Sandpaper blocks are essential for 'fine tuning' your graphite.

Regardless of they 'type' of pencil you are using (wooden or mechanical), the ability to shape or sharpen and work your lead into a flat tip for the perfect line is a must for any drawing artist.

Most drawing kits do come with a sandpaper block, and most sandpaper blocks look more like 'paddles' than blocks. The 'paddle' has a small wooden handle to hold while working the graphite against the paper.

As you rub the graphite against the sandpaper, the paper begins to collect lead residue and will soon need to be torn off one completely black and soiled, revealing a fresh sheet of sandpaper for another session of fine tuning your graphite tip.

Many have asked....why rub a pencil on a peice of sandpaper to sharpen it? Why not just use a pencil sharpener?

That's a great question and a common misconception actually. A pencil sharpener does sharpen your pencil to a point, true enough. However, when working a dark area of your drawing, shading, or filling in a block of 'black' on the paper, it helps to work with a 'flat' tip versus a 'pointed' tip.

The results shading with that flat tip are much more desireable and smooth versus the pointed tip, which can prove to show lines and be a bit 'streaky'.