You do need to sharpen these pencils. However, pastel pencils tend to crumble and break when you sharpen them. This is because of their soft consistency. Moreover, if you use the wrong sharpener, you can damage your pencils and they will not last long. You can opt for pastel pencil sets that come with their own special sharpeners or you can purchase an electric sharpener. You can also use the traditional method of cutting the wood then sanding it to your desired point.