Here's a coloring page I did 18 months
ago, and here's a coloring page I did last week.
And in this video,
I'll show you seven easy tips that I've learned in the time in between, that you
can use to improve your coloring pages too.
It's not about the brands you use and these techniques can work for any budget.
And despite what some people think,
I don't have any formal art training, and I don't color in my free time.
Mom...
All right, I'm coming.
In fact, pretty much all the coloring I do is what you see on this channel.
I learn as you learn.
So today I'm breaking down the methods
and techniques that have taken my art from underwhelming to what it is now
and the mistakes I've made along the way to help you improve your coloring pages
and create art that you can be excited about.
First learning to Blend and Shade. I like drawing gradients.
I draw gradients a lot, and all of this practice has given me far
more confidence when it comes to approaching my coloring pages.
Learning to blend colored pencils or adding basic shading can feel like
a crazy, intimidating task when you're a beginner, but it doesn't have to be.
So let's take a simple approach to get you started.
And in case you're wondering, we are getting back to this.
This is my artwork for the polychromos pencils I promised you.
We're going to do it next week.
I need a bit more time.
If you're wanting to color something green, grab two Greens instead of one.
Try to find two Greens that have a similar
hue to them, with one being darker or lighter than the other.
We don't want a green that's more yellow or a green that's more blue.
We want them to both have the same basic color so they match really well.
Later on, you can get adventurous
with mixing some different colors, but for now, let's start with the basics
and don't panic if you can't find a perfect match,
just give it a go and you'll get a feel for what looks right with some practice.
Once you've chosen your colors, we blend these together through layering.
This works for any brand of pencil, wax based or oil based,
but a tip - a sharp pencil will always be easier to work with.
Use light pressure and overlap your colors in the area they need to blend together,
lessening your pressure as each color gets closer to the other.
Add more layers and a little more pressure
until you feel like you've got a smooth blend.
There's no perfect amount of layers
because this will depend on your pencils, your technique, and your paper.
So just experiment and see what works for you.
This is the basic method that I use for all my gradients, all my shadows,
and for every area of a coloring page where I don't just want a single flat
color, adding a second color instantly brings a new depth to your coloring page,
and it's the easiest way to improve your coloring.
I have so many videos to help you with this, so once you've got the basics,
you can level up to some more advanced shading techniques.
I've put it all in a handy playlist here that you can save and come back
to whenever you're ready to practice and develop the skill a little more.
Basic blending and shading is the foundation
to creating almost anything you can imagine with pencils.
From advanced lighting to skin tones, to shadows and 3D effects.
All of this starts with learning
the basics of shading and how to blend two colors together in a simple gradient.
So if there's one thing to practice
obsessively, this is it, which is much easier
with our second tip, learn how to hold and use your pencils.
The Dreaded Death Grip How many times have you seen me hold my pencils like this?
So the problem with a grip like this,
despite the fact that I revert back to it regularly, is that it does lead
to pain in your hands after you've been coloring for a while.
And if you're naturally heavy handed like me, it is quite hard to unlearn.
So what is the right way to hold a pencil?
The Truth? There is no right way.
Different pencil groups will allow you
to change the pressure, the movement, the angle, and even more.
The ideal grip for drawing a straight line or for drawing fine details is going to be
different to the ideal grip for light layers of color.
Pencils are a tool,
and however you can use that tool to create art, you go for it.
But of course, some methods of holding
your pencils are easier than others, so let's go through some basic techniques
that will help you to create better results without, causing long term injury.
Holding your pencil closer to the point
will give you more control and more pressure for fine details.
Holding it upright will allow it to get
into the grooves of the paper and remove the white in the paper.
However, this grip isn't going to work as
well for blending or coloring large backgrounds.
Holding your pencil further to the back
makes it much easier to reduce your pressure for lighter layers.
Holding it on an angle allows you to use
the side of the pencil more than the point and avoid those harsh lines.
This gives you less control,
but is great for coloring large areas and blending colors together.
There are so many ways to hold your pencils between these two extremes
so experiment and figure out what works for you.
I often change my approach depending on what I am working on.
Another tip to reducing the lines is
to work in small circles rather than in straight lines.
I do this in most of my coloring,
although sometimes my circles are so small that you probably can't even tell.
And if you've already colored an area with straight lines,
try changing the direction of your lines on the next layer.
Tip three is optional, but a fun way to stress your creativity.
Mix your media.
Instead of just working with pencils or markers, try using them together.
