I just cannot get enough of pure graphite sticks at the moment. These little rectangular sticks resemble charcoal sticks and I'm pretty sure that's why I'm loving them so much. They are less messy than charcoal but just as fun. 

As I've been using the graphite I've naturally started to explore the variety of marks it can make. By using the flat side of the stick in sweeping wrist action motions, it creates a wonderful mottled effect and a fabulous sense of movement which you can smudge, erase into or build upon with more layers. I love the idea that you can create a variety of marks and cover a large surface area with just this stick alone. When I'm out drawing the horses from life again at the weekend all I'm going to take is my graphite and an eraser and see how that affects the work I create.

After using a various grades of graphite I'm particularly enjoying using the 8B. It's so soft and glides onto the surface effortlessly. I also like to work with a blunt tip as it adds a kind of 'fogginess' to the drawing which I find appealing. For darker, denser areas of detail I often sharpen the end with my knife. I don't use a sharpener as it's a sucker for blunting the blades. 

Here's a great article I found about drawing with graphite from Artists and Illustrators Magazine that you may find interesting.