I have been used to mostly draw or scribble with pencils. I struggle with coloured pencils though I have warmed up to them over the past few years. The funny thing is, after one of your Ohuhu marker reviews I bought some myself and I have been very impressed on how well I can handle them. Thank you for being such an open and wholesome person
Hoooonestly I didn't see that much of a difference in the finished sketches but the swatches are just a real good way to show how different these pencils actually are. I always used to draw JUST with pencils. No Lineart at all and maybe some watercolor here and there until I actually started watching youtube art content. This really brings me back to that time.
I never understood the fascination with the Blackwing pencils, and I still don't. Not because you didn't tested them through their paces but because I rather understand the hardness or softness of my graphite pencils from 9H to 9B and all in between.😊
It’s because they’re blacker than other pencils and look cool, with the oddly shaped eraser. It’s kind of annoying to try to figure out the harness though.
9h hardest will draw the lightest lines and the graphite can be sharpener to the longest point without breakage. 9b is softest will put down the darkest lines and may crumble if sharpened too long or putting too much pressure when using.
I really don't know how to explain it, but I absolutely love the Blackwing Pearl pencils. I am happy to draw with any materials, and have historically been a mechanical pencil girly, but man I feel like they are the best and most wonderful pencil to draw with personally. Never thought I would be super super invested in one specific pencil, and I still use plenty of other materials still, but after continuing to use and repurchase them for a year solid I am in love 😂
These drawings were beautiful and smooth! Since these Blackwing pencils are expensive, why not use Ticonderoga pencils! Curious to see what you could do with the original Ticonderoga, Ticonderoga Black, Ticonderoga Red, and Ticonderoga Blue pencils! ✏️📓
Ticonderago is ICONIC!!! They were the only non-mechanical pencils that I used for the entire time I was in school, and they're still my go-to wooden pencils to this day. The black ones were always my favorite, mostly for aesthetic reasons lol, although I would occasionally use the yellow ones as well. They're genuinely just some really good pencils, and I absolutely love them. Seeing Kasey review them one day would be pretty cool ngl... Well, as cool as a pencil review can be anyway lmao. 📝✨
I believe she is located in Canada... Ticonderago isnt really that readily found especially in the different ranges. Honestly you would have easier luck finding Tombows and Steadlers, which are better by far from both the Ticonderago and Blackwing types.
I have a Ticonderoga pencil that I found on the ground one day.. And I don’t want to use it cause of how good it is suppose to be. Don’t want to waste it. lol
I agree with you on their graphite pencils. I never really understood the hype. But their erasable red and erasable blue pencils that are packaged just one color per box are so yummy 🤤 I bought them expecting to be underwhelmed but they were so blendable yet still erased 😍
when it comes to pencil you probably won't see a huge difference in the result between average and high end pencils. The difference is really in the user experience, and personally I find the blackwings to be a delight to use. If you were comparing the process of drawing with a standard pencil to a blackwing, I bet you'd feel the difference.
To get more control move your hand up and down the pencil. If you want a darker line hold near the tip. Softer lines hold near the eraser,etc. with midtones. Hope this helps with the heavy handedness!
I was like, Ticonderoga? 😂 Blackwing is totally lovely too! The blackwing matte are my favorite. I write really hard because I need dark lines to see 😂 So I tend to write softer with them. Soooo nice
I used a Blackwing Matte when I made sample displays for a ceramic tile sales company. They were using sharpies before to mark tile to be cut but the problem was any leftover marks had to be removed with acid. The graphite would just wash away with water! So easy!
❤ id looooove to see Kasey do a full drawing and watercolor of a little village or camping spot with cute characters and people all in it. Seeing her draw and paint is the one and only thing that calms my anxiety. I'm a 25 yr old mom of 4 children. Got pregnant with my first at 14. At one point last year we were homeless with no car or anything... I have heart problems on top of severe anxiety, depression, and PTSD. I count down the days till Kasey posts videos. And that's the biggest thing I look forward to. I paint on canvas, water color, and draw as well. And she just motivates me to a T..
I am so glad I am not the only one who is not amazed by the Blackwings. They are nice pencils, but they are waaaay over hyped (and overpriced). If you want nice pencils, there are the ones from Mitsubishi or Tombow. Both are butiful and slightly better than the Blackwings and cheaper at the same time.
