Hello Guys! 🙂
How are ya? 🙂 Today, I’ve asked the help of my younger sister Trissia. While I love solid colors, she’s into gradients & shading. We both love doing digital art but if there’s a traditional medium that she’s been dabbling with for so many years now, they’re colored pencils. 🙂 When we were choosing the paper for the coloring book, I even had to consult her and request for her to do test runs with this medium while I took care of the markers. See the Faber-Castell colored pencils on this Instagram post? Those are hers. 🙂 That’s why I requested for her to share with us 5 tips when using colored pencils.
*Of course I just had to ask her to color in some pages from Around the World with the Googly Gooeys. Haha.*
Anyway, without further ado, I present to you my sister’s tips. 🙂
1.) Work on a smooth and hard surface.
Thankfully, coloring pencils are not a traditional medium particular with paper thickness. That would be just an observation since I’ve always worked on printing paper. To have an easier time blending, I recommend working on glass, (smooth and untextured) wood and/or porcelain. I never trust my lap or sketchbooks (unless there is a REALLY hard and sturdy surface under the page or on top of your lap) because they’re soft. ಥ‿ಥ
2.) When they say press harder to shade, don’t.
For some colors pressing the colored pencil harder on your paper makes the colors more opaque. Overall, it merely makes the colors more saturated that you couldn’t distinct the shadows later on. Coloring pencils make it really easy to blend colors. You wouldn’t need to use your thumb to smudge or get a blender pencil. Instead of pressing harder to shade, you should use a darker analogous (i.e. similar) color and blend it with the base color. :> They should be leaning towards purple. For example, if you were to shade a green color, a green color would be shaded by a sea blue color or an orange color would be shaded by a red or maroon color.
3.) Start with light colors and know when to start dark.
A general principle in traditional art mediums is to begin coloring with the light colors. It’s not only for the sake of shading. It’s also in order to keep your canvas neat if dark colors are applied first. With that said, black must always be used last.
In my experience with using the black coloring pencil, when it is applied heavily on the paper, its dust tends to spread from where it has been applied. Best to blow it away rather than dusting it away and risking a dark smudge on the canvas.
4.) It takes two to blend and more for a color to stand out.
When you want to add an ombré (i.e. gradient), you need to apply the lighter color LIGHTLY FIRST. Use any color that is the closest to white/yellow then use the darker color after. The darker color also needs to be applied lightly as it overlaps the lighter color. Then, pressure should slowly be applied when it goes further away from the intersection of ombré. When you are satisfied with your blending of the second color, apply the first color with normal pressure so that the colors will blend and have the same tone.
This is also the same technique I use for the color black such that lavender or gray color is the first color I apply so that the dust of the black coloring pencil won’t appear as much.
5.) Always have an eraser and sharpener.
In my long search for a good eraser, my recommended tools are Faber-Castell PVC-free or dust-free erasers. They get most of the pigment off the paper. Also, its less messier when you’re fixing your mistakes. You can also control the pressure so you can have a nice faded effect. Again, I recommend the sharpener that goes with Classical set of coloring pencils. Otherwise, you may have to look for a sharpener that fits the size of the coloring pencil as the lead of the coloring pencils tend to break if the wrong size is used.
That’s it! 🙂 Enjoy coloring guys. I hope these tips written by my sister helped you out in some way. 🙂
XOXO,
Tipsy ♥
Check out more of Trissia’s works on:
Materials Used: Faber-Castell Polychromos (available in National Bookstore Branches)
Meanwhile, I know why you’re visiting this post! Here are the much-awaited winners of the blog giveaway! Thank you to each and every one of you who made this really exciting! :) Please, please don’t tweet “I never win at life or any of the giveaways”. I’m pretty sure life or 2016 has something else planned for you this year. I also join contests too but I rarely win. Hehe. C’est la vie!
Congratulations to the 38 Winners!
