What I have been up to for this day...

Coloring 101 with reflections:0)…. A.K.A. Flexie:0)

How do you teach someone something you just do? I was asked to teach you all how I color a stamped image. Well, here are a few pointers that I was given along the way. I give most of the credit to my high school art teacher; he really knew what he was doing.

First off make sure that you are using the best quality equipment that you can afford. For some this will be a package of colored pencils that their kids have left over from last years school supplies. And these are just fine and they will work great.

I used and still will use Prang © pencils when I need to. The lead on these is a bit harder than what I use now.

You can mix and match brands of pencils as well as types it does not have to be all just one brand or, type. I know some artist like to use watercolor pencils over the top of there colored pencils; I have yet to try this.

I have just recently started using Prismacolor © pencils, they have a softer lead, with more wax and it makes for an easy lay down of color. They blend well when the need arises for blending.
I do not do a lot of blending I never have; it is more of a color building for me. One layer and then another. I think that is where some people get lost when coloring in an image.

Okay, now one thing for sure that I can tell you that was told to me is make short strokes when coloring and go in a sort of crosshatch motion. Small crosshatching motions are best very small and tight is what works for me. It takes a lot of practice to learn to do any one thing the way you want to. This did not just happen over night for me and it will not for you either. Well, unless you are just really a natural talent. Some people will find that they would rather just make small short strokes in a straight line and that is fine if it works for you then I say run with it.

I like to start all images differently if it is an open area image I like to do the out lining first and then build inward. This is what I am teaching you today. I will take my lightest color and build from there until I have gotten to my darkest color. Then I like to go back over the whole thing again in the end with the lightest color to fill in and bring it to life.

The color choice is always yours, what you chose color wise and how heavy you place it is up to you. You may chose to start dark and go to light.
I like to start out with a light handed lay down and then add on if I think it needs more. Colors tend to be darker where fabric is gathered or, bunched up as well as an outline that is where I like to make the image darker. Light does not bend so that is why and out line is darker for me.

My teacher told me many times to pick a place that the light is coming from and stick with it. That is what makes an image pop or, come to life and look 3D. I tend to make the light come from the top a lot and also the left. The best way that learned to see the light was on an apple by and open window. You could see just how light would bend and just how it changed the colors you would see. Say if the light was coming from the left the apple would be lighter tons of red with pinks in it and as you got to the bottom and more to the right you would see the color get richer and a bit deeper and darker reds with brown in it.


Tips to try….

To add life to your work, try varying the color intensity in your artwork.
When coloring go back over the darker color with a lighter color to fill in and add a reflective light to it, this is the one thing that I think brings it to life for me.
Make sure to add a good range of values throughout your drawing.

Start off with light pressure when adding layers of color and gradually increase your pressure. Be careful when applying heavy pressure, such as when you burnish or dry emboss.
Beware of over saturating your paper's surface with too much color; the color will start to no longer adhere to the paper's surface. That is when you run into pluming, a build up of waxy looking pencil on the paper.

As for blending that is the one thing that stumps me when to teach you. I guess I kind of burnish my work. I never had any blenders until a month ago when Stacy (JBgreedawn) bought me some and mailed them to me. She had no idea that I did not blend my colorings, she said she was impressed that I got the quality out of my coloring that I did without a blender pencil or pen. In the one of the steps of my tips that I tell you about it is where I go back over the whole piece with the lightest color that is where I blend or burnish so to speak.

Removing colored pencil is not always easy to do. You can try these and see what you like, artist tape, gum eraser, pink eraser, white art erasers, and I have even heard people say adhesive removers on a cotton swap can work.

reflections:0) TFL



********examples to follow********

Supplies List for class….
White card stock
Stamp
Ink
Colored pencils
Blender * Optional
Eraser *Optional