Dive into our selection of the top carpenter’s pencils that cover most professional needs when it comes to woodworking, and scroll down to read about what to look for when choosing the best one for you. Fussy on my pencils for general paperwork, both around the house and also the day job but for diy tasks, these are my two current go-to marking implements;

It is important to be aware of the powerful nature of surfactants and that they should be used sparingly. The qualities that assist in the dispersion of pigments will also lead to blotchy and incohesive colour as the paint breaks apart entirely. As the name might imply ox gall is derived from cows, specifically from gallstones taken from a cow’s gallbladder. The gallstones are refined with an alcohol to create a watercolour surfactant. A surfactant is a chemical solution that disrupts the surface tension of another substance, in this case water. It works to disrupt the water's internal cohesion making it easier for other molecules to disperse within it. The effect is a softer blend as pigment disperses with greater ease due to the increased flow of the water. As for Prismacolor – from looking online it appears to be notoriously difficult to get transparent information as it seems that the components and ingredients within their ranges are sourced from multiple suppliers, therefore they cannot provide a definitive answer as they don’t have sufficient information. Which is frustrating to say the least. Watercolour is arguably the easiest form of painting to get started in. The requirements compared to oil painting are minimal, and watercolours generally take up less space than acrylic. All you need are your paints, brushes, paper and water. Plus you can take advantage of a number of mediums designed specifically to affect the properties of the paint. Two of the most common but often misunderstood mediums are Ox Gall liquid and Gum Arabic. What are these two mediums and how should you apply them to your watercolour painting?Seems to be a growing market though for these work pencils that totally reinvent the humble writing implement

They may look a little but like regular pencils, but carpenter pencils have a little bit more of a weird shape and a range of uses that makes them highly sought after items in woodworking workshops. Their unique shape, being either rectangular or elliptical, is designed to prevent the pencil from rolling away while cutting or taking measurements. Their design also provides a more comfortable grip due to the increased surface area, even when hands are wet. Also available at: Walmart, Acme Tools, The Tool Nutand Sears 3. Best Mechanical Carpenter Pencils—Swanson Tool Co CP216 You can see how the additional of a flow improver to watercolour paint can give a more even dispersion of pigment and more even blending of colour. Watercolour papers are traditionally treated with a gelatin size to reduce the absorbency of the paper (gelatin is extracted from the skin, bones, and connective tissues of animals), but there are a number of watercolour papers that are treated with synthetic size instead. Ox Gall Liquid and Gum Arabic, these powerful watercolour mediums are usually available in small handy bottles.It’s hard to precisely shave a pencil when you’re in a hurry; you could end up removing too much lead or, if you’re not a seasoned pro, you could even risk injuring yourself with the utility knife. The Kapro 275S carpenter pencil sharpener is designed to sharpen any pencil swiftly and efficiently. In terms of hard pastels, Faber Castell’s Pitt Monochrome pastels do not contain animal ingredients and are not tested on animals.

Raw Gum Arabic in the form of chunks of crystallised acacia tree sap, ready to be ground to powder and further refined.

Watercolour Paints and Traditional Gouache

I hope this helps, if there are any other ranges you were looking at and were unsure then let me know and I can look into it.