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KOH-I-NOOR Polycolor Pencils

25/9/2015

8 Comments

 
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KOH-I-NOOR is a world leader in manufacturing quality art supplies, founded in 1790 by Joseph Hardmuth. The multi award-winning company works out of Czech Republic, producing their pens, pencils and office supplies in over 80 countries worldwide. 

The Polycolor pencils are cheaper alternatives to brands like Polychromos and Prismacolor, and although they don't perform quite as well I would class Polycolor as a strong budget contender if you're not in a position to lay out a lot of cost.
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All the colours in the range
I am reviewing the 24 count set of pencils, but you can buy them in packs of 12, 24, 36, 48 and 72, meaning there is great range of colour tones available.
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Colours in the 24 pencil set
The pencils are wax-based, despite confusion online that they are oil- apparently an error in translation. As far as I can work out, the cores are prepared in an oil bath to give water resistance, but they are made of and act like wax pencils. This makes them more akin to Prismacolor than Polychromos. 

You can see this comparison on paper when you blend two colours, applying hard pressure, because the Polycolor pencils produce a similar dark speckle to Prismas when too many layers are used. Out of the three, they are the most difficult to blend.
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Polycolor pencils erase fairly well, taking the top layer of colour away and leaving a very light stain on the paper.
The pencils have quite a soft lead yet don't need frequent sharpening. They retain a fine point, making them ideal for getting into small spaces, and feel like they are durable and made to last. I can't see them running out too quickly like Prismacolors do! They have a high calibre look about them physically, with the ends dipped in gold and each hexagonal barrel portaying an accurate colour of the lead within.

The pigment feels buttery to lay down and doesn't need a lot of pressure to produce deep colour. They're not as soft as Prismas, but I think they're better off for it. Extremely soft pencils may create lucious results but I find them a lot less value for money as they deplete so quickly. Polycolor pencils seem to be the happy medium between soft and hard, and for just over £20 for a tin of 24 they're relatively cheap without compromising on quality.

Here is a little picture I coloured with the Polycolors to show you some quick blends that can be done without too much effort.
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I received these in exchange for an honest review. You can find a range of Polycolor pencils on Cult Pens.
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8 Comments
TM Bentley
26/9/2015 12:44:49 am

I really like the koh-I-noor pencils that I have. In my area of the USA they're more expensive than prismas though.

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nickid
21/8/2016 02:27:09 pm

in my country they are pretty cheap - though, prismas are very rare to find and buy

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Jack
3/5/2016 03:40:42 pm

I have just ordered some <a href="http://www.executivepensdirect.com/koh-i-noor-pencils">koh i noor pencils</a>, cant wait for them to come :)

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jill
27/5/2017 08:18:01 pm

Which pencil sharpener do you recommend for the Polycolors?

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Lucy
9/11/2017 03:17:41 am

Hello Claire,

Thank you for your review! I recently bought the 72 set of Koh-I-Noor Polycolor and the numbers don't match the actual color chart. I was about to create one for myself and realized some numbers are not on their chart like 126, etc. They don't follow an order and therefore, since they don't put the name of the color on the pencil, it makes it hard to know which pencil corresponds to which number from their official chart as some colors are very similar.

Does your set have similar numbers ? Like, 126, 139, etc...

Thank you!

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Bas
20/11/2017 11:58:48 pm

You can find the right pencil numbers and colors in online stores that sell them seperatly. Koh i noor replaced some of the color numbers that used to be in the sets. For a few cents they also sell official color charts through their website.

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Allen
24/10/2021 06:10:43 pm

Are you sure you did get Polycolor by Kohinoor? There are alot of fake going around, everyone ive seen had the color written on the wood

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Riana
29/7/2018 04:35:16 pm

I have a set of 72 Koh-I-Noor polycolor pencils. They don't have the colour name on the pencils. Your colour chart helps me a lot. Do you perhaps have the whole colour chart for those pencils as the highest number in my box of 72 is number 183

Will appreciate so much if you can help. I can't get it on their website at all.

Thanks in advance.

Riana Kotze

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©Claire Eadie 2015
  • ~Home~
  • ~My Story~
  • ~Mental Health~
  • ~My Illustrations~
  • ~Beginner's Guide to Colouring~
  • ~Tutorials~
  • ~Colouring Book Reviews~
  • ~Product Reviews~
  • ~Arts & Crafts Reviews~
  • ~Charts~
  • ~Gallery~
  • ~Colouring Challenges~
  • ~Gemstones~
  • ~The Color Catalog~
  • ~Illustrator Interviews~
  • ~Media Appearances~
  • ~FAQ~
  • ~Contact~
  • ~Support~
  • ~Policy~