MATERIALS

Colored pencil can be used a lot like graphite, and we will build on the graphite techniques we have already learned—the same feather touch, shading, and mark-making techniques. One big difference between the two materials is that most colored pencil is difficult to erase, except brands made to be erased. Just like graphite pencils, the colored variety come in both student grade and professional grade. Some are wax-based, and they are a bit easier to erase, and some are oil-based and so a bit softer, allowing for creamier blending techniques.

The good news is, for our purposes, any colored pencils will do. My only suggestion is to buy a set with lots of colors, at least 24, with a good selection of grays and neutral tones. Even the large sets of 120 available for children are great. I use a variety of student- and professional-grade pencils, and list my favorite brands in the Resources section (see here) at the end of this book.

Our materials for these lessons are simple:

  • • A set of colored pencils in a wide range of colors
  • • A good handheld pencil sharpener (see Resources, here)
  • • Drawing paper in white or a variety of pastel colors, about 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm)
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LESSONS

Our lessons with colored pencils will take us through a few simple application exercises and mark-making techniques to build a foundation, and then we will apply our new skills to some beautiful color-rich projects you will be proud to frame or share.

LESSON EIGHT

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A SWATCH OF MANY COLORS

It’s time to add some color to our drawings! This lesson introduces the colored pencil and is a foundational exercise in how to use a feather touch while creating a smooth application that allows for layering to create new hues. Colored pencil can quickly build up, so further layers are not as affective and luminous. Just as with graphite pencil, using the lightest touch with color helps us keep the light of the paper shining through, so we don’t saturate the paper’s texture.

We will begin by selecting all the primary colors in our colored pencil set—the reds, yellows, and blues. As we create an interwoven mix of rectangular shapes, we will see new color hues appear where the different hues overlap. Not only is this an instructive exercise, but it also results in a lovely drawing that is a work of art by itself.

TOOLS TO GATHER

  • Selection of red, yellow, and blue colored pencils
  • Piece of drawing paper, about 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm)

STEPS

1 - Beginning with a yellow pencil, draw a small square, as shown, toward the center of the paper. Fill it in as evenly as possible, using your feather touch. Then, use a red pencil to create another rectangular shape overlapping the yellow just a bit, as shown. Finally, use a blue pencil to create another shape overlapping both the other shapes. See A.

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2 - Continue by using a different yellow, then red, and then blue pencil to create overlapping shapes, one after the other, moving around the shapes created, as shown. It’s up to you how big the shapes are, what shape they take, and where they overlap. Use my example as a guide, remembering to use a light touch to fill in the shapes as evenly as possible. Notice how the overlapping areas create new colors. See B.

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3 - Continue in this manner until you have used all your red, yellow, and blue pencils, creating a pleasing composition as you go. See C.

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USE YOUR CREATIVITY

Try this exercise several times.

  • • What if you used every color of the rainbow to fill the entire page? See D.
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  • • What if you made circles instead of rectangular shapes and limited your palette to various shades of two colors? What if you made a second ring of color around a few of those shapes? See E.
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  • • What if you used a selection of pastel or muted tones in the same color family? See F. Or, maybe only very dark colors? How about the colors of your garden, the forest, or the seaside? Or, how about various shapes of many hues of one color, such as blue?
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LESSON NINE

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RAIN SHOWERS AND SWIRLING WIND

Now that we have learned how to smoothly apply and layer colored pencil on paper, it’s time to begin mark making. This lesson teaches us how to create curved and linear patterns of line that echo one another. It also teaches us to be random in our mark making, which brings more life and personality to our drawings. This lesson may seem simple, but it should be approached slowly and with control. The techniques here are reminiscent of the paintings and drawings of Vincent van Gogh. Once you have practiced the steps here, try your hand at drawing this image of a Van Gogh painting using the same kinds of marks. We will come back to this technique in future lessons.

TOOLS TO GATHER

  • Colored pencils in shades of gray and blue
  • Piece of drawing paper, about 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm)

STEPS

1 - Choose a medium-gray colored pencil and begin by drawing 4 directional swirls. See A.

