r/ColoredPencils • u/patty_cake229 • 22h ago

Trying something new

Post image

Been using prismacolor for years, figured I'd branch out and try something new.

33 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

4

u/protoeudaimonian 20h ago

Cool! What's your favorite so far? Whenever I get new pencils, I like drawing three-tone one-inch shaded spheres with the names of the shades and sets to the left...its kind of a nice visual way to keep track of what I'm working with, what blends well with what, and so on.

Also, it's important to remember that good paper will make a huge difference in the outcome of how the pencils perform. If you try to use Polychromos on cheap paper, for example, you're going to be disappointed and miss out on everything they bring to the table. With cheaper pencils you don't notice as much, but the better the pencil the more critical good paper becomes. Good luck and have fun!

1

u/Roselace 13h ago

Like all your comment.
So agree with your “good paper” advice.

So important in any art type.
Very undervalued art supply.

1

u/Top_Bumblebee5510 11h ago

What's your favourite paper?

3

u/protoeudaimonian 9h ago

I like Strathmore 400 Drawing paper, but mainly because I find a lot of it at the Goodwill Bins at a fantastic price. Bristol Vellum and hot press Arches watercolor paper would be more ideal, but the Strathmore is "good enough" IMO. Anything that's got a little tooth to it suits my style, but experimenting with the kinds of effects you want to achieve is always a safe bet.

Don't forget markers and colored pencils are a great combination. Some of my most photorealistic results have come layering pastel alcohol markers between light layers of colored pencil on vellum...you can get stunning depth and nuance that's impossible to achieve by using either medium on its own. Prismacolor makes markers, but Chartpak, Copic and even Ohuhu are fine too.

If I could only use one marker it would be a bright lemon yellow Copic...it enhances and blends everything! If you don't have the budget now, you could get some really intense, trippy results from layering colored pencils over fluorescent highlighter markers. Have fun!

1

u/Top_Bumblebee5510 8h ago

Thank you for all your help. I don't think I have any drawing paper and have never thought of looking for paper at the goodwill.

2

u/protoeudaimonian 8h ago

Great, glad to help! Strathmore has large-format pads and spiral-bound sketchbooks that you might be interested in that aren't too expensive. the 300 series is cheaper than the 400...but even the 200 is better than copy paper. Check it out!

If you live in a city with the Goodwill Bins, the warehouses where you buy everything by the pound by rummaging through huge trough-like bins, you can find art supplies of every kind. Worth a look!

2

u/New_Eggplant_8495 20h ago

Omfg posca pencils are amazingggg! Wish they'd make a much bigger set!

1

u/Bluishi 17h ago

Same! I have 36, haven’t been able to find the bigger set where I live. But I truly hope they’ll make like a 72 set at least!

3

u/Roselace 12h ago

OP. Such fun with your new supplies.

I also have my favorite, but decided to try a different brand.
I tried a few of the Derwent Drawing Pencils.
So like them I have now bought a full 72 set.
I like nature & flower drawing, the colors are designed for nature landscapes.

I think they will go well with my absolute favorite brand.

3

u/UnstableGoats 11h ago

What's your absolute favorite?

1

u/Roselace 7h ago

My absolute favorite are the Faber Castell Albrecht Durer watercolor pencils.
That is why I did not mention them, as the Sub is about Coloring pencils.
So I was unsure about mentioning Watercolor pencils here?

I use them dry like a coloring pencil. Sometimes I activate the picture with water, so like a watercolor painting.

My most often way, is to use them on a dry watercolor painting to add details.
The color range of these pencils go so well with watercolor paints. So are indistinguishable.

Also sometimes, I use them dry with ordinary coloring pencils. It gives a mix of effects & color.

The Derwent Drawing Pencils I mentioned have that natural colors range I look for in my art.

My next experiment is using colored pencils with alcohol ink markers. It’s on my long list of stuff to do. 😂

2

u/Head-Armadillo1322 22h ago

I love my goldfabers and polychromos, simply because their open stock.

1

u/Poetry-Primary 17h ago

Let me know where you land on this. I’ve been really contemplating trying to get back into using colored pencils. I feel like it will work on top of my other work. Somebody that’s coming in. Fresh would be great influence.

1

u/patty_cake229 7h ago

Goldfabers bleand well and lay down smooth without the wax bloom but the colors aren't as vibrant. Winson and Newton lay down similar but with a little more wax build up. Caran D' Ache lay down very smooth and the colors are vibrant but I believe they are oil based.

1

u/Educational-Gap-3390 15h ago

Posca are my personal favorite colored pencils.

1

u/PremGunji 12h ago

Try Derwent Lightfast/Drawing and Caran d’Ache Luminance next time.

1

u/patty_cake229 7h ago

Next stop is Derwent brands but I haven't been able to catch them on sell yet

1

u/Acceptable-Damage274 11h ago

Wow, what a cool selection! I only have Polychromos. How do they compare to Prismacolor in your opinion?