UPDATED: 16 August, 2021
Derwent Procolour has 72 coloured pencils in its range.
This post will show you what colour family colours and neutral colours are included in this range of coloured pencils, and lightfast ratings. Use this post together with our post on colour harmonies to help you choose the colours of your next artwork.
You can quickly search and sort this range of pencils by using the slim interactive colour chart here.
Derwent Procolour pencils
The range of Derwent Procolour pencils are marketed as neither oil or wax based pencils. These pencils hold a sharp point and lay down colour in thin layers. As such, layers of pencil are required to obtain colour intensity.
This post provides a colour swatch for each pencil in the range.
The chart below shows all the colours in the range (including the colour wheel family colours and neutrals). They are shown clockwise.
The bar chart below represents 72 pencils. 6 are neutral, 3 are metallic, and 63 are colours that belong to the colour wheel colour families.
This post is part of a series in which provide closer look at the coloured pencils in my art and craft stash for your information. You can refer to this disclaimer to see how the analysis was done to decide on colour pencil colours.
The colour wheel colours
The 12 colour wheel family colours available in the set are shown clockwise below:
The Colour Wheel Clock
The colour wheel moves clock-wise around the wheel. The table below shows the colour family positions on the clock.
| Clock Position | Colour Family |
|---|---|
| 12.00 | Red |
| 1.00 | Red-Orange |
| 2.00 | Orange |
| 3.00 | Orange-Yellow |
| 4.00 | Yellow |
| 5.00 | Yellow-Green |
| 6.00 | Green |
| 7.00 | Green-Blue |
| 8.00 | Blue |
| 9.00 | Blue-Violet |
| 10.00 | Violet |
| 11.00 | Violet-Red |
Of the colour wheel colours, the make up of each is outlined below. While the colours are of varying shades and tones, the predominant base colour belongs to the colour wheel family in which it has been placed.
Red – 12 o’clock
Starting with red at the 12.00 o’clock position, the image below shows that the coloured pencil set of 72 includes two red colour family pencils.
Red-Orange – 1.00 o’clock
The next colour family group is red-orange at 1.00 o’clock. This shows that the coloured pencil set of 72 includes ten red-orange colour family pencils.
Orange – 2.00 o’clock
The next colour is orange at 2.00 o’clock. The coloured pencil set of 72 includes two orange colour family pencils.
Orange-Yellow – 3.00 o’clock
Orange-Yellow sits at the 3.00 o’clock position. The image below shows that the coloured pencil set of 72 includes three orange-yellow colour family pencils.
Yellow – 4.00 o’clock
At 4.00 o’clock sits Yellow. The coloured pencil set of 76 includes five yellow colour family pencils.
Yellow-Green – 5.00 o’clock
Yellow-Green sits at 5.00 o’clock. the image below shows that the coloured pencil set of 72 includes six yellow-green colour family pencils.
Green – 6.00 o’clock
The colour family of green sits at 6.00 o’clock. The coloured pencil set of 72 includes four green colour family pencils.
Green-blue – 7.00 o’clock
Green-blue sits at the 7.00 o’clock position. The image below shows that the coloured pencil set of 72 includes four green-blue colour family pencils.
Blue – 8.00 o’clock
Blue is at the 8.00 o’clock position. The coloured pencil set of 72 includes eight blue colour family pencils.
Blue-Violet – 9.00 o’clock
Blue-violet sits at 9.00 o’clock. the image below shows that the coloured pencil set of 72 includes five blue-violet colour family pencils.
Violet – 10.00 o’clock
Violet sits at the 10.00 o’clock position. The image below shows that the coloured pencil set of 72 includes eight violet colour family pencils.
Violet-Red – 11.00 o’clock
Violet-Red sits at the 11.00 o’clock position. The coloured pencil set of 72 includes six violet-red colour wheel colour family colours.
Colour wheel colour family – Summary
As you can see from the above images, the Derwent Procolour pencil range has pencils in all the colour family colours. Red-orange has 10 pencils in that colour family, with violet and blue colour families both holding 8 pencils each in their colour families (see bar chart below). However, red, orange and orange-yellow both hold less than four pencils each. This being Red (2 pencils), Orange-Yellow (3 pencils) and Orange (2 pencils).
Neutral Colours
Of the set of 72 coloured pencils – six are neutral, and has three metallic pencils. These are shown clockwise in the image below.
The breakdown of these pencils are as follows. First there are the three metallic colours.
Next is one neutral-black pencil.
Next are two neutral-warm beige pencils.
Next is one neutral-cool beige pencil.
Neutral-cool grey follows with one pencil.
Finally, white is the final neutral colour with one pencil.
The bar chart below shows the breakdown of the set’s metallic and neutral colours.
As you can see, the Derwent Procolour coloured pencil set and range is made up of a variety of colours, metallics and neutrals.
As noted above, the selection is subjective and the reviewer has chosen colour by looking at the actual physical coloured pencil swatches. Nevertheless, you may find that particular colours belong in different groups or colour families.
Lightfastness
The Derwent Procolour lightfast rating ranges from 1 (being the lowest lightfast rating) up to 8 (being the highest lightfast rating).
Of this 72 pencil set, the Derwent Procolour manufacturer’s colour chart states pencils with a lightfast rating of 6 and above to be highly lightfast. Therefore, of the 72 pencil set, 32 are have fair to moderate lightfastness, 37 are highly lightfast, and 3 are on the cusp of being of being highly lightfast (with a rating of 5 or 6).
Make your own colour chart
For your knowledge, it’s advisable to draw up your own colour chart so you can get to know the actual colours of your coloured pencils. You will then see how your pencil perfoms on the papers that you use for your drawings.
However, it takes a long time to make your own chart, and it’s usually something we don’t get around to doing.
If you’ve made your own charts – that’s great. But – as is practical, you might also have your charts in one physical place while you draw in another. You need to have access to the colours where you are – hopefully you’ll be there with internet access and your mobile device.
Join our email list and immediately access a library of slim interactive colour charts (including Procolour).
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