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2 - Choose a lighter gray pencil and create 10 or so more directional swirls that branch off from the original. See B.

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3 - Switch to yet another shade of gray. Using a slow and steady hand, draw a line that mimics the curve and shape of each of the previous swirls. See C.

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Cypresses. Vincent Van Gogh, 1889.

4 - Repeat step 3 using various shades of gray until the section is completely filled in. See D.

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5 - Switch to the blue pencils. Begin by drawing randomly dashed lines from the swirls to the bottom of the paper, spaced evenly apart, across the page. Switch colors and draw randomly dashed lines between each previous pair of lines. See E.

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6 - Repeat step 5, using various shades of blue, until the section is completely filled in, making sure the spacing and length of the dashes are random. Fill in some of the areas between the swirls with shades of light blue. See F.

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USE YOUR CREATIVITY

  • • What if you changed the shapes of the original lines to diamond shapes or concentric circles? What if you used rainbow hues and various line thicknesses?
  • • Now, try to recreate the below image, reminiscent of a Van Gogh painting, to see how this simple technique can be stretched and reimagined into many scenes and subjects. Could you draw a sunflower using this technique? Could you recreate the Van Gogh painting of the cypress shown at the beginning of this lesson?
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LESSON TEN

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WORD PLAY

When my daughter was 10, she made a beautiful drawing of the word ponder, filled with all sorts of patterns and designs using colored pencils. I framed it, hung it on our living room wall, and treasure it still today. We all have special words, or even names of people we love, that we could draw on a piece of paper and embellish to give as a gift or frame to hang in our home.

This lesson is all about finding a word that’s meaningful to you and decorating it using some of the patterns we have learned in previous lessons. I have chosen the word peace as our first example. Once you have tried this lesson, I hope you will choose other words to draw and embellish, too. At the end of this lesson, you will find samples from my students demonstrating that the possibilities are endless. Choose your rainbow selection of colored pencils and follow along with me!

TOOLS TO GATHER

  • Graphite pencil
  • Drawing paper, 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm; I used a cream-colored paper)
  • Permanent fine-tip black marker
  • Eraser
  • Colored pencils in a variety of rainbow hues

STEPS

1 - Using a graphite pencil, draw the word peace, as shown. You can trace the letters as shown in this image or draw them freehand. Then, trace over the letters with the black marker. Let the ink dry completely, and then use the eraser to remove any pencil line you can still see. See A.

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2 - Using shades of yellow and orange, create a sun with rays, as shown in the letter C. See B.

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3 - Using shades of green, make tiny dashes to create a grasslike effect, as shown in the letter E. See C.

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4 - Choose hues of red and pink to create half-moon shapes around the edge of the letter A, and then fill in the rest with radiating lines. See D.

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5 - Using shades of violet and dark blue, make a pattern of vertical lines, as shown in the letter E. See E.

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6 - Using shades of blue and turquoise, make random circles, and then fill in the spaces with echoing lines, as shown in the letter P. See F.

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USE YOUR CREATIVITY

The examples of student work on the right show other possibilities for colors and patterns.

What other words could you create with? How about your family surname, or the names of your children or grandchildren? Can you think of other colorful patterns that are appropriate for your chosen word? What would happen if you made your designs surrounding the letters instead of inside of them? Let your imagination run wild with Word Play.

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Mary Dowsa

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Liz Tobosa

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Lizabeth Craig

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Jon Pedersen

LESSON ELEVEN

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SKY | WATER | EARTH

Some of my favorite colors can be found in the hues of sky, water, and earth. These are the hues that soothe us naturally. In this lesson, we will create a drawing with a stained-glass effect—smooth washes of color outlined in black ink or colored pencil—that suggest a distant mountain range near the sea.

We have done basic mark making and color layering with our colored pencils. Now, it’s time to practice laying down double layers of color and blending several colors in one larger area. Then, we will have the option to use a colored pencil blender that further blends and makes everything more brilliant.