I've heard so much about blackwings and desperately want to give them a try but in every art shop I've been in they're literally behind glass haha 😂 kind of disappointed that they don't look that different from regular graphite but I guess you've saved me some money, so thank you! I'll stick with my faber castell ❤❤
The sharpener that LavenderTowne got with her Blackwing is so good!! I have a dupe two step pencil and I now almost exclusively use traditional pencils over mechanical ones
Hey kasey, I’ve been watching your videos since 2016 or earlier and just wanted to say how much I appreciate what you do and how you review art supplies! I work at opus art supplies now, and many of the products your review are ones that I have to know lots about to help people at work. Anyways you’re awesome
I love these drawings!! I got a blackwing pencil in an art box and never use it. Im so stuck on mechanical pencils as well. I used to be really into shading everything but i really dont anymore so its a mechanical pencil for me. Love that you reviewed these pencils. 😺
I love the textures and gradient of traditional pencils and wish they could be accurately replicated in digital media, but they smudge and get ruined so easily in storage. If my eyes didn't blur when looking down, I'd traditional sketch a lot more. I do miss it, but I don't miss the eye pain and blurred vision. At least with digital art I can get a few hours of drawing in before my eyes throw a fit. Traditional art makes that happen within half an hour. ;-; Ticonderoga were my favorite as a kid.
I've been using Blackwings for a while. There really is something so effortless with them. I'm not justifying the price, and I still use mechanical pencils 80% of the time, but the BW vs other traditional pencils for my personal style is reliable
I don't understand why can't they just say "this pencil is HB, this one is 2B" and instead they just use random names and "it's soft, it's firm, soft but not as soft as", like please just say what number it is
My experience here was similar. I draw using a mechanical pencil (currently I'm using a spoke-4 titanium flare grip), so I picked up some blackwing pencils to try out. They're lovely pencils, but they won't replace my mechanical pencils for convenience and precision
Hullo Kasey, I was introduced to Blackwing by an Uncle and he just raved about them!! I just never thought they were all that! I had a hard time justifying the expense! I recently got one in a ScrawlrBox and decided to get the same sample set you used in this video! Of them all I liked the Pearl too! I ended up using the 602 most as it was more like the one from ScrawlrBox and I did not want to use up the sample set, kinda a waste if I am honest. If I want a range of graphite pencils I will get a set of Staedtler Mars Lumograph or Faber Castell's 9h to 9B or any set with a good range. I kept saying tint or shade when you said color! Unless you use it you just do not think about terminology.
Casey you need to compare them with other artist pencils like Faber castell or derwent etc drawing sets. Comparing them to themselves when they have specific uses is not really telling.
I have a blackwing but it's a collab with Scrawlrbox (a UK mystery art box), it's really dark, smooth. After a bit of research it's similar to a 4B. The 602 is similar to a B, Matte a 3B, Pearl a 2B and Natural a HB.
Love my blackwong 602 BUTt also use a mechanical pencil.. Thanks for testing the others, I’ve always wondered if I chose the right one of the four. Wished you had tested smudge ability of these. Joy on your illustrations though.. I love them❤
is it just me or do they seem so soft, like oil pastels vs chalk pastels, dare say Crayons? wonderful job with the shading and shades but also agree, its not really you until some colors are involved
i dont think they are the 'best' pencils. they are just iconic for their overall look and the archival evidence that past 'greats' in the creative realm used them- as they are very easy to identify them black and white photographs because of their shape. I don't care for their erasers, so i usually 'hack' them for either a black Steadler or even the softer Moo erasers, just cut to size to fit in the ferrule. Loved the illustrations you did, especially the bird with the worm and the cat with de fish. it was nice seeing someone break down the BW 'grades'.
The fact that the grey and natural pencils don't have matching eraser colors is kinda bothering me, like I I have these I would definitely try to swap the erasers😂😂
Please could someone tell me why being first or last is important to watching any video please. I’ve been seeing this for years now and I don’t get it. How does it relate to what you watching? Cheers 🇦🇺
Soooo which one is the darkest? 😅 These are so expensive and not sold in my country, I would have to import them making them a bit more expensive for me. But I love drawing with a good old pencil so much, the blackwings are really tempting to try
The Blackwing Matte is the darkest of them all. If you can't find them where you live (they aren't available where I live, either) you can try a good Japanese pencil in 4b for a similar feel and effect ( Uni Mitsubishi, Kitaboshi or Tombow). Blackwing pencils use a Japanese graphite core, too. 😊
I can't stand the feeling of wooden pencils. It's revolting to me, the feel of the wood, the scratch of the lead just bother me. Maybe it's because I used cheap pencils in grade school but sometimes even my faber castell and colored pencils bother me.
@@Nevae_696 yes but when you sharpen a pencil the coating is removed from the tip. I admit I hold my pencil weird and close to the tip so I feel the exposed wood.