Asus Zenfone
TC Morados
2 Flip Flops + 2 OhBD Notebooks:
Alex Dizon
Marz Aglipay
5 ABC’s of Hand Lettering & Sketch Pads
Joyce De Jesus
Pearl Therese Aton
Henri Villegas
Valerie Cosio
Raquel Deang
5 Lettering Progress Keeper + Faber-Castell Watercolors
Mia Rhodora Baldemor
Niquole Leitch
Nella Ventura
Rbin Rainier Binuya
Sophia Ysabelle Yu
5 INKredible Coloring Books 1 & 2
Renzo Gabriel Caja
Trishia Mariano
Katrina / makaillustratestheworld
Cym Marzan
Michelle Santillan
5 Around the World with the Googly Gooeys Coloring Books + Faber-Castell Pitt Pens (set of 12)
Jacky Gonzaga
Erika Liveta
Grace Jabal
Celine Esteron
Anne Macachor
5 Letters from ABC Postcards
RJ Dancel
Healthlyn Gaw
Trina Lunzaga
Shannelle Chua
Louise B.
5 Kitkat Rubies + 1,001 Awesome Sticker Books
Alxis Movida
Mikaela Imbong
Ralf Borja
KSandra Sandoval
Erna San Luis
5 Kitkat Rubies + Thread 365 GC’s
Kessa Nielsen
Janelle / janelle_d_12
Que Sollano-Gavan
Wendy Miraflores
Adrian Olivares
Important: The winners should e-mail their full name & mailing address within 7 days to hello@abbey-sy.com with the subject GGxABC Giveaway. After 7 days, we will be picking a new set of winners. 🙂
Related Posts:
This Coloring Book Understands Your Feelings
Coloring Book Hits Bookstores this Week
How to Pick Colors for Your Artwork
Ultimate Art Jam
Watercolor Workshop for Kids at the Ayala Museum
First of all, thank you for the colored pencil tips! I’ve always wondered how to blend them in really beautifully. I tend to just make do with one color. I’d really love to try them! Creativity really runs in the family Tippy!
Also, I felt so distracted I’ve put off work until the wee hours tonight. Now I know why. I can’t believe I just won an Around the World with the Googly Gooeys Coloring Book! Thank you Tippy, Pong and Abby! My “law of attraction” mantra worked! Haha! 🙂
Hay grabe. Speechless padin ako. Thank you sobra! 🙂
although I didn’t won I’m still hoping for the unclaimed prizes after 7 days! hehe jk! thanks for the opportunity though, I’m still stalking with your amazing works and cute baby 😉 enjoy motherhood po!
Happy morning! 😀 Thank youuuuu! :*
It means, we still have a chance to win? 😀
Omg!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ♥
A blessed morning indeed! ? Thank you for picking me as one of your winners. Happy New Year!! ???
P.S.
Super gigil talaga si Baby Riley! Cutiiiiee ????
Awww. Congratulations guys! Haha, still hoping a chance for the unclaimed prizes. XD *crossed fingers*
THANK YOU SO MUCH. Oh my gosh. I’ve been saving up for my own set of watercolors for quite some time and I was about to buy a Lettering Progress Keeper of my own! Thank you! 🙂 Can’t wait to use them <3
omg Thank you soooo much, you have just made me the happiest person right now 🙂
Thanks for the tips and congratulations to each winner 😀 Yey! God’s blessings!
OMG! ? Thank you so much! ?? You just made made my day (especially after a bad day in school ?)! I hope to see you (and Riley ??) in more workshops this 2016! ? I can’t wait to eat the KItKat Rubies and use the stickers! ? Thank you and thank you for always inspiring me! ?
Always creating,
♥ Mika ♥
Did all the winners sent their emails? Hahahaha. Just hoping if there’s a new set of winners. 😀
Congrats to all the winners! Woohoo! ??????????
Congratulations to all the winners!!! And wow! I do portraits with colored pencils too!