with pencils I hadn’t used in quite a while, but I couldn’t wait to use them. I shouldn’t have worried; they were just as creamy, thick and wonderful as ever. Without the new colors, I couldn’t have sketched Ginger without supplementing from other sets: All four pencils I used on her are from the new selection.

I’m looking forward to using these on more pet portraits this winter.

12/7/25 Ginger (Derwent Drawing colored pencils and ArtGraf water-soluble graphite on Lenox Cotton paper;
reference photo by Bob Flor)

For historical reference: From top, oldest to newest (Apologies for the strange lighting in this image; the barrel color is brown as in the previous photos, not orange.)

Light and Dark at the Chapel of St. Ignatius

 

12/10/25 Chapel of St. Ignatius, Seattle University

With another atmospheric river promising record-breaking flooding in the region, it was hard to push myself out into the torrents Wednesday morning. (I’m totally safe from flooding here in the city, but some riverside communities have evacuated, and the state has been declared an emergency.) As if that weren’t bad enough, to arrive at the 9 a.m. sketch outing, I had to leave the house at 8 – the sun was barely up! When I retired, I swore I’d never leave the house in morning darkness again!

Beautiful interior lighting with subtle tints

Despite my grumbling, drippy coat and all, as soon as I stepped inside Seattle University’s Chapel of St. Ignatius, I was happy that I had come. The chapel has the most architecturally intriguing interior that I’ve sketched in a long time. I wish I’d thought to take more photos to show the fascinating lighting, but I was too engrossed in trying to capture it in my sketchbook.

Although I hadn’t been inside before, I find most churches to be dark inside, so on that hunch I brought along the black Uglybook that I’ve been making nocturnes in. It was a super-fun challenge to try to convey all the different values emanating from hidden windows. Sketchers who used color also tried to capture the varying colored window glass that tinted the walls subtly.

For my second sketch, I chose the wood crucifix. Very dimly lit from one side, it was a fascinating tonal study, too.

Finally, in the time remaining before the throwdown, I walked out to the vestibule to sketch through a large, wet window with a view of the chapel’s reflecting pool and trees wearing holiday lights.

Reflecting pool outside the chapel. The USk Seattle stamp wouldn't show up on black paper, so I used a tiny sticker instead.

After the outing, Mary Jean and I walked to nearby Piedmont Café for coffee (below). During the Big Dark, I have fun sketching nocturnes even in the daytime!

12/10/25 Piedmont Cafe, Capitol Hill neighborhood

Pre-Coffee, 6:38 a.m.

12/9/25 Maple Leaf neighborhood

Last year these neighbors were a bit more tidy with their lights. This year, they decided to take a freeform, minimal approach. It’s a nice contrast to their neighbors’ symmetrical design.

Sketching pre-coffee in the pre-dawn darkness, I enjoy the special stillness of this time that’s so entirely different from the same time during the summer. 

Café Javasti as Nocturne

 

12/6/25 Cafe Javasti, Maple Leaf neighborhood

I don’t sketch at Café Javasti, only five blocks away and my closest coffee shop, as often as you’d think I would. Although convenient (and they do make a mean scone), it’s small and tends to be a little dark. That dim lighting, though, gave me an idea: It would be ideal for practicing nocturnal sketching even indoors.

Sitting in back, I could sketch other patrons backlit by the large windows. I especially enjoyed sketching the chairs in this minimal way: a white colored pencil for the soft reflected light and a white Gelly Roll for the bright highlights.

Colored Pencils That Made the Cut

Top tier on desktop: Museum Aquarelle, Prismacolor, Supracolor

Regular readers of this blog are well aware of the massive downsizing I went through for the better part of two years. The biggest category needing culling was art supplies in general and colored pencils in particular. Some materials I gave away could be seen in photos from last winter’s gab & grab. Eventually I showed the bookcases, drawers and cabinets containing some materials that made the cut. I never wrote specifically, though, about which colored pencils I kept.

Whenever I started thinking about a functional way to discuss which sets I kept and why, it started feeling like an onerous task. You know me – if you get me started talking about colored pencils and all the nuanced uses for one type rather than another (and therefore justifying why I need so many), I could go on for weeks! But since I already have reviews of most of these pencils, I decided that simple lists including links to the reviews would be the most concise. If you’d like more detail, please read the reviews. The pencil brands are not ranked within categories (in fact, I diplomatically listed them alphabetically).