Lmao the way you said "musicians?" we draw a lot on our music whether that be notes on expression, ways to technically play or what the conductor is doing at that point! If you ever dare write on music with pen you will be hated by all musicians ever, it is sinful, blasphemy I always have like 7 awful pencils floating around but never when I need them for orchestra 😂
Now I want to sketch on a stipple paper even tho I have several unfinished paintings waiting for me 😅
I felt that 😂
SAME 😆
Motal Kombat announcer voice: Finish Them!
@@BiteSizedCrafter yes on it! 🫡
When they say 'soft, dark line' they're talking about how fuzzy the edges of the line are. Fine point inks make sharp lines, crayons make soft lines.
I thought they mean softer graphite, which makes it easier to make dark lines. I guess it could be either lol
@@dragonli1y The softness of the lead is what makes the lines soft. The harder lead makes a sharper, thinner line.
I have been used to mostly draw or scribble with pencils.
I struggle with coloured pencils though I have warmed up to them over the past few years.
The funny thing is, after one of your Ohuhu marker reviews I bought some myself and I have been very impressed on how well I can handle them.
Thank you for being such an open and wholesome person
Hoooonestly I didn't see that much of a difference in the finished sketches but the swatches are just a real good way to show how different these pencils actually are. I always used to draw JUST with pencils. No Lineart at all and maybe some watercolor here and there until I actually started watching youtube art content. This really brings me back to that time.
I never understood the fascination with the Blackwing pencils, and I still don't. Not because you didn't tested them through their paces but because I rather understand the hardness or softness of my graphite pencils from 9H to 9B and all in between.😊
Ditto.
It’s because they’re blacker than other pencils and look cool, with the oddly shaped eraser. It’s kind of annoying to try to figure out the harness though.
@@soniccookie655 Mmm science.
9h hardest will draw the lightest lines and the graphite can be sharpener to the longest point without breakage. 9b is softest will put down the darkest lines and may crumble if sharpened too long or putting too much pressure when using.
Agreed, overhyped. I found they did not erase well in comparison art pencils.
I really don't know how to explain it, but I absolutely love the Blackwing Pearl pencils. I am happy to draw with any materials, and have historically been a mechanical pencil girly, but man I feel like they are the best and most wonderful pencil to draw with personally. Never thought I would be super super invested in one specific pencil, and I still use plenty of other materials still, but after continuing to use and repurchase them for a year solid I am in love 😂
9:02 The pearl does look like it does have color in it. It was your magic touch I guess! Thanks for sharing your experience and thoughts
These drawings were beautiful and smooth! Since these Blackwing pencils are expensive, why not use Ticonderoga pencils! Curious to see what you could do with the original Ticonderoga, Ticonderoga Black, Ticonderoga Red, and Ticonderoga Blue pencils! ✏️📓
Ticonderago is ICONIC!!! They were the only non-mechanical pencils that I used for the entire time I was in school, and they're still my go-to wooden pencils to this day. The black ones were always my favorite, mostly for aesthetic reasons lol, although I would occasionally use the yellow ones as well. They're genuinely just some really good pencils, and I absolutely love them. Seeing Kasey review them one day would be pretty cool ngl... Well, as cool as a pencil review can be anyway lmao. 📝✨
@@negligible_reality It’s basically the pencil that I have used the most during school as well as the Dixon and Papermate pencils!
I believe she is located in Canada... Ticonderago isnt really that readily found especially in the different ranges.
Honestly you would have easier luck finding Tombows and Steadlers, which are better by far from both the Ticonderago and Blackwing types.
I have a Ticonderoga pencil that I found on the ground one day.. And I don’t want to use it cause of how good it is suppose to be. Don’t want to waste it. lol
I got this set for Christmas, actually. I had one of them in the late 90’s and loved it. I haven’t brought myself to sharpen these just yet.
I agree with you on their graphite pencils. I never really understood the hype. But their erasable red and erasable blue pencils that are packaged just one color per box are so yummy 🤤 I bought them expecting to be underwhelmed but they were so blendable yet still erased 😍
when it comes to pencil you probably won't see a huge difference in the result between average and high end pencils. The difference is really in the user experience, and personally I find the blackwings to be a delight to use. If you were comparing the process of drawing with a standard pencil to a blackwing, I bet you'd feel the difference.
To get more control move your hand up and down the pencil. If you want a darker line hold near the tip. Softer lines hold near the eraser,etc. with midtones. Hope this helps with the heavy handedness!
