Caran D'Ache Supracolor II watercolor pencils' initial test

Since I couldn't find the colors I needed from the Faber Castell Albrecht Durer open stock rack while searching for some replacements for my travel canvas wrap set at the Ft. Lauderdale Pearl store, I ended up picking up these Caran D'Ache Supracolor II watercolor pencils instead. Caran D'Ache is the only manufacturer that I am aware of that features the removable plastic UPC labels wrapped around the tips of their pencils marketed for individual sale as open stock. Clever idea that reduces the clutter that needs to be printed or taped on the barrels of the pencils. Their soft leads allowed for some quick coverage while drawing the color chart swatches.
The dry color samples readily dissolved into smooth saturated washes with the aid of a watercolor brush loaded with water. My first impression of this Caran D'Ache pencil line is that its performance is quite similar to that of my favored Albrecht Durer watercolor pencils. With their retail prices being quite close at stores and online, I would consider them interchangeable next time I need to refill a set.

White Colored Pencil tests

By request, I gathered some of my white colored pencils and tested them for smoothness on a Cachet Earthbound kraft paper and the black paper pages of a blank glitter book.
Derwent Drawing Chinese White 72 pencil sketching sample. Featuring the widest waxy drawing core felt quite smooth on the Cachet black glitter paper.
Derwent Pastel Chinese White 72B pencil sketching sample. Slightly scratchy feel like typical pastel pencils. Blunted quickly. Bold white marks require fixing.
Derwent Coloursoft white C720 pencil sketching sample. Thicker barrel pencil might not fit on standard sharpeners. Smooth lay down.
Faber Castell Albrecht Durer white 8200-101 watercolor pencil sketching sample. Smooth lay down with added advantage that the marks can be blended with a waterbrush. Out of all my colored pencils, this is the brand I carry in my sketching kit more frequently for its versatility and performance.
Prismacolor Premier Lightfast White LF138 pencil sketching sample. The pencil sharpened easily and retained its point well. Smooth lay down. Though pencil point tends to crumble under excessive pressure.Other than the Derwent Pastel pencil, all the white colored pencils tested felt reasonably smooth and stood out on the tinted support papers. Selecting one over the other could be mainly determined by price, availability of open stock, and the properties of the actual intended drawing support.

The Faber Castell Perfect Pencil for Children

As much as I enjoy the convenience and value of online shopping for most of my art supplies needs, the experience somewhat lacks the sense of wonder and discovery of strolling through the well-stocked aisles of an actual store. I really enjoy finding rare items while traveling and visiting brick and mortar stores. Last time I stopped at the Pearl store in Miami, I found this curious Faber Castell red cardboard gift box in the display case along with their fine writing pens. I was told it had been there "forever" by the sales clerk. Initially, I had some difficulty gleaning the nature of this set. Upon closer inspection, it was revealed that it was another version of the The Faber Castell Perfect Pencil.
Label on the bottom of the gift box.
This "fun set" version of the Perfect Pencil was clearly designed for children: the sharpener section features an stylized "rooster head" in red and yellow plastic, the pencil holder/extender section is also made entirely out of green plastic with no interior metal grip, and the four B round barreled graphite pencils are painted in bright primary colors plus green and capped with colorful erasers. It works well as a pencil point protector and a pencil extender.
Functional addition to any graphite pencil collection, but rather hard to find. It certainly stands out among my other pencil holders/extenders. I have not found any online sources or references to this pencil set yet. From its absence in the official Faber Castell website, I suspect it might have been a limited edition gift set and currently discontinued.

Staedtler 925-25-20 silver 2 mm leadholder photo session and first impression

Ever since I spotted the Staedtler 925-25-20 silver 2 mm leadholder in several fine blogs (like Leadholder.com, Dave's Mechanical Pencils, and Pencil Talk), I had hoped that Jet Pens would bring this beautiful aluminum mechanical pencil to the USA. After waiting for over a year, my wish finally came true. It seems I was not the only one judging by how quickly their remaining stock has dwindled in the past week. I am not about to rehash the thorough reviews already posted long ago in the aforementioned blogs, so I will just share a few photos and my first impression of the most recent addition to my Staedtler collection.
It is certainly a step up from the ubiquitous Staedtler 780 leadholder.
The silver leadholder taken apart into its basic components.
Close up of the uniquely designed knurled metal finger grip and degree indicator ring. The finely textured metal surface provides a secure holding section without being uncomfortably abrasive.
Close up of interior clutch mechanism that holds the drawing lead securely, advances it in a controlled manner, and prevents it from falling off when pressing the button like conventional leadholders.
One sharp looking 2 mm mechanical pencil.
Fun sketching tool.
The Staedtler 925-25-20 silver 2 mm leadholder affords precise control while sketching and looks great: a perfect combination of form and function that is sure to please fellow leadholder aficionados.

