Ekaterina B

Realistic Animal Eye with Pastel Pencils

If this is your first attempt at using soft pastels, Angela, you're well on your way to creating beautiful artworks in this medium. If you enjoy working with pastels, trying the pencils that Ekaterina mentioned might be very helpful! It seems like the pencils are similar to choosing the right grade of watercolor paper when painting with watercolors. I hope to see more of your work with pastels! :)

Thanks your so kind and encouraging words, as always you lovely lady. I was really discouraged after completing /wrestling this project! But I will still with it!

Oh and I forgot to mention, that brilliant white was done with Carandache pencil. Those are so different from Detwent. They’re soft, creamy and very vibrant. But posca works too! I sometimes have to use white gel pen. Depends on the paper.

Thanks so much for taking the time very helpful.

Dear Angela, I understand you found this project very challenging, I’m so sorry to hear that. Soft pastels are my favorite medium in the whole art world but when I tried them first, I was absolutely devastated. They are very challenging! I took lots of classes from many different teachers before I found methods that worked for me. If that was your first time trying, I’d say you achieved wonderful results! In any case, I hope this class won’t turn you away from pastels. I see you have Derwent and Faber  or Kohinoor pencils. I wouldn’t be able even to finish this project with those pencils. They are tough. Pastel pencils vary a lot! From very hard and dry ones to very vibrant and soft. I would recommend highly Stabilo Carbothello and C’arandache. The paper also make a huge difference. Pastelmat is the best for this kind of work. I do think your results are amazing for your first attempt and I hope you’ll find a great teacher to make you fall in love with these materials. All the best! And if you ever have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask! Sincerely, Katie Boga

Thanks for your very kind and encouraging words. I will have another go at it on better paper as you say. But I'm really reluctant to invest any more money in this medium TBH‍   I have 76 FC plus Derwent pencils. I completed this project on Daler n Rowney pastel paper which has all lines showing through it! I'm also gave trouble with the dust effecting / irritating my breathing, any ideas on how to combat that would be so appreciated.

Dear Angela, in realistic drawing paper is really important. Pastelmat is definitely the way to try and judge your abilities objectively. It’s smooth and pastel sticks to it like no other surface. I think that’s why it’d produce less dust. I would never be able to get the results I want on any other paper. As for the pencils , Derwent pencils a FC pencils are probably best to combine with soft pastel sticks. Maybe Rembrandt would be best for that. They’re not as dry as some other ones. If you’d like to be able to see what pencils can do by themselves  I’d go with Carandache. They’re absolutely amazing. I can combine them with other mediums when I want to experiment. You can even paint with watercolors on Pastelmat and add Carandache pastel pencils on top! I totally understand how expensive art supplies are when it comes to pastels. I had no choice, I went all the way - I love that medium so much. Hundreds of dollars later… haha Btw I often buy used pencils. Since they’re so different, I need to see if I like them before I invest more. But still it’s all expensive. I get commissions for the pet portraits sometimes and that’s what pays for my passion. Dust. Another drawback, yes. When I draw with pastel sticks especially, I’m covered in it. My face, my hands, surface, the floor… but my love for them is greater. Maybe you can wear a cloth mask? I sometimes use medical gloves to protect my hands because I touch things without noticing, otherwise, it’s quite a messy medium. Yet I love the feeling of it. Wouldn’t want it any other way. And once again, I think you should take a break from pastels and see if you want to try again after all the frustrated feelings have passed. If you do, i bet you’ll be happier with the results on better paper with better pencils (not that Derwent are bad - they are mostly for the under painting in my work. Or in combination with sticks. And I’m following an artist who draws her realistic art with Faber Castel pencils only on white Pastelmat. Amazing work but I prefer Carbothello and Carandache). You did amazing on Daler and Rowny paper! Blows my mind! Wishing you all the best! 

This is my first attempt at fur and an eye in pastels, I found this really challenging, I'm sure this medium will grow on me, if not I love using pastel pencils over gouache n watercolours!

Pastel cats eye

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