I was like, Ticonderoga? 😂 Blackwing is totally lovely too! The blackwing matte are my favorite. I write really hard because I need dark lines to see 😂 So I tend to write softer with them. Soooo nice
I used a Blackwing Matte when I made sample displays for a ceramic tile sales company. They were using sharpies before to mark tile to be cut but the problem was any leftover marks had to be removed with acid. The graphite would just wash away with water! So easy!
absolutely adore the textures on the birb!!!
❤ id looooove to see Kasey do a full drawing and watercolor of a little village or camping spot with cute characters and people all in it. Seeing her draw and paint is the one and only thing that calms my anxiety. I'm a 25 yr old mom of 4 children. Got pregnant with my first at 14. At one point last year we were homeless with no car or anything... I have heart problems on top of severe anxiety, depression, and PTSD. I count down the days till Kasey posts videos. And that's the biggest thing I look forward to. I paint on canvas, water color, and draw as well. And she just motivates me to a T..
I am so glad I am not the only one who is not amazed by the Blackwings. They are nice pencils, but they are waaaay over hyped (and overpriced). If you want nice pencils, there are the ones from Mitsubishi or Tombow. Both are butiful and slightly better than the Blackwings and cheaper at the same time.
I've heard so much about blackwings and desperately want to give them a try but in every art shop I've been in they're literally behind glass haha 😂 kind of disappointed that they don't look that different from regular graphite but I guess you've saved me some money, so thank you! I'll stick with my faber castell ❤❤
...i see the eraser remains and i instinctly blow the screen
The sharpener that LavenderTowne got with her Blackwing is so good!! I have a dupe two step pencil and I now almost exclusively use traditional pencils over mechanical ones
THE CAT LOOKS SO SILLY I LOVE HIM x>
Great video. Perfect timing - as I just started my pencil research, and Blackwing kept popping up. This was very objective and informative. Thanks. ✏
I love the rabbit on the carrots, especially his tail!
Hey kasey, I’ve been watching your videos since 2016 or earlier and just wanted to say how much I appreciate what you do and how you review art supplies! I work at opus art supplies now, and many of the products your review are ones that I have to know lots about to help people at work. Anyways you’re awesome
I love these drawings!! I got a blackwing pencil in an art box and never use it. Im so stuck on mechanical pencils as well. I used to be really into shading everything but i really dont anymore so its a mechanical pencil for me. Love that you reviewed these pencils. 😺
That stipple paper is gorgeous wow. I need that in my life forever now (ill probably never use it psssh)
I love the textures and gradient of traditional pencils and wish they could be accurately replicated in digital media, but they smudge and get ruined so easily in storage. If my eyes didn't blur when looking down, I'd traditional sketch a lot more. I do miss it, but I don't miss the eye pain and blurred vision. At least with digital art I can get a few hours of drawing in before my eyes throw a fit. Traditional art makes that happen within half an hour. ;-;
Ticonderoga were my favorite as a kid.
I think you pulled off the transition nicely😊
You should try the water soluble graphites that you can wet like watercolor pencils
Hi for those liking the stiple paper texture! Canvas has the same effect and can sometimes be cheaper
I use blackwing pencils almost every day, but I don't draw with them... my favorite is also pearl. Love the bunny drawing.
I've been using Blackwings for a while. There really is something so effortless with them. I'm not justifying the price, and I still use mechanical pencils 80% of the time, but the BW vs other traditional pencils for my personal style is reliable
I don't understand why can't they just say "this pencil is HB, this one is 2B" and instead they just use random names and "it's soft, it's firm, soft but not as soft as", like please just say what number it is
either way I'd still prefer my mechanical pencil with whatever random lead, especially some colourful ones
H is hard B is soft. So 9H is super hard(light) and 9B is super soft (dark)
@@Moira.D.B I know that¿?
That's why it would be way easier to use those than just saying "it's a bit soft :) how soft? We won't tell you"
My experience here was similar. I draw using a mechanical pencil (currently I'm using a spoke-4 titanium flare grip), so I picked up some blackwing pencils to try out. They're lovely pencils, but they won't replace my mechanical pencils for convenience and precision
Hullo Kasey, I was introduced to Blackwing by an Uncle and he just raved about them!! I just never thought they were all that! I had a hard time justifying the expense! I recently got one in a ScrawlrBox and decided to get the same sample set you used in this video! Of them all I liked the Pearl too! I ended up using the 602 most as it was more like the one from ScrawlrBox and I did not want to use up the sample set, kinda a waste if I am honest. If I want a range of graphite pencils I will get a set of Staedtler Mars Lumograph or Faber Castell's 9h to 9B or any set with a good range. I kept saying tint or shade when you said color! Unless you use it you just do not think about terminology.
that wasnt a corny silly transition. that was a really nice smooth transition
Black wing pencils were used in the early days of cartoons. Many famous artists swore by them.
the illustrations are so damn cute.
thank you Kasey .
