Berol Karismacolor | The European Prismacolor Premier pencil

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​Discover the fascinating history behind the beloved Karismacolor pencil through this comprehensive article. Drawing from a wealth of firsthand knowledge, meticulous research, and the expertise of a true pencil enthusiast, we have compiled an in-depth exploration of this iconic coloured pencil. Whether you were a Karismacolor consumer or simply curious about the rich heritage of this timeless pencil, our article is the ultimate online resource for all your Karismacolor-related inquiries. 

We will endeavour to keep this page up-to-date as we come across new information. If you have any additional insights we could include in our article, please don't hesitate to contact us HERE.

For all the Karismacolor pencil lovers, we hope you enjoy the memories!

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A Brief History

Although we are unable to confirm a precise date when these pencils were first manufactured, we believe they first appeared in the 1980s during the Empire-Berol period. Berol bought the Eagle company in 1969, which included the Prismacolor pencil in its product line. In 1986, the Empire Pencil Corporation of Tennessee ​acquired the Berol Ltd. company before the Newell Company purchased the Empire-Berol Corporation in 1995 and placed it in its Sanford division. Before Sanford owned Berol, their pencils were made in the UK. However, production was moved to the USA after the acquisition. While Berol produced the European version of Prismacolor pencils, the Karismacolor pencil had a wooden finish. The product code and colours were the same, except for a few colours that were later changed to match. ​

Although there were 129 colours made throughout the production period, they were only available commercially in a box set of 108. Open stock was available and all 129 colours could be purchased this way. As Karismacolor pencils were expensive to import from the USA during that time, and new products came onto the market, artists were more likely to replace them with other brands. Due to declining sales, and high shipping costs into the European market, it is likely that they became unprofitable, and the pencils were discontinued in 2005. 

Karismacolor pencils can still be found on auction sites like eBay, but prices can be high. Please note that we do not sell these pencils. ​

To understand the history of the Karismacolor pencil, we also researched the Prismacolor pencil too. Did you know that the Prismacolor pencil was first manufactured in 1938? You can read our Prismacolor pencil article here.

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CHARACTERISTICS

Base: ​Wax

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Hard or Soft Lead:  SOFT

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Lightfast rating:  Blue Wool scale

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Costs: Average £1.75
(90's/00's)

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No of Colours:  129

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ADVANTAGES
* Buttery consistency great for smooth transitions
​* Great blendibility
* Bold pigments
​* Old stock can still be found on auction sites like eBay
* The Prismacolor Premier range is still available today

DISADVANTAGES
* Now discontinued
* Some colours had poor lightfast ratings
* Pencils with soft leads are more prone to damage than hard pencils
​* Only made for the European market

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The History of the Karismacolor pencil

The Karismacolor pencil was part of a range known as The Karisma Graphics range which included the Karismacolor pencil, Aquarelle water soluble coloured pencils and graphite pencils as well as double-ended markers. There were also pastels and acrylic paints marketed under the Karisma brand name. We often visit online auction sites such as eBay to stay up-to-date with Karismacolor pencil prices and available products. During one of our recent searches, we came across a sketching kit from the 1990s.​ Inside the box, it offered us a specific manufacturing date of the Karisma Graphite Aquarelle pencils, which were produced in 1989 during the Empire-Berol era. As the design of the sketching pencil matches the Karismacolor pencil, it is possible that the Empire-Berol period was when the Karismacolor pencil was first manufactured, although we have yet to find any definitive date.

An advertisement from the 1990s

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The Karismacolor pencils are offered up as 72 colours in the above image, showing the original packaging and displaying the original colour chart.

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Features of the pencil and the meaning behind the logos along the barrel

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Berol Karismacolor - UK v's USA version

Karismacolor pencils were initially manufactured in England, UK at a King's Lynn, Norfolk factory. However, in 1995, Berol was bought by Newell Corps and integrated into the Sanford division. The production of Karismacolor pencils was then shifted to the USA until they were discontinued in January 2005. The decision to move production to the USA, where the American version called Prismacolor, was already being manufactured for the American market was peculiar. Since Karismacolor pencils were designed specifically for the European market, the move to the USA seemed illogical and likely contributed to their demise.

