Prismacolor

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A Prismacolor colored pencil sketch of painter Ross Bleckner.
A Prismacolor colored pencil sketch of painter Ross Bleckner.

Prismacolor is a brand of professional artists' supplies originated by Berol, and now manufactured by Sanford, the makers of Sharpie markers. Among the items in the Prismacolor line are colored pencils, Art Stix, pastels, watercolors, and alcohol-based permanent art markers.

Premier is their primarily colored pencil line and consists of 132 colors. They are sold in 12, 24, 36, 48, 72, 120, 132 assorted count packages or in open stock (one pencil) or in sets of 12 of one color. In 2005 they added 12 neutral and beige tones that can be purchased as a set or individually. 12 neutral tones are also included in the 132 package. The Prismacolor premier colored pencils are easily blended, brilliant, and have fade-resistant colors. Many techniques can be used similar to other colored pencils such as using tortillion, burnishing, rubbing alcohol, and shoepolish.

"Verithin" pencils are similar to being a student grade of their Premier line. Verithin pencils consist of 36 colors and are cheaper. They can be made into a sharper tip to get small details where the Premier line fails. Scholar is also more of a student grade with similar qualities to Verthin at a cheaper cost than premier pencils.

Lightfast pencils are one of their more recent lines. Consisting of 48 pencils and sold in a 48 count assorted package or separately they offer a sharp tip with brilliance and consistency. They are specially forumulated to keep that brilliance and strength after many hours of exposure to sunlight.

Col-Erase pencils are colored pencils that can be erased. 24 pencils that are sold separately or in a 24 count assorted set. Ideal for animating or illustrating, they offer color with a chance to erase. They have strong tips and have erasers on the end of each pencil.

Berol Prismacolor pencils
Berol Prismacolor pencils

Other Colored Pencil lines include:

  • Watercolor Pencils
  • Scholar
  • Art Stix
  • Colorless Blender

Marker lines include:

  • Double Ended
  • Metallic
  • Fine Line

Pastel lines include:

  • Soft Pastels
  • NuPastels

They also have products for charcoal and graphite feature over 10 addition lines of products.

They have two lines of Prismacolor Fixtives specially formulated to work better for colored pencil, graphite, charcoal, and pastel.

Prismacolor also hosts a contest each year for artist who use Prismacolor products called "For Art's Sake."

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