Where’s the legs for the bunny! Loving the graphic pencil illustrations!
Casey you need to compare them with other artist pencils like Faber castell or derwent etc drawing sets. Comparing them to themselves when they have specific uses is not really telling.
I have a blackwing but it's a collab with Scrawlrbox (a UK mystery art box), it's really dark, smooth. After a bit of research it's similar to a 4B. The 602 is similar to a B, Matte a 3B, Pearl a 2B and Natural a HB.
stipple paper + crayons ?
Love my blackwong 602 BUTt also use a mechanical pencil.. Thanks for testing the others, I’ve always wondered if I chose the right one of the four. Wished you had tested smudge ability of these. Joy on your illustrations though.. I love them❤
I never understood the fascination with Blackwing...
I got the matte one and I was dissappointed in the same way I was when I first tried Moleskine sketchbooks 🤷🏻♀️
1:23 I said woah out loud
is it just me or do they seem so soft, like oil pastels vs chalk pastels, dare say Crayons? wonderful job with the shading and shades but also agree, its not really you until some colors are involved
Oh, silly me - I thought the bunny's nose was his mouth, and his mouth his teeny-stubby front paws.
So instead of like :>, his face is more like •3•.
i dont think they are the 'best' pencils. they are just iconic for their overall look and the archival evidence that past 'greats' in the creative realm used them- as they are very easy to identify them black and white photographs because of their shape.
I don't care for their erasers, so i usually 'hack' them for either a black Steadler or even the softer Moo erasers, just cut to size to fit in the ferrule.
Loved the illustrations you did, especially the bird with the worm and the cat with de fish.
it was nice seeing someone break down the BW 'grades'.
Loves me my blackwings🤪✏️
The fact that the grey and natural pencils don't have matching eraser colors is kinda bothering me, like I I have these I would definitely try to swap the erasers😂😂
I prefer the Dixon Ticonderoga.
I love the goofy dog at the end - he reminds me of Olive in the best way
Please could someone tell me why being first or last is important to watching any video please. I’ve been seeing this for years now and I don’t get it. How does it relate to what you watching? Cheers 🇦🇺
Because they find it fun to be the first one to comment
your brain blanks and caveman competitiveness takes over and you type FIRST like a fool. i've been there. it's kinda fun
Yes it is
i dont care how nice they are, no pencil is worth what they cost, then again i have bought Luminance pencils and get more of them 😝
yipee!
I always thought I had a fake one.. because of your video I know I have the legit one x'D WHOOPS
Soooo which one is the darkest? 😅 These are so expensive and not sold in my country, I would have to import them making them a bit more expensive for me. But I love drawing with a good old pencil so much, the blackwings are really tempting to try
The Blackwing Matte is the darkest of them all. If you can't find them where you live (they aren't available where I live, either) you can try a good Japanese pencil in 4b for a similar feel and effect ( Uni Mitsubishi, Kitaboshi or Tombow). Blackwing pencils use a Japanese graphite core, too. 😊
hi casey!! how are you? how's the cat going? (i forgot their name i'm so sorry)
has anyone told u that you look like max caulfield from life is strange? haha!
I can't stand the feeling of wooden pencils. It's revolting to me, the feel of the wood, the scratch of the lead just bother me. Maybe it's because I used cheap pencils in grade school but sometimes even my faber castell and colored pencils bother me.
Wait are pencils made out of just straight wood don’t they have that coding on top of it ?
@@Nevae_696 yes but when you sharpen a pencil the coating is removed from the tip. I admit I hold my pencil weird and close to the tip so I feel the exposed wood.
@@Erzas_Art_Atelier Isn’t that bad for your wrist might wanna be careful
please try karin deco brush paint pennssss !!!!!!
Lmao the way you said "musicians?" we draw a lot on our music whether that be notes on expression, ways to technically play or what the conductor is doing at that point!
If you ever dare write on music with pen you will be hated by all musicians ever, it is sinful, blasphemy
I always have like 7 awful pencils floating around but never when I need them for orchestra 😂
The best pencil for musicians is a great pencil to get that smooth percussion rhythm while beating it on the table
❤️
I have these pencils and many years of v🎉olumes lol
The most overhyped pencil of all time. They're just pencils.
😍👍👍
FIRST
You could say "Shade" instead of colour.
good pencils wasted on cal arts garbage