TOOLS TO GATHER

  • 1-inch (2.5 cm) masking tape or paper craft (washi) tape for clean borders (optional)
  • Drawing paper, 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm; I used a cream-colored paper)
  • Graphite pencil
  • Eraser (just in case)
  • Colored pencils in a variety of blues, blue greens (turquoise), greens, golds, and earth tones
  • Medium- or brush-tip black marker, black pen, or black colored pencil
  • Colorless blender pencil (optional; my favorites are by Prismacolor and Caran d’Ache Luminance)

STEPS

1 - As an optional step as I have done here, apply the tape around the edges of the paper to protect the borders, so you can color more freely while still staying within the lines. If you choose not to use the tape, you can take the color all the way to the edge of the paper.

2 - Using a graphite pencil, draw horizontal lines on the paper from top to bottom, as shown, depicting the layers of sky, earth, and water. Use an eraser to correct any mistakes. See A.

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3 - With shades of blue, color in each section using a feather touch, filling in the space in one direction and then going over it again in another direction to evenly fill each space. Start with the darker blues at the top and gradually shift to the lighter blues as you near the bottom layers of sky. The center “eye” shape can be left white with a subtle later of very light blue or gray to suggest shadow toward the right side. See B.

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4 - Switch to earth-tone colors for the mountains. Use the lightest shade, such as golden brown, for the mountaintops, gradually shifting to medium shades and then darker shades of brown. Color in one direction, then another, to evenly fill the spaces. See C.

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5 - Using golden yellows in two shades, make vertical lines across the section directly beneath the mountains. Then, use these golden shades to make horizontal shading marks across the top, divided, section of earth, following with shades of green for the bottom, divided, section of earth. See D.

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6 - Use the blue-green and turquoise pencils to fill in the lower sections of water, beginning with the lightest colors, gradually getting darker, as you reach the bottom sections. See E.

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7 - Use a black marker, pen, or colored pencil to draw over the dividing lines, as shown. I used a black brush pen to achieve random line weights. If you use pen, let the ink dry completely, and then remove the tape to reveal the clean border. Your drawing can be complete at this stage; if you have a blender, complete step 7. See F.

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8 - To use the blender, lightly go over each section of color with gentle pressure. Notice how the colors come to life, becoming richer and more jewellike, and how the variations in color blend even more. See G.

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USE YOUR CREATIVITY

What other scenes can you dream up using simple lines and a stained-glass technique? How about a sunrise or sunset over the ocean, or the undulating grasses of a prairie? What about a simple still life? You can even find images of stained glass you love and recreate them with colored pencils and a black pen. The sky is the limit!

LESSON TWELVE

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WEATHERED WISHES

When I was a young girl, my mom made these little pieces of art using brown paper bags. When finished, she would hang them outside on the tree branches so they could become seasoned by the weather. My very fuzzy memory is that we wrote wishes on these tiny drawings, with the idea that when the wind and rain weathered them away to nothing, our wishes would come true.

This is my version that I call Weathered Wishes. We will make three, using colored pencils on brown kraft paper, and hang them on string so they can be gently tied to the branch of your favorite tree.

TOOLS TO GATHER

  • Graphite pencil
  • Selection of colored pencils in a variety of hues, including black
  • Ruler or straightedge
  • 3 pieces of kraft paper, 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm; like a brown paper bag)
  • Medium- or brush-tip black marker or metallic gel pens (optional)
  • Scissors
  • Eraser
  • Hole punch or something that can make a small hole in the paper
  • 3 pieces of string or yarn, 24 inches (61 cm) each

COLORFUL FLAGS

This sample is created with the colors of the rainbow, but feel free to use any colors. With a graphite pencil and a ruler, mark off a center section on your paper, about 2½ inches (6 cm) wide. Draw a series of 7 misshapen rectangles with simple designs inside. Copy the sample or create your own! See A. Remember the technique of going over the fill area two or three times, in different directions, to achieve a smooth application. Use a colored pencil or metallic gel pen to connect the flags at the top. Trim away the outside edges of the paper by cutting along the pencil lines.

