A comprehensive guide to the Berol Karismacolor pencil
Written: July 2019
Updated: October 2019 - Grey colour charts Updated: November 2019 - Additional images added
Updated: October 2019 - Grey colour charts Updated: November 2019 - Additional images added
We put this article together using both personal experience working with these pencils and extensive research.
Please note we do not sell pencils.
We will update this page whenever we find new information that we feel will be of benefit to the reader. If you have any personal information regarding these pencils that you would like to share with our readers, please get in touch with us HERE
For all those ex Karisma pencil lovers, we hope you enjoy the memories!
Please note we do not sell pencils.
We will update this page whenever we find new information that we feel will be of benefit to the reader. If you have any personal information regarding these pencils that you would like to share with our readers, please get in touch with us HERE
For all those ex Karisma pencil lovers, we hope you enjoy the memories!
CHARACTERISTICS
No of Colours: 129 |
Base: Wax |
Hard or Soft Lead: SOFT |
Lightfast rating: Blue Wool scale |
Costs: Average £1.75
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These pencils were originally made by Berol in the UK before Sanford acquired the company in 1995 and production was then moved to the USA. These were the European version of the Prismacolor pencils, although the design differed from the Premier pencils, the colours and product code were the same, apart from a few colour names that differed but these were later changed to match. Karismas were only commercially available in a box set of 108 yet there were actually 129 colours during the entire production period. Due to falling sales, the European market was no longer viable and the pencils were discontinued at the beginning of 2005. Remaining stock would have been reduced and sold off, with some people buying in bulk before reluctantly looking for an alternative. The Prismacolor Premier pencils were - and indeed still are very expensive to ship in from the USA at that time and so it would be, that Artists alike would have gone in search of a completely new range. I initially chose the Derwent Coloursoft pencils but finally settled on the Caran d'Ache Luminance and Derwent Lightfast.
Even after 14 years, Karismacolor pencils still turn up on auction sites although prices can be high. |
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ADVANTAGES
* Buttery consistency great for smooth transitions * Bold pigments * Although the Karismas have been discontinued, the American Prismacolor Premier range match colours and product numbers. |
DISADVANTAGES
* Now Discontinued * Open stock no longer available * Some colours had poor lightfast ratings * Pencils with soft leads are more prone to damage than oil based pencils |
Colour charts
Here is one of the colour charts showing 108 colours (unsure of the date this was in circulation) which also gives lightfast information for these colours too. There are another 21 colours missing from this chart and the lightfast information for those will remain a mystery unless I am able to source it in the future (Drop me a line if you have one!). The Karismacolor pencils used the Blue Wool scale with lightfast ratings graduating from 1 (Poor) through to 8 (Excellent)
The additional 21 colours missing from the colour chart above are as follows:- Metallics: Copper (951), Jade (1046), Purple (1045) & Rose (1043) - Greys: Warm Grey Very Light (964), Light (963), Medium (962) & Dark (961) - Cold Grey Very Light (968), Light (967), Medium (966) & Dark (965) - Individual Colours: Sand (940), Deco Pink (1014), Light Yellow Green(991), Yellow Bice (990), Crimson Lake (925), Marine Green (988), Beige (997), Bright Violet (998) and finally Bright blue Violet (999)
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The 72 set colour chart seen here have colour names only, this is because in the early days (exact date unknown) there were only 72 colours in the Karisma range and the pencils were produced without code numbers as the Copper pencil shown below. These were produced in the UK only.
The colours with the red dots are colours that were very difficult to get hold of as these were the earlier colours, some only appearing in a few pencil sets or replaced with a completely new palette like the greys were.
Of the 129 colours, some were only ever made in the USA and some only made in England. The largest set available was 108, there was never a full set of all 129 colours sold unfortunately although there is an image in the 'sets sold' picture gallery below of one where almost every pencil had been collected over the years and these were stored in a Derwent pencil box. Different pencil sets contained different colours and the range of each was not constant, with variations in both the American and European sets over a period of time. Some of the rarest colours featured in very few sets and only for short periods. Over the years, three or four different 108 mixes were noted and at least the same in the 72 piece sets, but all 129 colours did at one time or another, exist in sets albeit some colours appeared in hardly any sets at all . The colour mix in the smaller sets was more consistent, but not absolutely so. |
As a personal observation, comparing the lightfast ratings of the Karismacolor pencils next to those of the Prismacolor Premier, I note that the lightfast ratings of the Premier pencil range have not really changed much over the years. Some have improved and others have worsened. As the Blue Wool Scale was used to grade the lightfastness of the Karisma pencils back in the day, I would suspect that the Prismacolor Premier pencils were graded the same way. Today the Premier pencils are rated using the ASTM-6901, whic is a different and more rigorous way of testing the lightfastness of each pigment and so I am rather surprised that, having changed the way they rate them, they do not appear to have improved some of the lesser grades. Knowing how popular the Prismacolor Premier pencils are with many Coloured pencil artists, to be able to compete against the latest pencil offerings from such as Caran Dache Luminance & Derwent Lightfast, natural progression would be to improve the lightfast qualities in their pencils too. Of course it may be an intentional decision by Prismacolor to ignore lightfast issues in some colours, thereby allowing them to keep their costs down and their prices more affordable to the artist.
Sets that were available
The Karismacolor pencils were packaged in a beige coloured box and available in sets of 12, 24, 36, 72 and 108. There was also a mixed set of 36 . This set contained 24 mixed colour pencils & 12 watercolour pencils which were marketed as “Aquarelles”. Karismas disappeared in 2005, at a time when only 120 Prismacolors were being marketed. All the images below have been found on the internet or taken from old promotional leaflets. Please note that I do not personally sell Karisma pencils.
The grey palettes
The greys supplied in the 72 set fell into two ranges : Warm Greys & Cold Greys – and in each range there were four grades – Dark , Medium , Light & Very Light . In later sets , French Greys were added – and the number of grades increased from 4 to 6 . A further change was that Dark , Medium , Light & Very Light grades were replaced by percentages , thus : 10% 20% 30% 50% 70% & 90%. Lastly , the “Cold” range became a “Cool” range. The code numbers of these latter greys are different to the former and the pigments were different too as can be seen below.
Although there is only a slight difference between the warm grey tones, the earlier shades could easily be placed between the tones of the latter (%) greys ie:
1050 Warm Grey 10% - 964 Warm grey 15% - 1051 Warm grey 20% - 1052 Warm grey 30% - 963 Warm grey 40% - 1054 warm grey 50% - 962 Warm grey 60% - 1056 warm grey 70% - 1058 warm grey 90% - 961 Warm grey (100%) being the very darkest, almost black.
The cold greys were a warmer tinge than the later (%) cool greys which have a blue undertone. Click on any of the images above to compare them yourself.
1050 Warm Grey 10% - 964 Warm grey 15% - 1051 Warm grey 20% - 1052 Warm grey 30% - 963 Warm grey 40% - 1054 warm grey 50% - 962 Warm grey 60% - 1056 warm grey 70% - 1058 warm grey 90% - 961 Warm grey (100%) being the very darkest, almost black.
The cold greys were a warmer tinge than the later (%) cool greys which have a blue undertone. Click on any of the images above to compare them yourself.
