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My Portrait Art Essentials
18
items I’m so passionate about portrait art because it lets me connect with emotion, light, and the tiniest details in people’s faces. These are the tools that help me bring that love to life — and honestly, I couldn’t imagine creating without them.
Sections
4
For Sketching & Linework
For Shading & Realism
For Color & Depth
For Details & Finishing Touches
For Sketching & Linework
These are the tools I reach for when I’m planning a piece, capturing expression, or getting lost in line.
My ride-or-die pencils for clean, expressive sketches — smooth, consistent, and no weird shine.
Faber-Castell 9000 Graphite Pencils (6B–2H Set)
A sketchbook staple. Smooth enough for detail, strong enough to handle layering and erasing.
Strathmore 400 Series Drawing Paper (Smooth)
For precise details like eyes or hair strands — I love how balanced this pencil feels in hand.
GraphGear 1000 Expert Mechanical Drafting Pencil
A clean, reliable eraser that doesn’t damage the paper. I always keep one in my kit.
Staedtler Mars Plastic Erasers
The secret weapon for sharp highlights — perfect for picking out shine in eyes or lip texture.
MONO zero eraser
For Shading & Realism
This is where the magic happens — shaping emotion and light with depth, texture, and tone.
When I want bold contrast or drama in a portrait, these give me beautiful, velvety darks.
General's Charcoal Pencils and Sets
Gorgeous muted browns and creams that add a soft warmth to skin, shadows, and hair.
Derwent Drawing Pencils
So satisfying to use — I mold it to lift subtle highlights or softly fade edges in graphite or charcoal.
Prismacolor Kneaded Eraser-Medium
These help me blend with control — especially in the eyes, cheeks, or around noses. I use them a lot.
Stumps and Tortillons
This helps seal my drawings without ruining them. I use it when I want to preserve softness without smudging.
Drawing Fixatives
For Color & Depth
When I want to breathe life into a portrait, I turn to color — gentle washes or deep pigment layering.
These blend like butter and are perfect for building lifelike skin tones with incredible control.
Faber-Castell Polychromos Pencils and Sets
When I want deep, velvety color and subtle gradients — these are luxury, but so worth it.
Caran d'Ache Luminance
I use these for soft backgrounds or tonal layering — their colors are vibrant but not overpowering.
Watercolour Sets
Keeps my paints from drying out, and the layout makes mixing beautiful skin tones super easy.
Mijello Airtight Watercolor 18-Well Blue Palette
I love using this for watercolor portraits — it holds washes well without buckling.
Canson® XL® Watercolor Pad
For Details & Finishing Touches
It’s the tiniest details that make portraits feel alive — that sparkle in the eye, that edge highlight.
My favorite for clean white highlights — just a tiny dot in the eyes can make everything pop.
Uni-ball Signo Broad UM-153 Gel Pen - White Ink
I use these to add a hint of mood, jewelry shine, or eye highlights. A little goes a long way.
Sakura Gelly Roll Classic White Gel Pen - 3 Pen Set (Fine/Medium/Broad Point)
Sounds dramatic — but trust me, this saves time and is amazing for crisp light effects in hair or fabric.
Derwent Battery Operated Eraser, Artist Tool