If you are more into drawing than painting and you want to achieve color, you will want to use colored pencils or watercolor pencils. Each has a “lead” housed inside a wooden casing, although there are types that have no casing.
Both of these pencils look similar. But, there are some huge differences between the two. First, there are different types of leads, depending on their makeup as well as how they can be dissolved by liquids, such as water.
I am fully ready to admit that I had never even heard of watercolor pencils until just a few years ago. I had been using colored pencils for many years before I started using watercolor pencils, with Prismacolor pencils being my absolute favorite brand to work with.
There are so many different types of colored pencils, and they are completely different from watercolor pencils. For beginners, this can cause quite a bit of confusion.
Even experienced artists often find themselves making mistakes when choosing the best pencils to work with for their projects. I am guilty of this myself.
Today we are going to take a look at both colored pencils and watercolor pencils and compare them to one another. I will talk about the good things and the bad things about each, their capabilities, and what they are used for.
At the end of this post, you will have a much better idea of which type of pencils you should use based on your artistic style. Chances are, you will want to use both, depending on the projects you are working on.
Continue reading to learn more.
Watercolor Pencil and Colored Pencil Comparison
| Factors | Watercolor Pencils | Colored Pencils |
| Color large areas | Excellent | Difficult without leaving marks |
| Create watercolor effects | Yes | No |
| Color blending | Easy | Moderately difficult |
| Use with other mediums | Yes | Yes |
| Use with water | Yes | No |
| Vivid colors | Yes, when water is added | Yes |
What are Colored Pencils?
Ever since grade school, you have likely used traditional colored pencils, also known as regular colored pencils. These are what I always loved to use for coloring projects in school.
Colored pencils aren’t just for school kids though. Many adults love using them, especially now that adult coloring books have become so popular.
Colored pencils are a dry medium. As with any colored medium, colored pencils are made with a binder. The type of binder used in any medium is the deciding factor for the artist, depending on their methods and approaches.
In this case, the binder will be oil or wax-based. Most colored pencils are made with a wax binder, which allows them to be layered and makes it easy to do color blending.
The softer the colored pencil, the easier color blending is going to be. As I mentioned earlier, I love working with Prismacolor colored pencils. They have a soft core that allows for easy blending.
Pros and Cons of Colored Pencils
Pros
- Easy to blend colors
- Great for artists of all ages
- No special techniques are needed
- Can be used on all types of paper
- Great for working in layers
Cons
- Not ideal for working over large areas
- Lightening colors is difficult, especially if there are layers
- The binders may be problematic when used with other mediums, particularly wet mediums.
What Are Watercolor Pencils?
Watercolor pencils can be used for both wet and dry techniques. The biggest drawback to using watercolor pencils is that they can be quite costly, especially if you want to work with high-quality pencils.
The pigments in watercolor pencils are held together with a water-soluble binder. After you lay the color down on the paper, you can use water to spread the pigment. Water will turn the pigment into a type of watercolor paint.
You can get water pens, which are ideal for working with watercolors. The pens hold water in the chamber, and there is a brush at one end. Simply squeeze the chamber to get the water onto the brush, and then go over the colored areas of your work.
When you work with watercolor pencils using a wet technique, your finished projects will take on the appearance of a watercolor painting. The colors will become more intense, and they will be brighter.
You can use a brush to activate the pigment in watercolor pencils. Or, you can use them in the same manner as regular colored pencils.
One of the things I really love about watercolor pencils is that they make it easy to lighten areas that have been colored. All you need is a Q-Tip or a sponge dampened with water to soak up some of the pigment.
Pros and Cons of Watercolor Pencils
Pros
- Create work that looks like watercolor paintings
- Cover a lot of surface area
- Lighten colors
- Easier to use than watercolors because you have more control over the pencil
- Ideal for plein-air painting
- Work well with both wet and dry mediums
Cons
- Colors are less intense when no water is added
- Limited color range
- Must be used with heavy watercolor paper
Conclusion
Whether you choose regular colored pencils or watercolor pencils is up to you. It will all depend on the type of projects you are working on, and the type of effects you wish to achieve.
I like having a couple of sets of each type of pencils. I keep one set of each in my studio, and one set of each in my car so I can do plein-air drawing.
I suggest getting a set of each type of pencils and working with both. As I mentioned earlier, Prismacolor is the best choice for regular colored pencils, at least in my opinion.
You can find fairly inexpensive sets of watercolor pencils available on Amazon, as well as regular colored pencils. If you spend more than $35, shipping will be free.