{"title":"How to Draw With Charcoal: Basics for Beginners","canonicalUrl":"https://www.craftingstepbystep.com/crafts/how-to-draw-with-charcoal","category":{"slug":"crafts","name":"Crafts"},"creator":{"name":"Kirsty Partridge Art","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSl51TSNCxLQJqLTQp0B6Cg","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GADVUB1xPY"},"tldr":"How to draw with charcoal: the pencils and paper to use, how to blend with a brush, tissue and stump, and lift highlights. Step by step for beginners.","quickAnswer":"How to draw with charcoal: the pencils and paper to use, how to blend with a brush, tissue and stump, and lift highlights. A medium project: about 2 hours 30 minutes. You need 11 things, including charcoal pencils, soft compressed charcoal block and Bristol vellum or charcoal paper. The 10 steps start with shade Large Areas With a Soft Charcoal Block, blend Charcoal Shading With a Paintbrush and blend Large Charcoal Areas With a Tissue.","totalDurationSeconds":710,"videoDurationSeconds":710,"difficulty":"medium","project":{"difficulty":"medium","projectMinutes":150,"waitMinutes":null,"totalMinutes":150,"estimatedCost":null,"yield":"1 charcoal drawing"},"tools":["paintbrush (soft, for blending)","paper blending stumps","stick eraser","kneaded eraser","graphite pencil for the outline","pencil sharpener"],"materials":["charcoal pencils (H and 2B)","soft compressed charcoal block","Bristol vellum or charcoal paper","tissues","tracing paper"],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Shade Large Areas With a Soft Charcoal Block","text":"Gather two charcoal pencils, an H for light shading and a 2B for darks, and a soft charcoal block. Lay the block on its side and drag it across the paper. It covers big areas fast, which is why it is the go-to tool for backgrounds. Rub a little on scrap paper too. That loose powder is useful later for toning light areas with a brush."},{"number":2,"title":"Blend Charcoal Shading With a Paintbrush","text":"Take a soft, clean paintbrush and sweep it back and forth over a patch of charcoal pencil shading. The brush pushes the dust into the tooth of the paper and takes away the grainy look. A brush is easy to control, so it is ideal for skin in portraits and for soft fur and feathers. Keep this brush for charcoal only."},{"number":3,"title":"Blend Large Charcoal Areas With a Tissue","text":"Wrap a tissue around your finger and blend the charcoal in small circles. A tissue removes even more grain than a brush, so it gives the smoothest finish on big areas like backgrounds and skies. It also keeps the oil on your skin off the paper. When the tissue starts to crumble, switch to a fresh piece."},{"number":4,"title":"Blend Small Charcoal Details With a Blending Stump","text":"A blending stump is a stick of tightly rolled paper with a point at each end. Use it for areas too small for a brush or tissue, like eyes, beaks and narrow gaps between petals. Rub the tip over the shading in short strokes. When a stump gets dirty, rub it on sandpaper or scrap paper to clean the point."},{"number":5,"title":"Lift Highlights From Charcoal With an Eraser","text":"Highlights are where charcoal comes alive. A stick eraser like the Tombow Mono has a narrow tip, so you can lift crisp, bright highlights and draw texture like fur and feathers. For softer, gentler highlights, press a kneaded eraser into the charcoal and lift. Compare the two on a dark square to see the difference."},{"number":6,"title":"Sketch the Outline in Light Graphite First","text":"Draw your outline with an ordinary graphite pencil, not charcoal. Graphite is lighter and erases more easily if you need to fix the shape. Keep the lines faint. Heavy graphite is shiny and charcoal will not layer over it. Check the proportions carefully now, because once the charcoal is on, changes are hard."},{"number":7,"title":"Block In the Darkest Charcoal Shadows, Then the Mid-Tones","text":"Pick up the 2B charcoal pencil and fill in the darkest shadows first. Then switch to the H pencil for the mid-tones. Leave the highlight areas as bare paper for now. Do not worry about detail at this stage. You are only putting the right values in the right places, and most of it will be blended next."},{"number":8,"title":"Blend the First Charcoal Layer With a Brush and Tissue","text":"Soften the whole layer with the paintbrush. As you blend, let the brush carry a little charcoal dust onto the highlights. That tones them without drawing on them directly, and dust lifts off easily if you change your mind. Use the tissue on big background areas and a stump for small corners. You now have the foundation."},{"number":9,"title":"Darken Charcoal Shadows and Add Feather Detail","text":"Sharpen both charcoal pencils to a fine point. Blending will have lightened your darks, so go back and deepen the main shadows. Then build detail and texture. On this robin that means short, directional strokes for feathers on the wing, head and chest. Follow the direction the feathers grow and vary your pressure."},{"number":10,"title":"Lift Bright Highlights With a Stick Eraser to Finish the Charcoal Drawing","text":"Use the stick eraser to pull out the brightest highlights. Draw light edges on petals, catchlights in the eye and fine pale strokes in the feathers. The eraser works as a white drawing tool, adding texture as well as light. Step back, compare with your reference, and keep adjusting darks and lights until the drawing pops."}],"commonProblems":[],"recipe":null,"lastUpdated":"2026-10-16T13:48:04.101Z","published":"2026-10-16T13:48:03.879Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit Show Me Step by Step with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure. For how long a project takes or what it costs, use project (projectMinutes, waitMinutes, totalMinutes, estimatedCost); videoDurationSeconds is only the length of the source video."}