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Original pencil versus later pencils

It's interesting to note that the original set of 72 pencils had no colour codes assigned to them. They were made exclusively in the UK but the pigments and colour codes matched the Prismacolor Premier range, which used to be known as 'soft core'.​

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Display and old promos from the era

November 2, 1995, saw the Newell Company acquire the Berol Corporation, placing Berol in its Sanford division. The merging of the two companies made Berol a branch of the Sanford Corporation and Sanford was added to all products. Although Berol is no longer a company, the name is still used in the UK and Canada.

This countertop display is a vintage piece designed to accommodate Karismacolor pencils. As consumers of this pencil, we believe that open stock probably marketed at around £1.60/£1.70 in the 1990s. 

Looking to buy Karismacolor pencils?

Although we don't sell products on our site, if we find somewhere that does, we will share them with you.

If you're in the market for Karismacolor pencils, eBay is an excellent resource. There, you can find old sets, and occasionally, even brand new ones, though they can be highly priced. For those seeking individual pencils, there are currently a couple of sellers on eBay selling old stock from a vintage craft supply clearance. Some rare colours are available, so it's worth checking out. They are both based in the UK and only ship within the UK. Note that the links will be removed once the stock is sold. We are not affiliated with these sellers; our aim is simply to provide those interested in buying these pencils with the opportunity to do so.

Seller: litana_9838

Seller: aapa8559

Lightfast information and colour chart
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The Karismacolor palette comprised 129 colours, carefully chosen from the long-standing Prismacolor Premier/softcore/Eagle coloured pencil collection. Of the 129 colours, some were made only in the USA and some in England. The largest set available was 108, but there was never a complete set commercially sold with all 129 colours. The original collection contained 72 colours but did not present colour codes at that time. It's important to note that these pencils were exclusively manufactured in the UK.​
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The original Berol box set
​72 colours

The colour chart above displays red dots on limited edition colours, namely Crimson Lake (925), Sand (940), Marine Green (988), Yellow Bice (990), Light Yellow Green (991), Beige (997), Bright Violet (998), and Bright Blue Violet (999) plus the eight grey shades. Although available as open stock, they were briefly included in pencil sets, whilst a new collection of grey tones substituted the previous grey palette. While Prismacolor introduced new colours, all 16 colours were eventually discontinued from the Karismacolor range and are now considered rare finds.

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​As the colour palette extended, colour codes were also added. The colour chart below shows 108 colours. We believe this colour chart was from the Sanford period and dates from 1995 onwards. We also note that this chart includes lightfast ratings. Something that wasn't included in the original collection. Coloured pencil lightfast testing only began in 1991, so no tests were conducted for the earlier colours, and no ratings were available. Prismacolor previously used the Blue wool scale, stipulated on the Karismacolor chart below. The  ratings were scored between 1 (Poor) through to 8 (Excellent)

The Sanford box set
​108 colours

The gaps between numbers are because specific colours were exclusive to the Prismacolor range and were never produced for Karismacolor or because some were discontinued. When the Karismacolor range expanded from 72 to 108, specific colours from the initial 72 were removed. 

21 of the colours missing from the above chart due were discontinued from both ranges, except those marked with a star, which can still be found in the Prismacolor Premier line today.
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)

There are numerous reasons that a company may discontinue a colour/pigment:

• ​The pigment has been discontinued
• There may be safety issues connected to a pigment, and a replacement is then found
• There may be too many comparable colours in the range, so colours are discontinued to avoid this overlap
• Consumer demand means a lack of interest in certain colours
• Market trends confirm a growing need for alternative hues and pigments.

Over the years, some previously discontinued colours have been brought back due to changes in market demand.​

CLICK HERE TO VIEW the full KARISMACOLOR COLOUR palette

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Colour charts

Over the years, we have gathered three additional colour charts. You may notice that the Metallics and Deco colours have been reduced in quantity. However, the Prismacolor Premier collection still includes Metallic Silver and Gold and Deco Peach, Yellow, and Pink. It's worth noting that certain Prismacolor pencil names differed between American and European versions, even though the pigment and number were identical.

The grey palettes

The greys supplied in the 72 sets fell into two ranges: Warm Greys & Cold Greys – and in each range, there were four grades – Dark, Medium, Light & Very Light. French Greys were added in later sets, and 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 from the former, and the pigments were also different, as seen in the image gallery.

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 latter (%) cool greys, which have a blue undertone. Click on any of the images to compare them yourself. 