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PEACOCK FEATHER

1 - Begin by drawing lines with a pencil to create a 2½-inch (6 cm) section in the center of the paper. Using black colored pencil, draw a lightly curved line that gets wider at the bottom, as shown. Draw an upside-down heart at a slight angle, a bit above the thinner end of the line. See B.

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2 - Using a turquoise pencil, surround the heart with a thin line. Use a bright-green pencil to surround the entire heart shape, as shown. Using the black pencil, create a thin, curved line on the edge of the turquoise line, and then use a bright lemon-yellow pencil to surround the green color with a thin line. With a warmer yellow pencil, fill in a larger area, as shown, and then use a golden-brown pencil to create a thin line toward the outer edge of the yellow. Finally, use a rust- or sienna-colored pencil to create a final border, creating a small point at either end of the shape. See C.

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3 - Using a blue-green pencil, create thin lines that curve and radiate from the center black line, as shown. Notice how the line is drawn right over the pencil border. This allows for more fluidity. Also notice how the lines get shorter toward the bottom of the feather. See D.

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4 - Using a variety of bright green pencils, draw more curved lines, filling in the spaces between the lines already present. Keep the fluidity going and use the sample image as your guide. See E. When finished, use scissors to carefully cut away the extra paper as for the Colorful Flags project.

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WISHING BOWLS

1 - Prepare your paper as for the Colorful Flags project (see here). Using a pencil, draw 5 simple bowl shapes, as shown. Don’t forget that you have an eraser, if you need it. These shapes do not have to be perfect. They are basically a flattened oval with a quarter-moon shape below. See F. You can do it!

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2 - Choose 5 colors to work with, plus a medium-violet or gray pencil. Beginning with the top bowl, use one color to fill in the top oval shape. Use another color to fill in the bottom quarter-moon shape. Use that same color to fill in the top oval shape of the second bowl. Choose another color to fill in the bottom quarter moon of the second bowl. Use that same color to fill in the top of the third bowl and a new color to fill in the bottom. Continue in this same manner, ending with the first color you used in the top bowl. See G.

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3 - Here’s where the magic happens! Using the violet or gray pencil, with a gentle touch, very lightly shade in the right side of the top section of each bowl using feathery strokes, as shown. Do the same on the left side of the bottom section of each bowl, as shown. This will give your bowls the illusion of depth. Follow the sample image as your guide. See H. Trim away the edges of the paper along the pencil lines.

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CREATE THE WISHES

With a hole punch, create a hole in the center top of each tag. Fold a length of string in half, threading the looped end through the hole and then pulling the ends through the loop to secure it to the tag. See I. The final step is to make a wish and write it on the back of the tags. Sometimes I write each letter of my wish in random places, so in the end, it is indecipherable to anyone but me. Hang the tags from your favorite tree and watch them as they weather in the sun, rain, and wind.

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USE YOUR CREATIVITY

What if you created bookmarks instead of Weathered Wishes? For the Colorful Flags, use the patterns of international maritime signal flags to spell out someone’s name and create a bookmark for them. How can you adapt some of the other lessons from this book to fit on this narrow strip of paper? So many ways to fill a rectangle!

LESSON THIRTEEN

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FANTASY FISH

When we use colored pencil as our drawing medium, there are so many bright colors available to create simple yet bold and graphic designs that sing on the page. Tropical colors are so much fun to use, and one of my favorite subjects to capture with those candy-colored hues is fantasy fish. Although they take on the basic shape of real fish, the color combinations are endlessly fantastical and create whimsical drawings perfect for framing to brighten any room.

Don’t be intimidated by the result—these cheerful fish are simple to create, step by step. We begin with a graphite pencil sketch using basic shapes, refining them with an eraser, if we need to, and then add brilliant contrasting colors to make the simple design elements pop. This project works well with complementary colors, which are hues found across from one another on the color wheel, such as red/green, orange/blue, and violet/yellow. When these color pairs are used next to one another, they make each other even more brilliant! It’s a simple magic trick—an illusion artists have used for centuries.

