Home Forums Explore Media Colored Pencil I’m excited – Polychromos

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  • #992469
    Heket
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        Hi all!

        I recently decided I want to give coloured pencils a go as I’m into drawing more than painting but love colour. I was looking at a Faber-Castell Polychromos 36 set but, in case of extraordinary coincidence, at that exact moment the 120 set came up as a flash deal on Amazon for less than half price! Amazing! Naturally I snapped that up as it was only £20 more than the 36 set at my usual store. I am now the proud owner of a shedload of pencils!

        I notice the recommendation for using baby oil is a blender. I’d like to experiment with the painterly look, but coming from a background of oil painting I am wondering what effect it would have on the paper? We are taught never to oil paint on unprimed paper as in time the oil destroys it. Is that just a problem with Linseed oil or the amount of oil used? Will baby oil affect the longevity of my artwork?

        Digital ~ Watercolour ~ Pen ~ WMoils

        #1215742
        campeche
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            Congratulations Heket! What a wonderful gift to oneself! I love my polys!
            I have never tried baby oil, much too frightened to do so. I would think that the oil would permeate the paper making it more difficult to add more pigment. I have tried rubbing alcohol and odorless mineral spirits as well as a clear copic blender marker. Of the “wet” methods my favorite is the odorless mineral spirits, it does not leave a lasting stain that I fear baby oil might. My favorite way to blend my polys is with a fairly stiff brush. Polys are drier and for lack of a better term somewhat “dusty”. I find that I can move the pigment around with a nice brush. Since they are new, why not do a side by side comparison to see what your favorite way of blending is.
            Again, welcome to the world of polys and congratulations!!!!!!

            [FONT=Book Antiqua]~Patty[FONT=Book Antiqua]~
            http://pattyspaints.blogspot.com/
            http://patty-poole.artistwebsites.com/

            #1215730
            TessDB
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                Since they are new, why not do a side by side comparison to see what your favorite way of blending is.

                And then show us your experiments and tell us which you prefer and why!

                I like to use dry blending methods (brush, bit of paper towel, make-up removal pads, etc). I’m lousy with anything wet. I make huge gory messes. :rolleyes:

                Just remember that any sort of blending (wet or dry) tends to work better if you have plenty of pigment on the paper.
                Looking forward to seeing your experiments! :wave:

                Rosemary

                [FONT="Palatino Linotype"]Rosemary (aka Tess) - [/color]
                [FONT="Book Antiqua"]How does she do that??? Find out here:[/color] Celtic Art 101

                Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.
                [/left]

                #1215750
                Sutra
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                    I use mineral oil rather than baby oil – that’s the active ingredient in baby oil. I don’t want to find out down the road that the fragrance or other inactive ingredients in baby oil affect my work.

                    I did some charts where I compared mineral oil, colorless blender, white pencil and the cream pencil. That was a way for me to learn how they worked and compare their effect on the paper.

                    #1215746
                    paulalee
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                        Congrats on your Polys! Look at all those gorgeous colors! I’ve started working with them, too, buying mine a bit at a time from open stock. I am loving the colors. Good luck and enjoy!

                        Paula
                        I'm not bad, I was just drawn that way. ;)

                        #1215747
                        Heket
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                            Thanks everyone! Here is a terrible artificial light picture of my experiments so far. Excuse the little abstract doodle, it’s not meant to represent anything, only pencil colours :lol:

                            I used:
                            Finger
                            Cotton pad
                            Oil
                            Bristle brush

                            I do like the look of the oil for a more painterly application, but I haven’t experimented with layering yet and I don’t think I’d use it in a book. I could try some Arches oil paper if I wanted to go down that route. Otherwise I was quite pleased with the bristle brush effect, I think that will be my go-to method for blending in books and more subtle pieces. Thanks for the tip!

                            Now I need to decide what to do as my first drawing. So much choice!

                            Digital ~ Watercolour ~ Pen ~ WMoils

                            #1215736
                            musicoutreach
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                                Welcome to colored pencils! I have tried plain old rubbing alcohol to blend using a cloth, cotton ball or brush. I use it sparingly because one time it bled into another area and messed it up. When I tried baby oil it stained the paper. My first choice for blending is a stiff, bristle brush as others have mentioned. Even after I put many layers on and burnish it with white pencil, I may decide to use a brush to further blend. Enjoy your journey!

                                Susanne

                                #1215743
                                campeche
                                Default

                                    Another note regarding blending with a brush. Granted, most everyone on this site is able to work more quickly than I. Having said that, the brush works best for me with several light layers. If you aren’t emotionally attached to your abstract doodle, try the dry brush on that – those layers don’t seem to be as intense as your experimental areas.
                                    Enjoy those beautiful polys!