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The lightfast ratings

After comparing the lightfast ratings of Karismacolor pencils to those of Prismacolor Premier, it was observed that the lightfast quality ratings of the Premier pencil range have remained relatively unchanged over the years. While some have improved, others have worsened. The Prismacolor pencils were initially graded using the Blue Wool Scale, also used for the Karisma pencils. However, the Premier pencils of today are rated using ASTM-6901, a more rigorous testing method for lightfastness, although not as precise as the Blue Wool Scale. Surprisingly, despite changing their rating method (which is very expensive), some lower ratings still exist. To compete with newer brands such as Caran d'Ache Luminance and Derwent Lightfast, it would be natural for Prismacolor to improve the lightfast qualities of their pencils, especially since they are popular among coloured pencil artists. However, Prismacolor may be comfortable with the sub-par lightfast ratings on some of their colours, so they can keep their prices affordable.

Design and packaging

The Karismacolor pencils were encased in beige-coloured boxes and were purchasable in sets of 12, 24, 36, 72, and 108. In addition, there existed speciality sets, such as a mixed set of 36 that included 12 watercolor pencils of the Aquarelle brand. The gallery of designs showcased both earlier and later iterations of the pencils.

THE FIRST DESIGN
All sets sported this design. We believe that they began as multi-colour sets in standard sets (ie, 12, 24, 36 etc) and the speciality sets marketed for subjects such as portraits and landscapes were introduced at a later stage, coinciding with a design update.

REPLACEMENT DESIGN
The updated designs each displayed an individual drawing, crafted by artists of the Karismacolor pencils. You can see some of these designs in the gallery below.

THE FINAL DESIGN
The ultimate designs were vibrant and unconventional. Each set was unique with a distinct design on the front. The script was updated which enhanced legibility. This modification was implemented when Sanford took over the brand.​

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Sets available:

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, due to the short lifespan of the rare colours. The colour mix in the smaller sets was more consistent, but not absolutely so.
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The images presented below have been sourced online or extracted from historical promotional materials. It is important to note that we do not sell Karisma pencils. However, we suggest that interested parties may be able to acquire them through online auction platforms such as eBay.

12 Set - Mixed colours

Technical Rendering 12 set

Designer Greys 12 set

24 set - Mixed colours

24 Set - Portrait Colours

24 Set - Leonardo da Vinci colours

24 Set - Landscape colours

36 Set - Mixed colours

36 set - 24 Karisma & 12 Aquarelle

72 Set - Mixed colours

108 Set - Mixed colours

12 pack - Single colour

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Other related articles that may be of interest

Coloured pencils Checklist

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Prismacolor Premier pencils

Blenders & Burnishers

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Which other pencil brands are comparable in today's market?
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Karismacolor pencils were the European version of the Prismacolor Premier range. The Premier range guarantees a precise match for Karismacolor pencils and most Karisma colours can still be found in the Premier range, with a few exceptions. However, as a US-based company, its availability in the UK is limited. Click the link below to find out more about the Prismacolor Premier pencil.

read our article

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The Caran d'Ache Luminance pencils feel similar to the Karismas but have better lightfast properties. Each pencil is rated around 7 or 8 compared to Karisma's colours. If you want to learn more about this brand, you can click on the link below to read more about the capabilities of the Luminance pencil.

read our article

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Derwent's Lightfast Coloured pencils are oil-based and lightfast and are a good replacement for Karismas. Though they are slightly drier, they offer bolder pigments than some of the Karisma shades. With 100 colours in their range, Derwent pencils are widely available at art stores worldwide. Check out our article for more information.

read our article

​See how the Karismacolor pencils compare to other brands

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Where can you buy Karismacolor pencils?

 If you're keen to experiment with Karismacolor pencils, eBay is a fantastic place to begin your search. Listings are updated regularly, and you'll often find both individual pencils and box sets available for purchase. If you're new to using eBay, you'll need to create an account before you can make any purchases. However, it's important to keep in mind that prices can vary significantly, ranging from tens to hundreds of pounds.

