Organize pencils by role when color names do not help

If pencil names do not help you choose, arrange a small working set by its role on the page: a light base, a middle tone, and a dark accent. Add your own labels in lettering you can read comfortably. You do not need to reorganize the whole box before finding out whether this method helps.

A commercial color name may sound appealing while telling you little about how to use the pencil. Different brands may also use different names for similar shades. The aim is to identify the tools you need today while preserving their original codes so you can find them again.

Start with a particular task

Imagine coloring a leaf with a light base, a middle area, and a darker vein. Set aside three pencils suited to those roles. They do not need to form a perfect gradient or come from the same brand. Check their appearance on paper if you do not know them well.

Getty uses value to distinguish lightness and darkness. Here it becomes a practical way to organize a working set. “Light” does not automatically mean yellow, and “dark” does not have to mean black. You are comparing the pencils within the small group you have chosen.

Create a system you can repeat

1. Keep the identification: record each pencil's brand and visible code. If there is no code, assign your own.
2. Name the role: use words such as “base,” “middle,” and “dark detail.” Add large letters if those are easier to read.
3. Connect the label to the pencil: place each beside its card or in a fixed position in a tray.
4. Try the arrangement: color a small leaf you have drawn yourself, using the pencils in the planned order.
5. Review the labels: change one if that pencil proves better for another task. The system should describe how you actually work.

Keep your labels clear

“My green” may be enough when there is only one. If you select several, add a specific reference such as “leaf, base, original code.” Avoid relying only on a colored dot. Combine words, positions, and codes in whatever way you find easiest to recognize.

If someone shares your materials, keep a short list of the current set. That lets both of you return pencils to their places without having to interpret your private names from memory. When you change projects, keep the previous list with its page and date, or start a new card so the roles do not become mixed.

Common mistakes

• Sorting the entire collection before testing the method with three pencils.
• Covering the original code with a permanent label.
• Assuming a pencil will have the same role in every illustration.
• Inventing so many abbreviations that you need another list to understand them.

A common question

Do I have to identify every color perfectly?

You do not need specialist vocabulary to organize a coloring session. Use names, numbers, and positions that make sense to you. This is a practical organization exercise; it does not assess vision or replace individual accessibility requirements.

Once your set is ready, choose a page you feel like coloring. The Chroma Shu book collection offers themes to explore, and your labels can accompany any of your books.

Conceptual source: Getty's elements of art: value. The card system is an original suggestion from Equipo Chroma Shu.