For this sample lesson, I chose shades of turquoise-blue and orange, with a bit of black for contrast. I suggest trying similar complementary colors for your first drawing and then using your imagination to come up with as many different combinations as you can.

TOOLS TO GATHER

  • Graphite pencil
  • Piece of drawing paper, 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm)
  • Eraser
  • Colored pencils in a variety of turquoise, aqua, and green-blues, warm yellows, reds, oranges, and black
  • Colorless blender pencil (optional)

STEPS

1 - The best advice I can give you is take your time, keep it simple by following the sample, and use your eraser for the pencil line drawings. You’ll draw 2 fish, as shown. See A.

  • • Using a graphite pencil and a light touch, draw an oval shape like you see on the bottom fish, and then draw a long, curved triangle shape like you see for its body. Don’t worry if it’s a little lopsided. Use your eraser if you want to make changes. Then, draw 2 teardrop shapes for the side fins and 2 more at the end of the tail, as seen in the sample.
  • • Let’s look to the top fish for the final details. Draw a matching line above the curve where the oval-shaped head meets the body. Draw 2 lines in the center of each side fin and create a series of matching lines in each tail fin, as shown.
  • • Finally, draw the eyes and mouth on the head of the fish, as seen in the image.
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2 - Time to color! With a light orange pencil, color in the bands, as shown on the bottom fish. With a darker orange or red pencil, outline each shape you colored orange, as seen on the top fish. See B.

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3 - Using different shades of yellow, orange, red, and black and one turquoise pencil, fill in the rest of the fin shapes, as shown. Fill in the outer half circle of the eyes. See C.

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4 - Using a turquoise pencil, fill in the other half circle of the eyes. Then, with an orange pencil, fill in the outer section of each eye. Using a sharp black pencil, create tiny lines across the orange section of the eye, as shown. Finish by coloring in the mouth with black pencil. See D.

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5 - With a medium turquoise pencil, draw half ovals in a pattern that builds off itself, starting larger at the top and getting narrower and smaller as it reaches the end of the tail. Use the sample as a guide as you draw this pattern on both fish. They do not have to be the same! See E. Relax and enjoy the meditative process of pattern drawing.

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6 - With a lighter turquoise pencil, lightly fill in the bodies of both fish, including the heads. Use a darker turquoise pencil to fill in the space between the half oval pattern on the body with tiny quarter circles, as shown, for both fish. See F. At this point, you can call it finished; if you have a colorless blender pencil, complete step 7.

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7 - Using the colorless blender pencil, gently go over the entire drawing, leaving the black areas for last. This step gives a richer, more jewel-like tone and smoothness to a colored-pencil drawing. See G.

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USE YOUR CREATIVITY

What other color combinations could you try? Garnet reds and emerald greens? Dandelion yellows and regal violets? What about a rainbow fish? What other patterns could you use to fill in the fins, tails, and bodies?

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Jane Woker

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Hazel Scott

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Lisa Hofmann

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Lizabeth Craig

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Wendy Ching

LESSON FOURTEEN

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MAGICAL FOREST

This lesson brings together all we have learned so far. It might appear complicated, but if you take it step by step, you will be amazed at what a beautiful, magical scene you can create. Here, we’ll use removable tape to create a random border, but you can forgo this step if you prefer to just draw a light border with pencil. I hope you choose the most cheerful colors from your set of colored pencils and enjoy creating this fantasy landscape full of patterns and lovely color transitions, layered with meditative mark making and beautiful imaginary trees.

I also hope you will try toned paper for this project. If you do not have toned paper, use a clean, unwrinkled piece of a brown paper bag. When we use a darker paper, we can make full use of the lightest values of our colored pencil sets. It’s great fun!

