3A Grey Wooden Pencil, Red End, 2B

A graphite pencil is graded on a scale from H to B: H grades are hard and give a light, precise, silvery line that holds a point; B grades are soft and give a darker, warmer line that smudges and blends. The number is the strength — 2B is softer than B, 5B softer still.

Choose the grade by the job, not by habit. Hard grades suit technical drawing, fine detail and anything that must not smudge; soft grades suit sketching, tonal shading and expressive line. Most people who draw carry a small spread rather than one pencil — a hard grade to construct with and a soft grade to finish — because forcing one grade to do both means either a line too faint to see or a drawing that greys over from smudging.

2B is one step into the soft range — dark enough for sketching and light shading, still controlled enough to write with. It is the grade a lot of artists reach for first, and the usual recommendation for someone moving from writing pencils into drawing.

• 2B graphite grade
• Wooden barrel, sharpens to a point
• Choose the grade by the job
• Softer grades smudge — fix or keep behind paper