To remove a pencil sketch from under your finished watercolour or ink drawing, nothing works every time as a pencil line covered by watercolour paint is often set into the paper and can’t be removed.Remember that marks made with a soft graphite pencil used lightly, are easier to remove than marks made with hard graphite pencils used with more pressure that are inclined to scratch the paper and trap the pigment inside the scratch. For removing excess lines created during the sketching process, vinyl, rubber, gum, kneaded or putty erasers work well.A clean sharp-edged vinyl or rubber eraser which can be re-cut periodically to form a fresh clean edge, is handy when sharp thin lines need to be lifted out.Use these erasers only after you’ve removed excess graphite with the kneaded or putty eraser. Rubber, gum or vinyl erasers can cause smudges as graphite is a lubricant and the act of rubbing, (especially if there is lots of graphite to be removed), can smear the graphite across the paper and drive it deeper into the tooth.The edges of the lifted areas will be soft unless the eraser is pushed through the hole of an erasing shield. For subtractive drawing, (lifting out the highlights), putty or kneaded erasers work best for lifting general areas of highlight as they lift the graphite off cleanly.(Knead often to be sure the eraser remains clean, or you may lay down pigment instead of lifting it off). They lift off pigment without hurting the paper. If you however need to erase, use a kneaded or putty eraser first. This will ensure you end up with an accurate drawing with minimal erasing. That way you can correct / erase the drawing while there are no dark marks on the paper yet. This allows you to draw without pressing hard. ![]() The darker you want to draw the softer the pencil you must use. No amount of erasing can get into these micro pores so you will always have a ghost image remaining after erasing. When you bare down on the pencil it not only flatten the tooth of the paper damaging it, but also force graphite into the micro texture of the paper. It is easier to erase graphite that has been gently applied to the surface of the paper because the graphite is lying on top of the paper tooth. To lessen the chance of damage to the tooth, always start with the correct drawing process. You don’t want to damage the tooth of the paper, or any pigment laid over the top will not look the same as the surrounds. When erasing the “do no harm (or at least as little as possible)” principle applies. If in doubt, test on a spare piece of paper first. You don't want it adhering to your drawing or ripping it when you remove it. To lift lines and small highlights from coloured pencil, lay the tape down and use an indenting tool or empty ball point pen to press down on the tape in the shape you want to erase. It can be pressed against the area to be lifted and gently lifted off. Kneaded or putty erasers can be used to lift most of the pigment especially if it was applied in several layers of light colour rather than one heavy layer that has been pushed into the tooth of the paper.Īnother good way of removing coloured pencil is to use low tack tape. Staedtler produces one eraser with two sides – one for graphite and one for coloured pencil and ink. ![]() Great care should be used however to prevent damaging the paper.Ī mixture of rubber and pumice, these erasers will remove coloured pencil and ink, but they are hard on the paper and should be used with extreme care or they can damage the paper. Some rubber erasers, have powdered pumice, (from volcanoes), mixed in, which is abrasive, and used to erase ink or coloured pencil. Pink pearl is a well-known rubber eraser brand name. Unfortunately, his patent was revoked when it was ruled to be a composite of two devices and not a new invention. ![]() Quick to see that gap, Hymen Lipman from Philadelphia patented the eraser attached to the end of pencil, (called a Cap eraser). The next leap forward in the evolution of erasers, happened in 1839 when Charles Goodyear, (yes that Goodyear), discovered a process called vulcanisation that cured rubber, making it durable. (The rubber plant got its name from the eraser and not the other way around). The name rubber came from the material used to make the eraser. It was discovered by Edward Nairne who accidently picked up some rubber shavings instead of breadcrumbs when he wanted to erase pencil marks, and discovered it worked much better than bread. The first rubber eraser was put on sale in 1770. Rubber erasers the forerunner of modern erasers.
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