                                    [FONT=Book Antiqua]~Patty[FONT=Book Antiqua]~
                                    http://pattyspaints.blogspot.com/
                                    http://patty-poole.artistwebsites.com/

                                    #1215767
                                    Sydney214
                                    Default

                                        Good grief!

                                        I decided to have a catch up on WC and see this post. ‘What a lucky person’ I think to myself. ‘I wish I could get Polychromos on a deal’. I have a quick look on Amazon…….. Lightening deal……. Not quite half price…….. So very tempted……….. Don’t actually need them as I have only recently bought the 60 set………. Don’t actually have the money (husband and I give ourselves pocket money every month. Nowhere near this much though). Tempted to just get them anyway and hide them. Conscience wins out. Ask husband. Husband says get them…….. Got them.

                                        Feeling very impulsive with an edge of nausea.

                                        #1215748
                                        Heket
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                                            Actually that picture is blended with a brush, but I’ve only done one layer so far. I’m not used to working in layers, more of an alla prima person myself, so that’s something I need to start doing. Maybe I should try another layer? I have so much experimenting to do!

                                            Sydney – Ah, so you have succumbed too? I hope you get many hours of enjoyment out of them, and let’s face it, you probably will, especially with having some extra pencils from the 60 set.

                                            Digital ~ Watercolour ~ Pen ~ WMoils

                                            #1215744
                                            campeche
                                            Default

                                                Heket, depending on the brush, and the angle, you should be able to push (or smoosh) pigment into the tooth of the paper removing those little white dots. I have just a few brushes that do the job, and they do it perfectly. As luck would have it, the art store that I purchased those brushes from have discontinued those brushes – in store brand. :-| If I didn’t have bad luck, I wouldn’t have any luck at all!

                                                [FONT=Book Antiqua]~Patty[FONT=Book Antiqua]~
                                                http://pattyspaints.blogspot.com/
                                                http://patty-poole.artistwebsites.com/

                                                #1215754

                                                SO Funny! i bought the 120 set and hid them from my husband! bahahaaaa. he has seen them now – i’ve had them for a week – but he thinks they were about $100. i wish.
                                                haha.
                                                oh woops…i accidently bought these pencils…
                                                my husband would have said get them too i’m sure!.no point buyin fewer i think. sorry my friend with 60 – i forget your name, but they ARE consumables so back-ups are very sensible. i got mine for almost half price too, in oz.
                                                i love my polychromo’s! weeeeeeeeeeeee!:clap:

                                                love and light from shell

                                                #1215751
                                                Sarosna
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                                                    Congrats on the polys! Even if I sometimes end up taking short brakes away from art for whatever reason, my Polychromos case keeps bringing me back. It’s just so beautiful and juicy. Like a box of candy.

                                                    I don’t know about the baby oil…I found it to be incredibly messy. I also tried Zest-It but I’m simply not a fan of solvents. I personally start up with a feather light touch for the first layers and blend with cotton swaps (earbuds work for lighter areas but you have to press carefully since they can be kinda hard, yes I said hard). Then, depending on the work, I might burnish with a white pencil and reapply certain colors.

                                                    #1215755
                                                    Nick7
                                                    Default

                                                        Oh, lol, so funny :D
                                                        It looks so tempting. But I have never tried any brand other than Koh-i-noor and I am afraid it would not be wise to buy a big set without knowing the brand.

                                                        Or? :rolleyes: :D

                                                        "Persistence, and practice will get you where you want to be, even though you will go through some 'dark' stages"

                                                        #1215768
                                                        Sydney214
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                                                            Oh my goodness!
                                                            They arrived today and are so beautiful. I was very irresponsible and rather than doing the washing and whatnot I spent a good while typing up a colour chart and filling it in.
                                                            However, as I have the 60 set ,I first swapped those so that the 120 box now contains my original 60 (seeing as I have already started using them).
                                                            I then decide to laminate the chart using a matt laminating sheet to keep the colours as true as possible.
                                                            Laminator chewed it up.
                                                            Not at all impressed but did another one and laminated that one, only to find I had laminated in a dog hair. Particularly frustrating as he hardly sheds at all.
                                                            Not laminating the next one.
                                                            Trouble is I am, obvious by now I expect, a bit obsessive about keeping my pencils in the order they arrived. I wish I could be as obsessive about keeping the house in order.
                                                            Sure everyone wanted to know all that.

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