Pastel pencils are basically the pencil form of the pastel material. As they are in a pencil form, they can be sharpened to a fine point which makes them the best fit for detailed artworks. They also have color charts for lightfastness covering their entire pencil range which is amazing. Most colors stand up well but why bother manufacturing Magenta with a rating of only 2? and I was disappointed to see that Ultramarine had a rating of only 3! So, choose your set of pastel pencils wisely considering its features, pros and cons just like I’ve discussed above. Sharpening your favorite pastel pencils can be a very complicated and tiring process if you don’t know how to do it according to their type. There are various ways to sharpen your pastel pencils.

On top of that, the high-quality pigments can be easily smudged, which allows you to mix different colors to create vivid artwork. Besides, the pigments require minimal fixing, and they have superior light-fastness, ensuring that the colors retain their brilliance for a long time. When it comes to high-quality art products, Derwent is one of the first names that come to mind. Because of that, many professional artists tend to use Derwent pencils for creating their artwork. It is a big reason why we included the brand’s Pastel Collection on our list as well.

Artists will often use a combination of soft/hard pastels, oil pastels and pastel pencils in the same piece, so it’s not necessary to choose one or the other. Our Product Recommendations Conte pastel pencils are not designed for fine detail, especially on smaller works. They have a whopping 5mm lead diameter which encourages broad strokes over larger areas. If you need pinpoint control use Pitt Pencils instead. Now that we have arrived at the end of this detailed review-based guide, we hope that your mind has been made up about which option you want. Furthermore, we found that the colors are fairly easy to blend with fingers or a blending tool. You can also use the colorless white pastel to blend the colors without affecting the color density.

There’s a wide range of options available for pastel pencils but finding the best pastel pencils according to your need and preference is very important as it’s going to directly affect your artwork. To conclude my journey of discovering the best pastel pencils, I would like to say that it’s not about just the best pastel pencils or the most popular pastel pencils, it’s about the one you like the most of according to your requirements. The pastel pencils in this set are particularly great for shading and detailing tasks, and they can create stunning effects when applied on darker surfaces. What’s more, the lead is slightly harder than other pastel pencils, and it contains a lower concentration of pigments. As we already know that there’re different types of pastel pencils for different needs, so it’s very important to know when to use what. However, for applying lots of pastel to a paper/canvas at once, soft pastels are a better option. Cleaner and Less SmudgingAlso, the metal tin box makes the pencils easy to store. We noticed a detailed color chart on the inside of the box, which makes it convenient to use for beginners. As for the quality, we found that the pigment can produce vibrant colors on paper. It gives a rich color tone on darker surfaces as well, which improves its versatility. And since it is a chalk pencil, the pigment offers a charcoal-like texture. Because of that, you can use these pencils for chalking, shading, lettering, and creating outlines, among other tasks.

These pigments are free from any harmful oil and wax, which makes the pencils safe and non-toxic. They have good light fastness, ensuring long-lasting color brightness.

They don’t sharpen well with mechanical sharpeners and they are too expensive to risk breaking the points too often. These are pencils that should be sharpened with a blade and kept sharp using fine sandpaper. I hope with the help of this guide you’ll be able to find the best pastel pencils that match your ability and expectations.

The soft lead core of the pencil is made from professional quality pigments that offer rich color quality. Moreover, the high level of pigmentation makes it well-suited for creating professional sketches, adding details, and drawing portraits. Faber Castell Pitt pastel pencils are dry pastel based. These wax and oil-free colors are highly pigmented and best for fine details because of their compact lead. Faber Castell is arguably one of the oldest and most renowned brands in the domain of art supplies. It manufactures high-quality artistic equipment for everyone ranging from school-going children to professional artists. And the Faber Castell Pitt pastel Coloring Pencils set is one of its most popular offerings, especially among hobbyists and DIY artists.However, there are some pastel pencil sets that cannot be sharpened this way. For those pencils, you will have to use a utility knife or an artist’s knife to sharpen the tips. In this regard, we recommend sharpening the pencil carefully. Avoid sharpening it to a fine point, or else it may break. What Are The Best Drawing Surfaces For Pastel Pencils? All the brands that we have mentioned on our list have fairly good quality. However, if you wish to go with highly reputed brands, then you can use Derwent, Stabilo, or Faber Castell pastel pencils. I found the Faber Castel Pitt pastel pencils to be excellent for pastel detailed works. However, they are not great to cover a larger area.