RAINBOW LEAD PENCILS: JUST FOR KIDS?

BUDDHA, done with a white colored pencil and with one Rainbow Lead Multicolor pencil for shading.

Warning:  If you're not interested in a nerdy essay about using a pencil with a multicolored lead, please skip right past this post.


You may require the patience of Buddha to read it...

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Several readers have asked me questions about using multicolored pencils, since I often use them for drawings and/or tangles posted here, so here is a piece on the topic.  It's a long post, but the longest part is about where and how to find the pencils.  That is a big issue.

The short part of the post is about how to actually use them, because what I know about using multicolored pencils can fit into a thimble.

You can see my current stash in the photo to the left.  I only own 2 kinds of these pencils at the moment.  I'll explain that shortly.


WHAT *ARE* THESE MULTICOLORED PENCILS, ANYWAY?
or..."I've never heard of them."
Let me start by saying, let's call them something else. Let's call them "Rainbow Lead Pencils," or "Multi's."  As you can see from looking at these, the name "multicolored pencils" is a misnomer.  I've called them that in the past, as have others, but I'm not going to call them that in the future.  From the plain brown ones on the left above, you can see that it isn't the PENCIL that is multicolored; it's is the pencil's LEAD.  Same with the ones on the right, only those are also wrapped in multicolored paper (just to confuse the issue).

WHERE DO YOU GET THEM? 
or...be careful what you ask for...
What you ask for is part of the problem.  If you ask your art store about "multicolored pencils," you'll likely get regular graphite black lead pencils wrapped in a swirly colored outer wrapper.  In other words, regular pencils with ordinary black lead. 

You will need to ask for "pencils with a multicolored lead, or Rainbow Lead Pencils."

Even then, you are likely to have the clerk look at you with a puzzled expression and ask, "You mean 'colored pencils,' right?"  No.  "Colored pencils," at least as we talk about them in the U.S., means a pencil with a monochrome color.  Only green, or only blue or only red, not green-AND-blue-AND-red-and-yellow in one lead. 

The other thing you will hear from clerks is, "Oh, you mean those pencils that have multiple leads in the barrel and you click them to switch from one lead to the other?"  No.  Or, "Oh, we have PENS that have 4 different colors in the barrel and you click to switch from one color to the other."  No.  Just, no. 

You are looking for one regular-sized pencil which has a single lead inside just like an ordinary pencil,  (no clicking, no switching) BUT there are at least 4 different colors included in the one lead.  Sometimes as many as 7 colors.

Look carefully at this pencil below.  Yes, the outer wrapper is swirly colors.  But look at the LEAD.  You will see how the lead is sectioned into more than one color.  If you look carefully at the lead, you'll see a blue-ish green on top, a slash of red underneath, and some yellow on the bottom.  This is what you are looking for.  (The outer wrapper doesn't tell you a thing)

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Now, just as with any art tool or supplies, â chacun son goût.  We each like different things and you may prefer something I dislike.  For example, I like Rainbow Lead/Multi's with fairly soft leads.  You may like them with harder leads.  The plain brown Rainbow Lead/Multi's in the first picture have very hard leads. I use them but they are not my favorites.  I prefer the soft leads of the pencil shown just above.

You may like thicker pencils which have thicker leads.  I really and truly dislike those--I can't get the fine lines that I prefer, even when I sharpen the heck out of them.  So I look for regular-sized pencils, not thick chunky ones.

IF THEY'RE THAT HARD TO FIND, WHERE DO I LOOK?
Oh, if only I could tell you.  Luck is part of it.  Remember to specify "Multicolor lead" or "Rainbow Lead" (try both names...sometimes they are called "Magic Lead Pencils"). 

Another major clue:  If you are wondering about whether it's the right pencil and you notice it has an eraser on top, don't buy it.  It's not a Rainbow Lead--you cannot erase them.  None of them come with erasers.

Here's where I have found the ones I like so far:

• Amazon:  they have a wide variety (Keywords:  Rainbow Lead Pencils) but a lot of them are the thick pencils with thick leads.  As I said above, not what I want, but maybe you will like them?  Worth a look and I notice that regular-sized Rainbow Pencils are also becoming available there--possibly due to the current popularity of coloring books.
• Koh-i-Noor makes them and calls them "Magic Pencils" and I have some but haven't had time to try them out yet.  I got them from Amazon.

• Oriental Trading Company - Their product #12/3577 is "Rainbow Pencils." The link should take your directly there.  I have not tried these yet as I just found them, but I have an order in and will blog about what I think when they get here.  If these work out well, they could solve the supply issue since I think OTC always has them in stock, and they are CHEAP.  I noticed that every single review (all reviews are positive) mentions how "kids love them."  Nothing about using them for actual art.
  
