Everything you need to know about pastels 
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For novice artists trying to choose the right pastel among its many varieties, it sometimes seems as if the producers specifically want to confuse them. In fact, there is soft, hard and chalk pastel, as well as pastel crayons, Conte crayons and pastel pencils. How do they differ and for what kind of work are they suitable?
We will divide all types of pastels into several groups: square pastel, round, and pastel pencils. Each pastel shape is suitable for different types of drawing. It turns out that the shape of the pastel determines the type of its application.
Pastel of different hardness
Pastels are made using cohesive material and pigment powder. The more this material is added, the harder the pastel will become. Soft and hard pastels behave differently in their work.
Soft pastel is very easy to crumble and it quickly stains paper. The pigment enters the holes in the paper, but the powder that needs to be blown off is retained on top. With the same pressure, hard pastel slightly scratches the paper and slowly stains it. The pigment is so retained on the surface and does not enter the pores, because the picture comes out a little grainy.
Many industries publish soft, medium and hard varieties of pastels. But what one manufacturer calls solid pastel, another calls average, so, before buying pastels, check it.
Round pastel
This is the softest pastel. Often they speak about it professional or artistic, as old masters could make this pastel with their own hands.
Round pastel is not suitable for linear work. Small details can be drawn with a sharp end, but it gets dull very quickly. But even this type of pastel manifests itself in all its glory when you need to paint a large canvas: thanks to the use of the side of the rod, large strips of color come out. On small sheets, usually use short pieces of pastel. The round pastel, due to its softness, shades very well.
Square pastel
This pastel is often called chalky. Artists often outline details in chalk pastel work done with soft pastel. The line drawn by the chalk pastel is soft and expressive.
Pastel pencils
As the name suggests, this pastel is presented in pencils. In general, these pencils are much harder than round pastels, and therefore they are very suitable for complex details and hatching. Due to the fact that there is no wax in pastel pencils, they can be shaded and softened with water. In terms of color saturation, pastel pencils resemble soft pastels. They are incredibly expressive and suitable for bright and bold sketches, as well as for detailed drawings with discreet transitions of tones, which can be conveyed by careful hatching and intermittent colors.
Storage and sharpening of pastels
Keeping pastel pencils is easy. They simply put sharpened ends up. With round and square pastels, everything is not so simple. Keeping it “in bulk” in a tin is not the best option, because soft pastels crumble and the rods stain each other. It is best to arrange them according to colors and place them in a plastic box or on a wooden tray with dry rice. Then pastel dust will settle on the cereal, not on the rods.
Do not sharpen the pastel with pencil sharpeners. Better use sandpaper, a glass sandpaper or a stationery knife.
This knowledge should help you choose the right pastel both in the store and for your robot. Enjoy your work!