Except my favorite pencil never smudges the way charcoal or soft graphite can ... the lines stay put and the color is luxurious, like bits of black velvet streaked across the page.

I've used dozens of graphite pencils, but Staedtler's are the best for the price. Best charcoal: Cretacolor Charcoal ... all media and don't shed eraser bits everywhere, but the ArtGum eraser ...

And it's her passion to show the world that the pencil can produce beautiful art, one line at a time. Anastasia Alexandrin is a fine artist using charcoal pencils and large canvas paper to create ...