Today I’m going to talk to you about blending
stumps, also known as tortillons. Blending stumps are used to help make your
tones blend more evenly. You can purchase these in different sizes
in order to blend as little or large an area as you want. A word of caution when using blending stumps,
however. It’s important not to overuse it when adding
value to your drawing. Sometimes when you use it on an area with
a lot of charcoal or graphite, an excess will remain on the tip. This excess may all come off at once the next
time you apply the blending stump to your drawing paper. Sometimes it’s good to have a scrap piece
of paper to wipe off the excess charcoal or graphite. Many artists say that using a blending stump
to shade is cheating. I have to disagree. Blending stumps are a tool and technique anyone
can use if they see fit. Although it is easier to shade your drawing
with a blending stump, there is no wrong way to create art. Since using a blending stump is efficient,
it may be something an artist would want to use if time is of the essence, such as for
a commissioned artwork. In the end, you’ll have to decide if a blending
stump is right for you and suites your artistic style. And I want to know; do you use a blending
stump on your drawings? If not, why don’t you? Thanks for becoming a subscriber, and be sure
to keep an eye out for future drawing videos and tutorials.