I’ve always been fascinated by those rainbow colored pencils that some artists use so beautifully, ( Do you know Lynne Chapman‘s work? She uses them a lot) but I never seem to find a pencil that works for me: most of them are hard and I really like a soft pencil. But I finally found one that works for me: This 7-colored pencil is a Japanese brand called Camel and it is a joy to use (although halfway through a sketch, I need to resharpen it because it is so soft and creamy and I tend to press on it pretty hard)
So these construction workers got sketched in Rainbow pencil and black Creatacolor pencil.
And then I turned my attention to this group of ladies at an outdoor cafe and I got plain lucky. When I started drawing the seated woman with her back to me, I thought I was doing yet another cafe sketch, and then the lady who is standing in the sketch arrived and the lady in the sunglasses got really excited to see her, which was fun to capture. Capturing those fleeting moments is a combination of just pure luck and always being ready for them to happen. I sketched the figures with the blue end of my duo-colored pencil and the umbrellas, tables and chairs with the red end. All darks here are a soft graphite pencil and then there’s a bit of that rainbow pencil, for good measure.
Changing up a sketching tool once in a while keeps sketching fresh for me, even when I’m sketching the same subjects over and over. Do you do that? Have you tried a new tool lately?
Sketch Away: Travels with my sketchbook 
Hi Suhita–I’ve been enjoying your forays into urban scenes over the past months. Yes, I try to mix up media, to keep me motivated. Re-tried using water-soluble graphite recently (which is a favorite, but infrequently used, medium of mine) to capture a dead tree stump that was silvery with age. I used 3 different hardnesses–HB, 4B, and 8B. Thanks for sharing your wonderful sketches and giving us a window into your drawing process. Have fun in Manchester!
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Thanks Carmela, and a great reminder: I need to go find my watersoluble graphite, it is a fun medium.
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Lo, and behold–my rainbow pencil is a Camel, too– a fun step out of the ordinary. Found it at Flax, San Mateo awhile ago. I greatly admire Lynn Chapman’s work. You all keep me motivated.
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Looks so lovely and amusing
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Oh, how funny — after trying tons of rainbow pencils (mostly the kind made for kids to pass out at birthday parties) and feeling frustrated by how hard or dull they are, I found the exact same ones you found — and I love them, too! They are the best and so much fun! I recently got a grease pencil! It’s also a lot of fun because it’s too thick to get picky and precious with. Like drawing with a crayon again!
Tina
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Where did you buy the rainbow pencils. Grace
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How cute!!
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