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My journey with Caran D’ache Pablo started when I bought a small set of 12 pencils a few years ago. I didn’t want to go for the full set of 120 because of how expensive they were, but once I started drawing with them, I had to have them all.

Today, the 120-set has been in my possession for a while, and I thought I’d share my thoughts.

When I tested the Faber-Castell Polychromos, I remember wishing they were a little bit creamer. It took a while for me to get used to them, but today, they’re one of my favorite pencils. I love using them in adult coloring books.

Then, I tried the Caran D’ache Pablo and realized they were the pencils I’d wished for when I tried the Polychromos for the first time.

The Pablo pencils are thinner than the Luminance pencils, and they remind more of the Polychromos pencils at first glance. The difference is that the Polychromos are round pencils while the Pablo has the shape of a hexagon.

I haven’t had breakage issues and they blend wonderfully. I think they are great for drawing details and they don’t seem to require as much time on layering as the Polychromos.

The palette is a good mix of the necessary colors, but it leans more toward blue and green than red and yellow. There are also a few colors that are a little bit too similar, but other than that, the pencils are great.

The Caran D’ache Pablo colored pencils are expensive, but if the price doesn’t matter, then they might be for you if you’re looking for easy-to-use pencils that can draw details well.

Also, if you struggle with your Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils, but still want something similar, then the Caran D’ache Pablo might be for you as well.