Mitsubishi Uni Watercolor Series 3 Set of 12 watercolor pencils mini review

Since I was quite pleased with the performance of the Mitsubishi Uni Watercolor Series 2 watercolor pencils set, it was a fairly easy decision to also pick up the series 3 set while it was still listed under the Jet Pens clearance section.
Naturally the main comments and review of the set components from the original post still apply. Thus, I was mainly curious to verify if this Uni-ball watercolor pencil assortment also matched the Faber Castell watercolor pencil range.
Using their names and the last two digits of the numerical color codes, I quickly found their matching pencils among my full set of Faber Castell Albrecht Durer watercolor pencils.
Dry comparison color chart prior to wetting color swatches with a wet sable brush.
The similarly numbered Uni Watercolor pencils and the Faber Castell Albrecht Durer watercolor pencils were a perfect match wet and dried, so I am fairly certain that the latter manufactured both sets. The dry marks readily dissolved with a water loaded sable brush seamlessly blending into each other without any color changes from mixing the two watercolor pencil brands. The Mitsubishi Uni Watercolor Series 3 boxed set is a nicely compact and efficient field kit with a color palette suitable for sketching natural landscapes and floral postcards.

Winsor & Newton Artists' Water Colour The Bijou Box half pan set review and early tests

My watercolor sets collection has grown recently with the addition of the most compact set available from Winsor & Newton: The Bijou Box which is almost half the size of the lightweight sketchers' box set that used to be my smallest half pan set. While not readily available in the USA, they seem to pop on E-bay and a couple of brick-and-mortar stores from time to time.
I had passed on the Bijou box before, but at the Tampa Pearl store their last two sets were priced at $54.44 and they had a 30% off in-store coupon promotion running. Thus even though I could hardly claim to need yet another watercolor box, for $38.11+tax I just had to bring it home. This boxed set came with 8 artists' watercolor half pans and a collapsible brush, but it can actually hold 12 half pans.
Bijou box loaded to capacity with 12 half pans from my lightweight sketchers' box. Since the metal box really doesn't grip the half pans securely, I have stuck some magnetic tape to the bottom of the pans to help them stay attached to the box interior.
Color chart of the 12 half pans loaded in the Bijou box.
Initial field tests were done by coloring assorted sketches in a Handbook journal during a recent trip to North Carolina.
Phoenix Keeper sketch colored with the 12 half pan palette and a waterbrush.
Another coloring test.
Sample compact sketching kit tools: Winsor & Newton Bijou box, foam eraser, waterbrush, shop towel, and Handbook journal.
Menagerie drawn with a waterproof gel pen and colored with Winsor & Newton Artists' watercolors.
Pencil doodle colored on the flight back to Florida with a waterbrush. The Bijou box's compact size makes it an ideal choice for field use in confined spaces like an airplane cabin and color sketching on-the-go. It works quite well for coloring smaller formats like postcards and field sketchbooks. Given its ultra compact size and the tight arrangement of its half pans, it is best to stay away from larger brushes to prevent pigments from polluting each other.

Sanford Design 3800 Drawing Pencil mini review

Funny how I never got around trying an American made graphite drawing pencil before. That realization dawned on me as I browsed the drafting section at a local Office Depot and spotted the carded 2-packs of Sanford Design 3800 drawing pencils hanging on the pegs. Probably because I am already quite content with the performance of my preferred Japanese and German made wooden pencils, it never occurred to me to try the local graphite offerings.
To rectify this situation I grabbed a pack of 2B pencils for a mini review and comparison with a couple of other brands.
This comparison chart was drawn on ivory card stock. The Design 3800 2B pencil sharpened well and felt fairly smooth on the paper. It retained its sharp point for a long time, but its marks were lighter than the Staedtler Mars Ergosoft and Mitsubishi Hi-Uni 2B pencils. The Sanford Design 3800 pencils turned out to be fine drawing tools (these particular samples were made in the USA on 2002 according to the blister card), and are still fairly available in big box office supplies stores' drafting sections and some arts & crafts stores. Yet since Sanford's pencil manufacture is been relocated to Mexico, you might want to stock up on the remaining US-made pencils if you enjoy their current look and performance.