Pencil Sharpeners for Colored Pencils

If you use colored pencils then a necessity is having a good pencil sharpener.   Coloring with a sharpened pencil is much easier to blend, burnish and reach small deails and spaces.

In my view, a good pencil sharpener has the following features:

• easy to use
• can be used with different brands of pencils
• sharpens to the desired point
• has replaceable blades
• long wearing
• value for money

I have accumulated quite a lot of pencil sharpeners during my coloring journey. Today I’ll take you through 10 of my pencil sharpeners and show you on video how they perform with my Prismacolor pencils, Faber Castell Polychromos, Holbein and Tombow Irojiten pencils. The pencil sharpeners in this list vary in price with several budget brand pencil sharpeners to some that are a little more expensive.

Prismacolor Pencil Sharpener

Prismacolor makes a pencil sharpener to suit their range of colored pencils.

It features:

• designed to fit your hand when turning the pencil;
• two holes (one for the Verithin pencils and hte oher for Premiere colored pencils)
• container holds quite a lot of shavings before being emptied
• works with other pencil brands

You can buy the Prismacolor pencil sharpener here

Derwent Academy Pencil Sharpener

Derwent make a budget pencil sharpener that suits their range of colored pencils.

It features:

• fully enclosed plastic container with flip up lid (this protects the sharpener entry)
• ideal for travel or commuting as the container seals in all shavings and pencil dust
• two holes to suit most pencils
• works well with other brands of pencils
• small container holds pencil shavings without any leakage
• lightweight
• fits easily into the palm of your hand

You can buy the Derwent Academy pencil sharpener here

Kum Automatic Long Point Pencil Sharpener

Kum make a range of  products for artists and budding artists including brushes, watercolors and pencil sharpeners.    Their products are made in Germany and are very good quality.

It features:

• has two holes, works differently from other sharpeners
• first hole shaves the wood on the pencil, second hole shaves the core
• has an automatic stop, which stops the pencil from being shaved automatically
• produces a long, fine point on your colored pencil
• has a small container to hold pencil shavings
• small and lightweight make it ideal for travel or commuting
• works with various brands of pencil
• includes two replacement blades that have been incorporated into the container design (ensuring you don’t have to look for them)
• blades are made from high carbon steel

You can buy the Kum Automatic Long Point Pencil Sharpener here

Kutsuwa K’zool Multi Sharpener

The Kutsuwa K’zool Multi Sharpener is made by the same company that makes the T’Gaal pencil sharpener.

It features:

• open and close function to  protecting the opening
• small shaving storage container
• has an easy dial function to indicate the 5 point sizes you can sharpen
• has a unique “push” function to push out any broken lead from the container
• lightweight and compact for travelling and commuting
• works with various brands of pencils
• fits easily in the palm of your hand

You can buy the Kutsuwa K’zool Multi Sharpener here 

T’Gaal Pencil Sharpener

The T’Gaal pencil sharpener is made by the same company that makes the K’Zool Multi Sharpener

It features:

• open and close function to protect the opening
• shaving storage container
• easy dial function to indicate the 5 point sizes you can sharpen
• lightweight and compact for travelling and commuting
• works with various brands of pencils
• fits easily in the palm of your hand
• has a range of color choices

You can buy the T’Gaal pencil sharpener here

Tombow Ippo Point

Tombow make a range of products including pencils, markers, erasers and pencil sharpeners.    The fish shaped Ippo Point pencil sharpener is a little difficult to obtain.      I purchased mine in Australia here and it is currently out of stock.   You may be able to purchase it from Jet Pens here.  Tombow also make a square Ippo W point sharpener with two holes that you may be able to obtain from Tombow here.

It features:

• cute and functional design
• small plastic “apple” to close the pencil holder and protect the entry
• small container to hold shavings
• easy spring clip to open to empty shavings
• lightweight and portable
• sharpens a variety of pencil brands
• available in pink or blue
• fits easily in the palm of your hand

The fish shaped Ippo Point Sharpener is hard to obtain at the time of writing.    I purchased mine in Australia here.

Mobius & Ruppert (M & R) Pencil Sharpener 

M and R Pencil Sharpeners are made in  Erlangen, Germany.    The company specialises in high quality pencil sharpeners and cutting tools, to suit all needs since 1922.   Their brass pencil sharpeners are suitable for pencils “up to 11 mm”.  The blades on their sharpeners feature “special corrosion protection” that makes them hardier and outstanding quality.

It features:

• variety of styles and options (including 1 or 2 hole)
• sturdy brass construction
• replacement blades are available
• sharpens most brands of pencils
• easy to hold and transport
• long wearing

You can purchase the M & R Pencil Sharpener here 

Bruynzeel Pencil Sharpener

Bruyzneel is a Dutch brand has been creating products including pencils, watercolors, crayons and sharpeners since 1948. It is part of the Royal Talens group which also includes Rembrandt, Van Gogh and Ecoline products.

It features:

• • two holes  “an 8mm hole … give regular graphite pencils a finer point and the second 9mm hole  for colouring pencils, to give them a wider point” 
  • “world renowned premium Dutch blade. The body is made of brass alloy and the blade of high carbon steel”
  • hard wearing, sturdy and durable design
  • packaged in a small plastic box making it easy to transport
  • sharpens a variety of pencil brands
  • comes with two replacement blades

You can purchase the Bruynzeel Pencil Sharpener here.  If you are in Australia you can purchase from Craft Online or Officeworks Online.

Derwent Super Point Manual Helical Pencil Sharpener

Derwent make a range of products for artists and budding artists including pencils, erasers and pencil sharpeners.

It features:

• manual crank with automatic stop that avoids over sharpening your pencils
• ability to create a super long point on your pencils (even soft core like Prismacolors)
• can sharpen pencils “8mm in diameter to an extra-long, super point”
• desk clamp attachment to fix to your work space
• “High performance steel helical blade”
• good sized container for pencil shavings that is easy to remove
• sharpens various brands of pencils
• sturdy construction

You can purchase the Derwent Super Point Pencil Sharpener here

Westcott iPoint Orbit  Pencil Sharpener

Westcott make a range of  office and stationery products including a variety of pencil sharpeners.    The iPoint Orbit is available as either a battery pencil sharpener or a USB pencil sharpener.  As I found removing the covering to insert the batteries in the iPoint difficult (I broke it – it is now taped together) if I was to purchase another, I would purchase the USB pencil sharpener instead.

It features:

• automatic stop
• large container to hold shavings securely
• see through container allows you to easily see when to empty
• titanium blades that last longer than stainless steel
• replacement blades included
• easy to use
• sharpens quickly
• works with many brands of pencils

You can purchase the iPoint battery operated sharpener here. If you wish to avoid the hassle of opening the battery space and the four batteries to operate, check out the USB iPoint Sharpener here.

Caring for Your Pencil Sharpener for Colored Pencils

When you are using your pencil sharpener make sure to maintain it in it’s best condition by:

• running a normal lead pencil through it to clean it of waxy build up (particularly if you are using Prismacolor pencils)
• remove all shavings and pigment dust by brushing it out and emptying any container regularly
• replacing the blades, if possible, when they show signs of dullness (scraping the barrel and not producing a clean shave)

I hope you have found the pencil sharpener for your colored pencils that suits your needs and budget.

Happy coloring x
Lea

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