I am with Jen, I use a pencil sharpener. I don’t think there is a need to have a long exposed graphite tip like that. I also use graphite technical pencils if I need a fine line.

But each needs to do what works for them as artists!

Keep creating!!

Robin, There are different types of sharpeners. Some (most) produce a short, sharp tip. Good for writing and drawing some details, but not too great if you want to shade a large area.

A long sharp tip provides not only the drawing and writing tip, but also the side of the leaded area can be used to shade and provide textures not possible with that short sharp tip. The sharpeners that make the long points tend to wear down pretty quickly and then produce only the short, sharp point, so you’d need to spend money to buy a new sharpener, or new blades if you can find them.

The exacto knife method is an option that might be cheaper in the long run than constantly buying new long-point sharpeners. You need not waste so much graphite if you can shape half an inch of graphite to your liking; that’s enough for my purposes.

You didn’t answer the question
Why not use a sharpener?

Hello Robin,

With a dull pencil, you’re likely to get heavy, thick strokes, but with a sharp one you will be able to get more delicate, thin, light, and confident strokes, which will make for stronger, more detailed, and dynamic drawings. Thanks!