• Gift stores that have a very few art suppies; sometimes they have them, sometimes they don't.  For example, I got the pencil above for $1 at Rock Paper Scissors in Wiscasset Maine when I was just passing thru the town, and that started my off on this addiction.  When I realize I wanted more a few months later, I called them and they no longer had them and they couldn't quite remember where they got them from, or when they would have them again.
  
• Art supply stores:  Like Dick Blick Art Supplies, Jerry's Art a Rama, etc.:  Sometimes they have them, most often they don't.  Michael's:  I haven't ever seen them there.
• Kids' stores:  These pencils are often bought in bulk by teachers for use in elementary schools, so sometimes you can find them in toy stores or stores with puzzles and toys and art kits for kids.  Most people view these pencils as children's toys.  They aren't perceived as legitimate art tools.
• So when I walked into Art Beat in Arlington MA and spotted an entire tub of Rainbow Lead Pencils that matched the ones I had bought in Wiscasset a couple of years ago, I bought so many of them that I now think I have a lifetime supply.
• Both the pencils in my first photograph, at the start of the post, are made in Japan, but there are no other identifying marks except for the words "Camel CA 7C" on the barrel of the plain brown wrappers.  The swirly wrappers only say "Made in Japan."
• If any of you have any other consistent source for these, PLEASE put the information into the Comments Section below so that we can all benefit.  I have found it very hard to get them in the past.

WHY WOULD I WANT ONE?  WHAT USE ARE THEY?
Good question; you might not want one!  It's all a matter of taste. 

I adore colored pencils, especially Prismacolors and Faber-Castells, but I would put myself in the "beginner" category with using them.  The same with the Rainbow/Multi's.  My previous two posts (August 25 & 26) have several photographs of how I have used them with Zentangle®, and there are numerous other examples scattered through my blog. 

HOW DO I USE ONE?
Here's what I have learned about using them so far:

1. They take practice, though less than you might think. If you get the wrong type of pencil or use them wrong, you end up with mud.  Here is the type I would NOT recommend.  Why?  Roll your mouse over their tips in the photo--you'll see that rather than 4 distinct colors, all the colors are swirled together so you'll have no control of what color appears next.  Instead, look for pencils that have the colors in sections, like these and many other brands.
   
2. Keep the point killer-sharp.  Start with the assumption that you will need to sharpen frequently.  It's so worth it.
3. Before you put pencil to paper, turn the point so that the color you want to be using is facing the paper.
4. USE A LIGHT TOUCH!--test out whether you are getting the color you want where you want it.  You can always add more, but you cannot erase at all.
5. Forget about erasing.  You can't erase when you work with Rainbow Multi's.  You will have to be creative when you work with them if you goof up.  As I said above, if you are shopping for one of these and see that the pencil has an eraser on it, you are about to buy an ordinary pencil, not the Rainbow/Multi-type pencils you are looking for.
   
6. You can ignore point #3 once you are comfortable with them--one of the things I like about them is the element of surprise.  I often put the (sharp) point on the paper and I just work with whatever color comes up.
7. When adding more color, be aware of what color you are adding and use your basic color theory.  For example, colors opposite each other on the color wheel cancel each other out and you will get gray.  So don't add green on top of red coloring unless you deliberately want to gray something out.
8. Prepare to be surprised.  I love this quality of using Multi's.  You just never know what you are going to get.
   
9. A little goes a long way.  Highlights.  Even shading.  I can't imagine doing a large drawing or an Opus tangle all with Multi's, but hey, perhaps with more experience I could pull that off!
10. You can use them in the same piece with monochromatic colored pencils also.  I haven't done much of this yet but look forward to working more with it.  You can shift and emphasize colors by using more traditional monochromatic "colored pencils" judiciously--or vice-versa:  Start with colored pencils and then carefully layer on a bit of Multi over that.  Experimentation is the name of the game.
11. You can use a blender pencil with them if you wish; it works. 
    
12. A huge perk:  You can stick just ONE pencil in your bag to add a bit of color without having to bring all your colored pencils, markers, or paints along with you.  Totally portable!  I love this about them.

All the pieces below were colored with the Rainbow Lead Multi pencil I've been talking about.  All were done in my wonderful Carole Ohl Tangle-a-Day calendar.  Keep in mind that all of these are my first try at each of the tangles--I'd never drawn any of them before, and so a lot of them are more like sloppy sketches, but you can get a sense of how the Rainbow Lead pencil works.

Truly, I hope those of you who are interested and haven't tried these will acquire some and try them out.  I can't *wait* to see what you produce.  Please share!

These pencils are so underrated...they are not just for kids!