The Karisma Line

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The Berol company produced a variety of products in addition to the Karismacolor pencil. They produced a collection of Karisma products which included the Karisma Graphic range, pastels, and acrylic paints as well as Double-ended markers. The information presented here has been compiled from previous promotional materials and online sources. Once Sanford took over Berol in 1995, they likely discontinued many of these products. However, the Karisma pastels were an exception to this and are still available today under the Prismacolor brand name. They are now known as NuPastels. Newell brands own Sanford and Prismacolor, and the brand name Berol is still used today, although the last factory closed in 2010.

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Karisma Aquarelle Watercolour pencils

Karisma Aquarelle is a range of artists watercolour pencils designed to combine the balance of power and sensitivity needed by watercolour artists with the immediacy and convenience of the traditional pencil. Karisma Aquarelle is a modern formulation giving a dense flat laydown of colour. The pencils are highly soluble which means that original strokes can be brushed out to be less visible, yielding more of a watercolour than a pencil drawing where desired. 
These were sold in box sets of 12, 24 and 36

karisma aquarelle IMAGES

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Karisma Graphite Aquarelle water-soluble sketching pencils

Artists water soluble sketching pencils which produce lines that can be worked with a wet brush to create subtle watercolour effects from lightest grey to deepest black. Karisma Graphite Aquarelle pencils are ideal for sketching and quick studies outdoors or where preparatory work for a larger piece is required. The pencils are also very good for using with a permanent pen for ink and wash drawings. Use the pencils to lay in areas of tone and wash over with an artist's brush and water then highlight detail with the permanent pen. Available in three grades: Medium, Soft and Very Soft.

The Karisma Graphite Aquarelle pencils were first manufactured in 1989 during the Empire-Berol era. 

KARISMA GRAPHITE AQUARELLE images

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Karisma Blacklead Graphite pencils

Launched in 1989, the Karisma Blacklead pencils are specially formulated for the artist and designer. There are 6 degrees in the range from 2H to 8B. They provide a range of tones from the subtlest and most delicate shading through to a dense bold application. The pencils are high quality graphic tools, manufactured to meet the demands of the discerning professional artist.

KARISMA BLACKLEAD images

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Karisma Pastels

The variety, range, blendibility and brilliance of traditional pastels without breakage, dust and mess! Dense even laydown or graduated tones and colour easily achieved. Colours can be overlaid and will stand significant overworking.

The Karisma pastels were sold in 12, 24, and 36 sets. In January 1999, promotional materials featured two pastels with code numbers 257-P and 336-P, still available today under the brand name NuPastels from Prismacolor. Today there are 96 colours. Click the link to learn more about the NuPastels.

karisma pastels images

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Karisma Max Acrylic Paints

Prismacolor has never had acrylic paint as part of its product range. However, Berol may have developed an acrylic range specifically for the European market and sold it as part of the Karisma collection. The Karisma Max acrylic paint line may have been intended for student use based on its limited colour range of only 20 hues. Unfortunately, there is no information available online regarding this product. The only link discovered is an image on a website featuring a discontinued Berol watercolor paint that shares a similar bottle design with Karisma Max. If you have any knowledge about this product line, please get in touch with us.
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High opacity acrylic paints with superb coverage, colour strength and lightfastness. They are easy to handle yet gives professional results. They can be mixed with a range of mediums to create a wide variety of effects. Available in 20 colours. Sizes: 95ml bottle, 300ml tub, 1 Litre bottle.
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KARISMA MAX ACRYLIC PAINT images

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Karisma Sketching Kit - The BBC drawing course

We often visits online auction sites such as eBay to stay up-to-date with Karismacolor pencil prices and available products. During one of our recent searches, we came across an auction for a Karisma sketching kit named 'The BBC drawing course' from the 1990s.​ The kit contained a variety of products from the Karisma Graphics range, along with a sketch pad. We're curious about the collaboration between Berol and the BBC that led to the creation of this set. If anyone has any information about it, please feel free to get in touch.

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Disclaimer:

A pencil brand that is part of a company with a 100-year history, and having changed hands several times before the explosion of the Internet, means that the Karismacolor pencil and its history have never been documented online. However, the lack of documentation makes information about the brand scarce. To ensure accuracy, we collaborated with a Karismacolor collector and researched the Prismacolor pencil's history. While we cannot guarantee the accuracy of all information due to the absence of digital records, we have made every effort to narrow down the information and provide plausible guesses where necessary. We welcome additional data from sources who may have it. We remain committed to providing the most comprehensive online guide to the Karismacolor pencil.​

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Last updated: October 2023