Art Erasers
Kneaded eraser - A very soft eraser than you can form into shapes with your fingers. You can roll this eraser into a point, pinch it into a wedge, roll it into a ball, or make it into any shape you need. I use this type of eraser most of all and I use it for so many things that I don't know where to start. Maybe it would be easier to talk about what it's not good for! This sort of eraser is not good for completely erasing an area because it removes graphite very gently and gradually. In areas where I need to erase completely (that have a lot of dark graphite applied to them) I use a kneaded eraser first to lift as much graphite as I can before I use a stiffer eraser to finish erasing completely. I do this because you can actually push very dark graphite further into the paper by trying to erase it quickly and with a lot of pressure. When that happens, it's impossible to completely remove the graphite from the grain of the paper. To avoid that, I always lift all the graphite I can with a kneaded eraser first.
Stick eraser - These erasers are made of a plastic or vinyl type of material. They usually come in a plastic holder and you can expose more eraser by clicking the top of the holder. This type of eraser can be cut into different shapes very easily. A wedge shape can be used to erase thin lines if you draw it across your paper along the long edge of the wedge shape. A pointed shape can be used to create delicate detail and erase tiny highlights.
Battery powered eraser - A small nib of eraser fits in the end of the eraser body and it spins when you press a button. You can spin the tip of the nib on an emery board and sharpen it down to an extremely fine point. All sorts of details can be made with this type of eraser. You can even use it to "draw" into a thick layer of graphite to create interesting effects.
Typewriter eraser - A hard eraser in a wooden pencil type of case with a nylon brush on top. You can sharpen these in a hand held pencil sharpener to a fine point. You can also easily shape the tip with a razor blade. This eraser acts a little differently than the other type of stick eraser. The eraser material is more porous and fills with graphite quickly. This can be used to your advantage in circumstances where you want lift out subtle details in dark areas. The brush on top is handy to use for flicking the eraser crumbs off your drawing.
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