You might have wondered just what are Inktense pencils – and you’re not alone!
I’m Sandy Allnock, so if we haven’t met – and these bloghops bring in a lot of new folks – so HI! So glad to meet you! I’m an artist who also loves to make cards, and I really really love to help others make art of all kinds. I teach on YouTube, IG, and on my own teaching site (more on that later)
This post contains both art chat (we’ll talk about the pencils and some techniques to make them work better) and craft chat, a new stamp release that you might just love.

Inktense pencils are categorized along with watercolor pencils in a lot of people’s minds, but…they’re a bit different. Even different than what Derwent tells us. (Watch the video to see the craziness happen!)
The giveaway from my blog is over–congrats to Naomi for being randomly selected as a winner!
CCC Links: Complete Bundle – Save 10% Stamps Only Bundle – Save 5%
Mermaid & Seahorses | Mermaid & Penguins | Mermaid & Whale | Seagulls | Walrus Mini
In the first portion of the video I’ll talk answer the question, what are inktense pencils. After I create the little graphic below (including the seal in inktense blocks!), we’ll jump into the CCC release, with even more technique chatting. Are you ready?

Tutorial: What are Inktense Pencils? (with CCC release!)
The CCC release portion starts at 9:40 if you want to skip to that for a shorter video time. 🙂 You’re welcome!
Watch the video below and scroll to the end to leave comments or questions — or click HERE to watch it on YouTube and leave comments over there. I read both dutifully!
Look ma, a carousel.
I’ve been trying to figure out how to make carousels (sliding photos) in this blog, like, forEVer. I finally did it! Tell me in the comments if you had to tap or swipe through, I’m curious how this works on different devices!
Win this mermaid piece next month!
Join Artventure and share your own creativity, encourage others, and become a tighter community as we all grow together. This mermaid piece will be the prize in the February challenge there….sign up for free if you want a chance to join in the fun!
My full set of cards
In case the above carousel does NOT work for you…here’s that image all in one. With the walrus too. 🙂

That cute walrus
I’ve always had a thing for walruses. Walrii? Something about a chunky fella with funny teeth reminds me of being a chunky youngster badly in need of braces, maybe! But this little walrus has friends. I do too. 🙂

