Handling Instructions

Any piece of original art should be handled with extreme care. Here are a few pointers that will help protect your drawing and help maintain its quality.


1) NEVER touch the graphite with your fingers! The natural oils on your skin will leave a mark on the graphite, and though you may not see it at first, it will show up over time. The soft pencils I use smudge very easily. Upon completion, I spray the drawing with a workable fixative spray to help keep the graphite from smudging a little, but it doesn’t mean it can’t still smudge.


2) Always handle the drawing very gently and make sure you wash your hands first! Any trace of lotion, food, or dirt will easily be left on your drawing. Even nail polish will smear on it if you brush a nail across it. When you pick it up, hold it from the very outside edges. This will keep you from touching the graphite and will avoid any possible wrinkles and creases on the paper. Wrinkles and creases will still be visible even once the drawing is framed behind glass.


3) Always rest the drawing on a clean, dry, flat surface and away from a child’s reach, food or beverage, or any other possible hazard.


4) Always keep a sheet of tissue paper on top of the drawing at all times. This is just added protection from smudging and dust. It must be tissue paper, other types of paper can pick up the graphite and cause smudging.


5) When transporting the drawing, keep the tissue paper on top and place between two hard surfaces (like cardboard cut out to the size of the drawing), in a box or rolled up in a mailing tube. The idea is to keep it covered and protected from wrinkling, tearing, and smudging.


6) Last, try to get it framed as soon as possible. The longer you wait, the greater the chance something will happen to it. If you take it to a store for framing, make sure you instruct the employee on the proper way to handle it.