TOOLS TO GATHER

  • Graphite pencil
  • Toned drawing paper, about 5 × 7 inches (13 × 18 cm; such as Stonehenge Kraft or a piece of brown paper bag)
  • Eraser
  • Washi tape (removable decorative paper tape) or masking tape
  • Colored pencils in a variety of colors and values; pay special attention to selecting some lighter hues, especially white, pale yellows, blues, peaches, etc.

STEPS

1 - Using a graphite pencil, draw 3 tree shapes on your paper, as seen in the sample image. Use your eraser to make any adjustments. The third tree shape is just the trunk of a pine tree—a couple of parallel lines. Place a length of washi tape horizontally across the paper, sort of moving it around as you attach it to create a random border as a horizon line, as shown. See A.

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2 - The sample image for this step shows the random application of lighter colors across the upper background (above the tape), avoiding coloring inside the trees. See B. On the left side, inside the tree branches, is random mark making with various tones of blue, including a small pattern of yellow ovals with bright-green centers. This is an example of how to include some random patterning. You can copy the sample image or create your own. Also note the vertical rainbow of markings to the left and right of the tree trunk, above and below the tape. Try this! It’s great fun and adds a lovely element to the scene. You can finish it with white pencil markings, in the same vertical way, around the rainbow marks. Keep these background colors on the light side, as shown.

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3 - Fill in the bottom section of the background below the tape in a random way, using vertical strokes, similar to step 3. See C.

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4 - Remove the tape, revealing a clean border along the horizon. Use a selection of colors to randomly fill in this space, using horizontal strokes. Use mid-tones and light colors for this step, as shown. See D.

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5 - This next layer is all about intuitive mark making. Study the sample image. See E. Notice how tiny tick marks in lighter hues are used to soften the borders between sections of color. Sometimes the marks are short and fine, other times a bit longer or wider. You can change this by using a duller pencil or a very sharp pencil, or with the pressure you exert while making the marks. You can also try different kinds of marks, such as tiny circles, squares, teardrop shapes, and the like. Whatever feels right, is right! Take your time and create a whimsical layer of tiny marks over the background to bring texture, color, and interest to your drawing.

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6 - Let’s add some tiny ferns to the ground under the trees, some leaves to the middle tree, and pine needles to the far-right tree. See F. For the ferns, use a bright-green pencil to draw the simple plant shape outlines, and then fill them in with a lighter yellow or green color, as shown. For the leaves on the middle tree, use a lighter green pencil to make lots of random oval-like marks all around the branches, as shown. Then, use a darker green color to make a few random darker leaves and a rose-colored pencil to add a few more, as shown. Use a white pencil to make a small mark next to each rose-colored mark. For the pine tree, use a mid-green or brown pencil to make slanted lines shaped like pine boughs, as shown. Use a lighter green pencil to add more strokes in the same direction. Finally, if you want some birds in the sky, use 2 shades of blue to create tiny bird shapes. I surrounded mine with tiny white marks to suggest movement.

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7 - For the final step, we will fill in the tree trunks and branches. I used shades of violet and pale blue. Begin with a middle tone. Using vertical strokes, fill in the tree trunks from right to left, leaving the left side blank. Use a darker tone to add another layer toward the right side of the trunks and a lighter color to add marks toward the left side. For the tiny pine tree, use a middle tone with a touch of darker tone in it to color in the trunk, skipping where the branches are, as shown. On the left and center trees, use a darker pencil to enhance the areas where two branches meet, or where a branch meets the trunk. Study the sample image to see this in practice. See G.

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USE YOUR CREATIVITY

I hope you feel proud of your lovely magical forest scene and confident in your ability to create some really fun things with colored pencils now. How would you approach this differently on white paper? What if you tried this technique to create an ocean or water scene? How about city skyscrapers? Keeping the shapes simple and making them come alive with vibrant colors and random marks can create a beautiful piece of art.

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Helene Jorgensen

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Wendy Ching

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Lisa Hofmann

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Debbie Brandecker

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Liz Tobosa

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Jon Pedersen

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