Crafting classes, anyone?
These bloghops bring in a lot of new folks – and you might not know I have a gajillion (ok exaggeration) coloring classes for you! SO many are perfect for cardmaking. So much so that I created a special CRAFTS page just for cardmakers to give you some suggested places to start!
Check out the brand new craft page HERE, or tap on the picture at the right to see the new Sunrise Sunset class while it’s still on its launch sale.
Go enter!
Remember to enter the CCC giveaways by 1) commenting on this post, and 2) using my links below to make your purchase–you could win one stamp set or the whole release! Here’s the list of blogs participating so go get inspired by their creations too:
Sandy Allnock <–that’s me!
Instagram Inspiration:
Adam Karle
Jasleen Kaur
Laura Inguz
Traci Jenkins
Supplies
Some product may be provided by manufacturers for review and use. Compensated affiliate links are here at no cost to you. I appreciate your support of my work with your purchases! Full affiliate and product disclosure | My trusted partners in art
- SEAL GRAPHIC SUPPLIES
- CARD SUPPLIES
- Colorado Craft Company:
- Other card supplies:
Thank you for the Inktense lesson! I have the set but have not figured them out yet, everything comes out bright and solid. This really helps.
Love the walrus. Too cute!
thank you for helping me learn more about these pencils
Your coloring of the mermaid is gorgeous. Intense is something I want to learn more about. Thank you.
I plan to get some intense pencils! My work doesn’t look like your beautiful creations, but I am learning!
Thanks so much for the inspiration on these wonderful cards Sandy. Also for the info on Inktense pencils. So much more than I realised.
I love these images so much! Wonderful coloring on each of these scenes! The walrus makes me laugh!
I have some Inktense pencils and I haven’t tried them yet! (Now… where did I put them?). Gotta check out your video and get some tips and inspiration!
Fantastic cards Sandy
Your cards are gorgeous! My favorite is the one with the green mermaid! The colors are so vibrant, just like the ocean! Thank you for all your great advice. I love how helpful are to those of us who are not quite so far along. You are so generous. Thank you so much .
Stunning cards. So creative. Loved the video. Love the seagulls. Remind me of the Disney film seagulls “mine, mine, mine”.
As always simply stunning.. I’m so grateful for all the content you put out on YouTube.. I love every video ❤️
Sandy, your scenes are just amazing. Thank you for your inspiration. In answer to your question, I just tapped (on my phone) and the carousel worked perfectly!
Beautiful! I love the vibrancy of intense pencils.
Your coloring is amazing! Love this release.
Bring on the Walrus and the doodling. What a great video. The colors are lovely and the mermaids are grand.
Incredible colouring! Thank you for all the info about Inktense pencils, it is so helpful!
It’s amazing how different all the artist on the Blog Hop.So many great takes on this set. I like them all & really gets the ideas flowing. I love the Seagulls & the Walrus the best. Never was into mermaids but I do love the one with the penquins. Would love to win the whole set of course.I did purchase the Walrus, Seagulls, and dies from your link. I am already a patreon on your site. Love your work.
Sandy, I also had to tap the arrows, not a problem because it let me look at the image as long as I wanted to. Thank you for all the teaching and inspiration.
Thank you for clearing up many of the questions I had about Inktense pencils. I had a set as a gift not long after they came out & I’ve been unsure how to get the best from them.
Loving all the work you shared with us & I will admit the walrus & seagulls are my favourite, seals & walruses always seem so cute.
I bought inktense pencils 20 years ago and found them to change color after about 6 months inside my sketchbook. Perhaps the new sets are more color stable. I’ll have to buy a few new ones to try them out. I got inspired by your demo. Thanks.
I’ll bet that has something to do with the not-so-permanent permanence of them….
Wow, these are fabulous.
Great information. Never heard of Inktense pencils before. I will have to look more in to them. Love your work.
Love this new CC release–your cards are gorgeous. I’ve had Inktense for years, probably don’t use often enough but I do like them. Thanks for the inspiration.
As always, beautiful cards. Being the last artist on the list, they saved the best for last! Who doesn’t love a walrus?!? Yours is adorable, looks like he could use a hug. Hugs to you for sharing your never-ending talent with us all, so much appreciated.
Beautiful coloring, helpful information and great stamps is a winning combination. Like you, I seem drawn to that walrus. Thanks you for sharing!
Great tutorial on Inktense pencils, Sandy. I was not familiar with them and love the projects that you created! The depth of color is great and achieved easier (or so it seems) than with colored pencils.
Your coloring always looks beautiful Sandy. And you piqued my interest in understanding inktense pencils. She’s a large learning curve understanding products this year as I delve into mixed media. I will definitely watch your video to understand
I had to tap the side arrows to see the carousel photos. But…I see 3 dots, but can only see 2 images. Oooo – I like those mermaids – I think they would go well with your Underwater class scenes or even the Island Time class scenes. Ah…I rarely use my Intense pencils – maybe it’s a good time to show them some love.
You are so incredibly talented, Sandy. Your coloring is so beautifully done and so vibrant. I love the Inktense pencils and hope to someday be able to use them this well.Thanks for sharing!
Love the walrus and that textured sand. And the mermaid card with the circles created by a compass is fantastic… can’t wait to try that technique!
The vibrancy of Intense pencils is wonderful…something that can’t be done easily with regular colored pencils. The sliding photos are awesome–color and technique. I never thought of using a tea strainer to sift color onto the paper…ingenious!
The carousel worked in Safari and Chrome and I could click in picture to advance it. I was hoping to see the “tea strainer” I think you called it in the supply list. You used it a couple times to do the super fine shavings.
Gorgeous coloring as always. I just love your watercoloring. Thank you for the inspiration today.
You are my inspiration. Love the stamps and your work.
You’re my favorite artist link! Your artwork is sooo beautiful! My favorite stamp is the mermaid w the sea horses❤️
Don’t think I have heard of these pencils, but I wouldn’t be surprised to find a set in my coloring stash! What lovely cards. This is a fun release.
That walrus and seagull card is my favorite! I tapped through the slides on my iPad.
Wow!! Simply amazing! Thanks for the tutorial! I love the card with the geometrical shapes in the water around the mermaid!
I tapped through the slides (in an iPhone). Love Anita’s stamps..and what you made with them.
Thanks for the great tutorial! I have the pencils and blocks and struggle with them. This explains a lot and I will be pulling them out to give these techniques a try.
Your coloring is UNREAL! Love these scenes!
I have intense pencils. This tutorial was just the thing to reinspire me to use them. I love Sandy’s art. She was the inspiration for me to begin my watercolor journey. Anita Jeram is my favorite stamp artist. I have many of her stamps. This video is a win win for me!
Lovely!!!!!!! So these work with Versifine Black Onyx ink?
I’ve always been curious the difference between watercolor pencils and inktense. Thank you for this great post. Plus those are some very cute 3C’s stamps.
I need to use my inktense more! Thank you for the reminder. Loving that walrus:)
Hi. I had to tap to move through the photos. The cards are wonderful. I really like the walrus and seagulls card…I bet the walrus just stopped by to let the seagulls know where the fishing is best.
I have the pencils and blocks! Rarely use them. Thanks for the great tutorial and inspiration!
Sandy your cards are amazing! I love the way you colored the walrus, you made him come to life! I live on the Jersey Shore so this release is very special to me! Love your cards!
Nice intense coloring. I think I have these pencils. Time to use them
Mermaids were a surprise instead of woodland creatures ! Lots of info from your post and video — thank you! My Android tablet is not getting the middle pic on the carousel. I can tap to see the 1st and last.
I’ve looked at these pencils but always felt intimidated. Your post has me encouraged to give them a try!
I had to click through the carousel. I always enjoy your work, today I enjoyed how the walrus was in with the birds. Kind of like a photobomb! Thank you for sharing!
Wow I love the effect and dimension of your coloring. Brings the cards to life!
Sandy, I had to tap the side arrows for the sliding photos. Beautiful cards and coloring.
Your coloring is amazing as always! Love the CCC mermaids! Inktense colors are on my “list.”