Drawing and Sketching

Graphite lead pencils

Lead pencils are graded – those with an ‘H’ designation are harder than those with a ‘B’ – and thus 2B is soft, 6B even softer; 2H is hard and 6H is very hard. The softer the pencil, the blacker the mark it makes. Try using some HB, 2B and 4B pencils and study the different effects.

If your sketchbook does not contain tissue interleaves between pages, when working with pastel pencils, conté, charcoal or chalk pastel, give a finished sketch a burst of spray fixative to prevent it transferring to the opposite page.

may also have fun working with coloured papers. Heavyweight mountboards, scrapbook paper or assorted coloured paper pads for the brighter colours are ideal. Some pastel papers would also be fine. These have a textured surface to hold the pastel particles and are available in a large range of colours. White paper can be used for studies, but mid-toned coloured papers are easiest for painting. A useful size is 305 × 229 mm (12 × 9 in).

You can use either Rough, Not or Hot Pressed paper, but the Not surface is the one that is most commonly used by beginners. Paper weights vary but a 300 gsm (140 lb) watercolour paper, which is available in sheets, spiral-bound pads or blocks, is ideal when you are starting out in watercolour sketching.

A spiral bound sketchbook can be useful;

it’s a good idea to have a selection of sketchbooks of different sizes, which range from pocket-size to large. Also, it’s interesting to try different surfaces. You will quickly discover that sketches on cartridge paper, which is quite smooth, look very different from sketches on watercolour paper, which is often textured. A sketchbook with coloured paper pages makes an interesting and challenging change from white paper.

Bulldog clips These are useful out of doors in windy weather, to keep your sketchbook open.

Masking fluid This is good when working with watercolour for blotting out areas you don’t want to paint. You also need an applicator.

Fixative This is a spray used to prevent drawings from smudging.

Brushes

Although sable brushes are the best you can buy, the synthetic ones or sable/synthetic mix are ideal. You will need a selection of brushes: a no. 5 and no. 10 round-headed, a no. 12 flat-headed and also a rigger no. 1. Remember, the higher the number, the larger the brush.