Caran d'Ache Luminance 6901™ Colour Pencil Box Set 100 6901.800 is designed for professional artists. Providing guaranteed lightfastness complying with the highest standards for light resistance in coloured pencils (ASTM D6901). 81 pencils are rated as LFI with the remaining 19 a LFII rating meaning they maintain their colour intensity for up to 100 years. These pencils combine the smoothness of a permanent lead with excellent lightfastness.

The full range of Luminance is curated to cover life-like skin tones, complex neutrals and deep darks essential for fine art. Every shade has been formulated using finely ground pigments chosen for their purity, intensity, and resistance to UV rays.

Strong coverage and mixing capacity allow for intense applications, blending, and burnishing, while extreme softness enables subtle blending and graduations.

Perfect for artists seeking vibrant colour, precision, and professional-quality results. Ideal for detailed illustrations, ultra-realistic drawings, portraits, botanicals and fine-art works.   

Details of the Pencil & Lead

• Round cedar wood body with end casing matching the colour of the lead
• Light resistance complies with highest international standards for light resistance in coloured pencils (ASTM D6901) with 81 colours rated LFI and 19 colours rated LFII maintaining their colour intensity for up to 100 years.
• A permanent creamy lead - oil/wax blend
• 3.8mm diameter for clean and accurate lines
• Maximum covering power
• Diverse colour palette with 100 colours in the range
• Made in Switzerland.

Suggested subject matter for the set includes:

• Portraits & Pet Portraits: The 100 set includes several flesh and earth tones, making it ideal for rendering realistic skin, hair, and animal fur.
• Nature & Landscapes: With highly concentrated, ASTM-certified lightfast pigments, you can create stunning floral pieces, seascapes using the rich turquoise and Indanthrone blues, and muted autumnal landscapes using earthy tones like violet grey and dark indigo.
• Photorealism & Ultra-Smooth Blending: Because the Luminance core is creamy, you can layer multiple colours heavily without causing wax bloom. Use the colourless blender pencils (pencil or full blender stick) to melt the pigment particles together, completely removing any visible pencil stroke for a flawless, painterly finish. 

Key Techniques & Blender Use

• Burnishing for Vibrancy: Layering a light colour (such as Anthraquinone Pink or a light flesh tone) over darker colours, or utilizing the provided blenders, lets you push pigment deep into the paper. This burnishing technique creates highly saturated, glowing colours and vivid pop-art effects. 
• Custom Colour Mixing: Though you have 100 colours, mixing them broadens your capabilities further. Blending Turmeric Blue and Raw Sienna, for example, creates stunning, naturalistic greens perfect for botanical art or foliage. 
• Layering over Other Media: Luminance pencils are known for adhering perfectly over dried watercolour or pastels, allowing for rich mixed-media artwork. 
• Gradient Transitions: Layer light colours first, then gradually press harder with darker shades. You can transition between colours seamlessly without damaging the paper.
• Colour Modification: Users often find that burnishing with light-coloured pencils (like white or pale pink) helps blend underlying blues and purples to create softer, dimensional effects.

Blenders

Included in the set are a Full Blender Stick and Pencil Blender. Both share the same colourless, oil/wax formula to soften strokes and burnish colours. By pressing the blender into your coloured layers the wax particles are crushed, flattening the tooth of the paper but also creating a glossy wax-resistant finish.

• Pencil Blender: Encased in wood like a standard pencil, it is best used for fine detailing and creating crisp lines. To maintain a sharp precise tip use with a good quality pencil sharpener.
• Full Blender Stick: The uncased stick has a hexagonal body and can be used both horizontally or vertically creating no wastage. Use to cover larger surface areas quickly or for laying down broad strokes. It does not require sharpening.

Techniques for Use

Superimposing colours, shading, unlimited mixed media combinations

Combine with Caran d'Ache SUPRACOLOR Soft Aquarelle or Caran d'Ache Museum Coloured Pencils for wash drawings and watercolour effects

Use with Caran d'Ache Pablo Coloured Pencils for details, hatching and to mixed media projects
Can also be used with Caran d'Ache Neocolor II Wax Crayons as a layering medium for adding textures, gradients and fine details.

Surfaces

It is recommended to use heavyweight archival papers with a fine to medium tooth with Caran d'Ache Luminance Pencils to ensure the surface has just enough tooth to grip the creamy lead. A hot pressed watercolour paper (HP) is ideal. For precise photorealistic artwork consider a good quality bristol vellum paper which will provide an excellent flat foundation for the rich pigments in the range. Toned papers offer a subtle texture, providing a neutral background that makes highlights pop and allow you to achieve shadows and depth quicker than a white paper.