Derwent coloring pencils

Derwent launched new sets of pencils, where Derwent Lightfast are the latest new pencils: these are oil coloring pencils that now joins to the top artist grade coloring pencils: Caran D'Ache Luminance and Faber Castell Polychromos. 

So, now I'm a little bit confused about the purpose of all these Derwent colored pencils. What are the main features of each?

Well, I found the answer to it in an Amazon product description, where Derwent Drawing, Procolour, Artists, Coloursoft, Lightfast and Pastel Pencils are compared:

All have a round barrel, with a 4mm size, except Derwent Drawing, that has a 5mm barrel.

We can see here that these Derwent pencils can be grouped by:

• Oil: Lightfast
• Pastel: Pastel
• Wax: Drawing, Procolour, Artists and Coloursoft

The texture of the wax pencils can be classified as:

• Creamy: Drawing
• Smooth: Procolour
• Firm: Artists
• Soft: Coloursoft

The most blendable wax pencils are: 

• Drawing 
• Procolour

The most colour intense wax pencils are: 

• Procolour

Layering is better with: 

• Drawing 
• Procolour

Point strength is better with: 

• Procolour
• Artist

The most erasable wax pencils are: 

• Procolor

Derwent Chromaflow

There are also the new Derwent Chromaflow coloring pencils.

Derwent Chromaflow, tin of 72 coloring pencils

From Chromaflow FAQSs:

Derwent Chromaflow pencils provide artists with an affordable professional quality product which is easy to layer and blend thanks to the richly pigmented smooth texture, providing a velvety laydown. The creamy core can deliver a smooth, rapid laydown that can handle pressure and resist breakage, making easy work of blending and shading. 

• 72 colors available

• 3.5 mm core

• Wax-based

• Soft core

• Rich and vibrant color palette

• Highly pigmented

• 60% lightfast across 72 colours

• Erasable

How do Chromaflow pencils compare to Academy Colouring pencils?

Chromaflow are smoother and more vibrant than Academy; they will blend and layer in a different way. Chromaflow will also cover a larger area more quickly.


How do Chromaflow pencils compare to colour pencils in Derwent’s Professional Quality range; Coloursoft, Procolour, Lightfast?

• Procolour: Procolour and Chromaflow will layer and blend differently. Procolour are more suited to detailed work, they have greater point strength, wider core and large colour range.

• Coloursoft: Both Chromaflow and Coloursoft are soft and smooth however Coloursoft have a softer texture and lay down is different. Coloursoft has a larger diameter pencil and therefore builds up colour more quickly. Chromaflow mixes well to increase colour spectrum.

• Lightfast: Lightfast have a larger and stronger pencil core. They are 100% lightfast with a soft and creamy texture. Lightfast is our only oil-based pencil which can achieve paint like affects and has 100 colours in the range.

So, depending on what you need to do with them, you can wisely choose one or another.