If you or your child want to have fun while improving your drawing skills, starting with a few drawing pencils is a great idea. I say “invest,” but don’t worry – they’re actually very affordable, usually around $1 per pencil. With just a few pencils, you can start experimenting with lines, shading, and all sorts of creative ideas right away.

How Drawing Pencils Are Different

Drawing pencils are different from standard school pencils. They usually don’t have erasers on top, and their graphite varies in hardness. Softer leads make darker lines, while harder leads produce lighter lines. Pencils with softer leads are marked with a “B”, and harder leads are marked with an “H.”

Artist Carrie Stuart Parks, in her book Secrets to Drawing Realistic Faces, suggests thinking of it as “B for BOLD” (softer, darker lines) and “H for HARD” (harder, lighter lines).

Understanding Pencil Grades

Graphite pencils range from 9B (darkest) to 9H (lightest). The higher the number, the more extreme the darkness or lightness. In the middle is an HB (the same as a #2 pencil) and F.

In order, the pencils go like this:

9B, 8B, 7B, 6B, 5B, 4B, 3B, 2B, B, HB, F, 2H, 3H, 4H, 5H, 6H, 7H, 8H, 9H

Choosing the Right Pencils

For beginners, I like the 2B pencil because it can create dark lines but can also be used lightly. If you or your child presses too hard, try starting with a 2H or 4H.

Pencils often come in sets of about 8, ranging in price from $5 to $10. However, when starting out, you can buy just a few individually for around $1 for a package of two. I recommend starting with a 2B, HB, and 4H.

Tips About Darker Pencils

Darker pencils are nice to have if you want to create very dark areas on the paper. Keep in mind, though, that softer leads are more prone to smudging.