I love working with pencils,
but they can take a lot of time to fill large areas, especially if you're trying
to remove every little bit of white from the paper underneath.
Starting with a layer of marker,
pastels or even watercolors can speed up the process,
remove all of that white and even make your overall colors look brighter.
Markers can be a great shortcut if you're
working on cheap paper, although they will bleed through the page.
And if you do try watercolors,
you want to use paper that can handle the extra moisture.
Which brings us to tip four - upgrade your paper!
The lesson that has probably surprised me the most in the past year is my discovery
that upgrading my paper made a bigger difference than even upgrading my pencils.
In fact, I'm pretty sure I've said in the past that paper didn't matter.
I take it back.
Cheap supplies don't have to hold you back, but using the right tools can give
you an advantage and make the learning process easier and more enjoyable.
They can take away a lot
of the frustrations you might be having as a beginner and help you to focus more
on the techniques that you're trying to learn.
It's the analogy of cutting down a tree with a blunt axe.
Don't create more work for yourself if you
can afford the right tools, a good artist can create art with anything.
After I did my 50K
Crayola Cheap Pencil Challenge, I had to reply to a lot of comments
that thought the video was highlighting how good the Crayola pencils were.
Well, actually, I spent most of the video talking about how difficult they made
the process compared to so many other brands I've used.
And yes, I love investing in a good set of pencils, but there are so many great
budget pencils available now that you don't have to wait until you can afford
Prismacolor or Polychromos pencils before you become an artist.
But now that I know what I know, I'd actually upgrade my paper before I
upgrade my pencil rather than the other way around.
You don't need to buy a super fancy brand of paper.
There are some more affordable papers
available that can work in your printer and are great for colored pencils.
At the moment,
I'm using the Nina Bristol Vellum for most of my printed coloring pages that I do
on this channel, and I know Spring Hill Bristol Valley is another popular option.
And if you are coloring in a book instead
of using printables, just work with what you've got.
It's not a deal breaker.
I've created a new page on my website where you can see all of my current
favorite supplies and recommendations in one place.
So if you're ever curious about what pencils I like, the paper I use,
or even the tech equipment that I use in our videos, it is all there.
My next trick is one that I use all
the time, and it's one of my favorite parts of coloring.
Adding Highlights! Every colorist needs
a white paint pen or gel pen in their art supplies.
They are perfect for finishing touches like sparkles or reflections on water,
in patterns and in eyes, and just everywhere in coloring pages.
I love them! And in the past I relied
mostly on white gel pens, but more recently I found a fine point
acrylic paint pen to be easier to use and more reliable.
They don't skip like gel pens, and as long as you don't load too much
paint in the barrel, they shouldn't make a mess.
Not to mention, I love that you can buy
them in so many different colors, although I do love my white more than anything.
As we come to point number six, let's start to bring all of this together
to see the difference it can make to our Encanto drawing.
Here, I'm using a mix of pencil techniques with a better quality paper.
If you want a more in-depth look at these techniques and my approach to taking on new challenges, make sure you subscribe to this channel for more videos like this,
and check out my playlist full of coloring book challenges, coloring tutorials,
and tips that will help you develop your own skills.
I'll pop a few of my favorites in the description, but on to tip number six.
Practice! The biggest reason why art has
improved over the past twelve months is practice.
I've been creating something new every single week on this channel,
and that's given me a lot of time to develop my skills.
Creativity is a muscle.
The more you use it, the more it develops.
You don't have to draw every day, but creating a regular habit can help you
to grow your skills much faster than just watching tutorials.
But don't just do the same thing over and over.
Instead, take every opportunity you can to challenge yourself and try something new.
This is so important in the creative process, that I've made it my 7th tip.
Take Risks. My biggest growth has happened when I've taken the biggest risk with
my art, and we're not talking about life or death.
In most cases, the worst outcome is
that you've got an ugly coloring page at the end and you've learned something new.
I say that's a win!
Don't be afraid of using your good supplies or ruining your favorite books.
Take a risk and give them a go.
Only then will you give your creativity
a chance to really take off, and you might surprise yourself with what
you can create in a few months or a year from now.
For me, I wish I had learned how to take risks earlier in life.
Being scared of failing held me back from a lot of things and my art has
improved much more in the last year than in the last ten years.
Because I finally learned how to embrace failure.
I talk about this and some of the other things that I wish I knew as a beginner
artist in this next video, which is a must watch for every artist.