Top drawer

The easy part was the long-time favorites (which I’ve labeled as “top tier” and “secondary tier”). The more difficult task was rationalizing (to myself) the many pencils I’ve kept without good reason! I suppose I must resort to revealing irrational whims. So be it. Interestingly, writing this post has helped me determine which will be the next to go.

I should also note that the only vintage pencils I include are ones that I consider “users.” With those exceptions, vintage pencils aren’t nearly as good to use as most contemporaries in my top and secondary tiers. Even among my vintage “collectibles,” I gave away quite a few sets. The ones I kept are for qualities that anyone who collects anything might appreciate: They are fun, beautiful, unique or otherwise “special.”

The way I manage my entire inventory now is the same way I manage my clothes (with a finite number of hangers): A finite space is allocated to each category (“users,” collectibles, vintage), and when each space is full, I am not allowed to bring in anything new unless I get rid of something already there. At the Black Friday gab & grab, I gave away a few sets with that in mind (yes, something new! Stay tuned!)

 Top Tier

These are my tried-and-true favorites that you’d have to pry from my cold, stiff hands. As I reach for them most often, some literally occupy the “top tier” of my drawing table – on the desktop or in the top drawer. Except Polychromos, all are among the softest colored pencils I own.

Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle

Caran d’Ache Supracolor Soft

Derwent Drawing

Derwent Inktense

Derwent Lightfast

Faber-Castell Polychromos

Prismacolor (vintage and contemporary)

 

Secondary Tier

I still think of these as favorites, but only for specific purposes. Luminance used to be in the top tier but only recently got pushed down to the secondary tier when I realized I don’t reach for them as often as I do Derwent Lightfast (which I place in the same range of softness).

Caran d’Ache Bicolors (various holiday limited edition sets)

Caran d’Ache Luminance

Eberhard Faber Design Watercolor (vintage)

Faber-Castell Albrecht Dürer

Holbein

Staedtler Karat Aquarell

Uni Pericia/Posca

 

Specialty

I don’t use these often, but I’ve found them to be best for their specific functions, so they were worth keeping.

Derwent Metallic 20^th anniversary set

Eberhard-Faber Design Spectracolor Doublecolor (vintage)

Koh-i-Noor Tri-Tone

 

Limited Editions or Otherwise “Collectible”

These I rarely use, but how can I let go of beautiful sets that are no longer available (or won’t be for long)?

Caran d’Ache limited edition sets (Oliver Jeffers, Cosmic Blue, Keith Haring, Germanier)

Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle leads

Palomino California Republic

Palomino California Republic Aquas

 

Irrational but Irresistible

These I rarely use, if ever, and yet I have sentimental or other irrational reasons for keeping them. The most irrational of all is that some come in fabulous packaging!

Blackwing Colors

Marco Tribute Masters Collection

Mitsubishi Uni

Tombow Irojiten

 

Probably Getting the Boot

I couldn’t quite bring myself to boot these yet, but given that I hardly use them (not even enough to review one) and can’t even think of an irrational reason for keeping them, they will probably not make the next cut.

Bruynzeel Design

Caran d’Ache Pablo

Caran d’Ache Prismalo 

Cretacolor Karmina

Derwent Coloursoft

Derwent Procolour

Schpirerr Farben

Irrational but decorative!

Not-So-Festive in Wallingford

 

12/7/25 Fuel Coffee, Wallingford neighborhood

Wallingford Center used to be a thriving retail center housed in the historic Interlake Elementary School building. It’s been going downhill for a while now with fewer and fewer shops and cafes, but USk Seattle has met there nearly every winter because the interior is spacious, cozy and, around the holidays, festive.

Sadly, we were disappointed to find that it wasn’t even decorated this year. Since I’ve sketched there numerous times, I took a walk through the Wallingford neighborhood to find an alternative. Fuel Coffee has window seating looking out on a strip of quintessential Wallingford buildings, so I settled in there with a Cortado. Meanwhile, patrons around me were having interesting conversations that I couldn’t help overhearing. A new pastime: urban eavesdropping. 😉