Well, we’ve all heard of these different pencil shades; HB, 2B, 4B, 5B etc, but what do they actually mean?

I’ve had to do a little research on this one myself as I’ve never understood it. I understood that some were softer and darker than others but only buy experimenting. For the keen sketchers out there, wouldn’t it be handy to know how to use these pencils without the trial and error? Here go’s;

EXPLANATION

HB Stands for ‘Hard Black’ this is your standard pencil, the one we all having lying around. Simply, the H means hard and B means black. H pencils, because they are hard, leave less graphite on the paper, so are lighter. B pencils are softer, so leave more graphite on the paper, and so are darker. F means Fine Point, and it is quite a hard pencil – easy to keep sharp, but generally a bit too hard for general drawing. When we get to the number’s for example, 2B, 4B, 5B etc the progression in number means the softer the pencil so in this list 5B would be the softest (and there for blackest) pencil.

So, to sum it up lead from softest to hardest is 6B, 5B, 4B, 3B, 2B, B, HB, F, H, 2H, 3H, 4H, 5H, 6H, 7H, 8H & 9H.

We have a selection of Art Pencils at Office365, take a peek online or just select the link to take you straight there.

Welcome to Office365′s range of ‘Remarkable Pencils’. Featuring the Remarkable Colouring Pencils Wooden FSC Wallet Assorted Colours. Remarkable is a company that proudly recycles UK waste and makes it into exciting, fun and innovative products. So as the logo says, they take our rubbish and make it into some thing Remarkable!

Offiec365 stock a variety of these products including the ‘I used to be a CD Case’ pencil, the ‘I used to be a plastic cup’ pencil, and the ‘I used to be a CD Case’ ruler (available in different sizes) In order to fully appreciate the beauty of what you’re buying, you need to understand Remarkable’s philosophy;

The principles of Remarkable (Pencils) Ltd’s Environmental Activities include:

• To develop technology and provide products that will be sensitive to the earth’s finite resources and environment through the use of recycled and sustainable materials.

• To promote energy-saving activities considering all aspects of the product’s life cycle in order to minimize the environmental impact of raw materials and components whilst conserving natural resources through waste reduction and the use of recycled and sustainable materials and components.

• To endeavour to meet or exceed all applicable environmental and safety regulatory requirements.

• To promote waste minimization activities, giving preference to recycled or renewable sources wherever practicable.

• To promote continuous improvement and methods for improving manufacturing processes that minimize environmental impacts.

• To encourage environmental awareness to all employees so that environmental factors are considered in all decision-making processes.

See our Remarkable section at Office365 for a full list of items made by this manufacturer, and you will also find our remarkable prices!

How do you know which pencil best suits your needs? Pencils are graded to enable you to choose which one is best for you. The darkest and softest pencils are graded as 6B and this scale goes all the way to 4H – these being the hardest and lightest pencils. The most common pencil is HB – this means Hard and Black. (N.B:This is just the range we tend to stock – if you’re looking for a darker softer gradient try these)

Pencils can come in different types, mechanical or normal wood cased ‘leads’. Strangely enough the ‘lead’ pencils don’t actually contain any lead at all, in fact, they use a mixture of graphite and clay!