Derwent Graphic Drawing Pencils, Medium, Metal Tin, 12 Count (34214)

I do a lot of pencil drawing and usually keep it simple; most of my work is done with a #2 or HB pencil, and final dark shading is done with 2B and 6B. However, as I continue to improve my drawing ability, I decided that it would be helpful to have a few more pencil options for shading work. This Derwent set is perfect. At first, I figured I would just use a couple of the pencils and buy the entire set merely for the convenience. However, in my most recent piece, I found myself using about 2/3 of the different hardness values during my shading process. I usually just lay down some graphite and use a Q-Tip to spread it around each area, with the downside being the lack of precision afforded by this method. With the harder pencils, though, I could merely use the pencil to shade thoroughly, allowing me to get into tight corners without making things too dark. This is probably just basic drawing practice, but for me it was a new approach and one made possible by this set. The Derwent pencils are very high quality and this set includes all hardness values from 9H to 9B; there are a few duplicates as well for the total count of 24 (19 different hardness values). If you need a range of pencils for any kind of pencil art, look no further than this excellent set. I have attached a photo of my most recent piece (a 1969 Camaro), drawn using these pencils, in the product images above. I hope this gives a good idea of the potential of this set.

I bought a 12 pack of them that only comes with one tin of 12… they sent me 6 tins full of 12 pencils, to say the least, this made my day and I definitely plan to buy them again once I run out.

Im new to purchasing art pencils, so I went overboard and bought these as well as the Castle set, and Rembrandts. I think I have to say I find the Castles a bit less scratchy, but theyre similar. These are fine. They all work well. I now have enough pencils to draw 5 hours a day for the next 3 years!

Good quality but has hard spots in graphite.

A great selection of sketching and drawing art pencils at a great price!. Derwent makes quality art products and these graphic pencils are no exception! Well worth their price if you really want a wide selection of art pencils to use in your art! These are a great art pencil set and great set of art pencils to give as a gift to anyone who is interested in creating art of their own! Highly Recommend!

The pencils are fine. My review is mainly about the packaging. I assumed that with a pencil set in a tin box, that it would have a lid, but my set came with the bottom only and it was shrink wrapped so the pencils stayed in place in the thin cheap plastic tray in the bottom. But there was no lid with my set so I was mildly disappointed. If the shrink wrap would have torn in the shipment, then the pencils would have been tossed about in the box and in the past I have had some items fall out of the box through the minimally taped ends. Many delivery people will handle the boxes by either puncturing the sides for a finger hold or grabbing the ends of the lids to move the boxes so the lid ends are bent and elevated. Sometimes the paper tape holding the lid closed will fail and the lids are partially open. so I have lost items that way. Not sure how this pencil set was packaged that way, at Derwent factory or at Amazon, but it bugs me to get items shipped with unexpected surprises like that. So thats my 2 cents. Pencils are fine. People have mentioned grittiness, and yes I have felt that sometimes the pencil will have a gritty drag and wont produce a clean line until the grit particle wears away after a couple of strokes. But they are otherwise good enough pencils. I cant say they blow away some lower priced pencils I have. The Castle pencils seem to have a really nice feel and were a very good value in comparison. Staedler pencils are equally priced and I do not notice any gritty feel.

I tend to do drawing only as a hobby in my spare time so I picked these up just to offer some different variety in my sketches when time allowed. Having used these pencils for a couple of drawings I can say that I tended to use whichever I happened to take out of the tin case. I found no real difference in my personal drawing style when using any of the pencils. This is my opinion only as I am not really using these different weight pencils for their intended purposes. Upon closer inspection you can in fact see minute difference between each pencil that can achieve a range of different effects. Overall I can say that this pencil set is a nice quality set and very nice for the more avid artist. The metal tin case in convenient to hold all the pencils and offer a great range of possibilities while drawing. If you are more skilled in sketching and drawing I would recommend this set is excellent and I would recommend it to you. If you sketch as a hobby it may be better to go with a more standardized pencil and work your way up from there.

Love the pencils. Such a great quality. Only problem, I have to put a rubber band to keep the box closed. I believe that I close it right and then poof all my pencils are spread around. Very frustrating.Good thing they are good quality and dont break easily. I have a box of Royal Langnickel colored pencils with a similar box and never had that problem. Bad luck?

Giving these a four star review for now, but time will tell if they deserve it. Im pretty disappointed--I dont see that these perform any better than my sons Castle Art cheap artist pencil set. In fact, so far I like it less. The pencils are hard and scratchy (not just the harder numbered pencils, but all of them) and none of them seem to erase well, even using a Prismacolor. I fully admit that Im only an amateur artist, but I just dont enjoy these so far. Theyre not bad, but they were pricey for not bad pencils. I was happier with a good old yellow No. 2! But to be fair, Ill try to do a head-to-head comparison of these pencils, my sons Castle Art set, and a No. 2, and see what the results are, and then report back. Maybe Ill be surprised.

I use to only draw with a number 2 pencil so I’m adjusting o these pencils. Less work and less smudging.