How to Work with Pastels and Pastel Pencils©
Posted: Saturday, January 15, 2011
by Arlene Wright-Correll
http://www.learn-america.com
his week’s email question asks, “Is it hard to work with pastels, especially pastel pencils?”
The answer is all pastels are easy and fun to work with. I love pastels. The oil pastels are really different from the soft and hard pastels and the pastel pencils are really a good inexpensive way to start with a small set of 12 pencils. All four require different techniques when using them. However, the techniques are truly easy to learn and basically require no special drawing talent. Just a desire to learn how to use them and the time it takes to practice with them. I especially like the pastel pencils when I work on paintings that have fur or feathers such as this eagle
or this Panda Bear.
Pastels are sticks of ground pigment mixed with chalk and gum or oil, then shaped into drawing sticks with some being round and others having 4 flat sides. Pastels cannot be mixed on a palette like paints. Like all art techniques there are some trade secrets or tricks. Pastels regardless of which of the four one uses cannot be mixed so they must be layered. Thus one needs a range of colors making sure one has a good choice of darks and lights in the primary and secondary colors, grays, earths and flesh tones when one decides to work in this medium.
When I first discovered them it was with an inexpensive box of oil pastels and I loved the way I could move them around with my fingers. Once I got caught up with them I went on to get involved with the soft and hard pastels and at this point one’s investment can get a little more expensive since there is an unbelievable range of colors. All of a sudden I was awash with so many of these that the simplest way for me to manage them was to invest in a couple of tiered wooden drawers that are designed especially for pastel chalks. Like most anything I do, I search the internet for coupons, sales and clearances on any of the things I write about here or use in my studio and I can often acquire these art supplies at discounts up to 70%! So consider becoming a frugal artist.
Working with pastels tends to be messy, especially the hard and soft ones and even with the pastel pencils since one get a lot of dust residue. One can gently blow it off or tap it down unto another piece of paper and save the dust to work it in someplace else and that is really being frugal. One can use a soft squirrel-hair mop brush to dust off stray particles from your drawing. The dust has a tendency to gather on the heel on ones hand and one can easily transfer it to someplace you do not want on the piece you are working on. I often use a clear plastic hand stand which is about 2 feet long, 4 inches wide and has legs that keep me raised about 1 inch above my work. One can use blending paper stumps to blend in ones work and they are simply made from soft grey paper felt. They can be sharpened and shaped on the ends with sandpaper block which is a small piece of wood with several layers of sandpaper attached to it.
When working with the pastel pencils one needs a good pencil sharpener as a good point is constantly needed so an investment in an electric pencil sharpener is a great time saver.
I like working on the sanded pastel paper since it has a great “tooth” to it and a good grade will easily take up to 25 layers of pastels. It comes in white and also packs of various colors which are fun to use. One can even get archival sanded pastel paper which is good for 300 to 500 years!
As one works with any of these four types of pastels one will want to use a spray can of pastel fixative which is used to harden the work you have done. Allow it to dry for a couple of minutes and then you can make any changes, fix any mistakes or put on another layer. Pastels are the most forgiving type of work. When you have your finished piece you will want to give it another quick spray to keep it from smudging in the future.
May the Creative Force be with you as you Tread the Earth Lightly and my your day be filled with... Peace, Light and Love,
Arlene Wright-Correll
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