Prismacolor Techniques

[guidinggirl]

I am looking into getting prismacolor pencils as well as gamsol, but I was looking on the prismacolor website and watched their tutorial and the guy that is doing it used plain rubbing alcohol for blending and he's a renowned pencil artist apparently. I am curious if anyone has tried this technique. I would try it but I don't own the pencils yet.

[kikikaren]

I haven't even heard of it! I use gamasol and LOVE it! Oh! They blend like butter! I love those pencils, but it is true that they take practice. Now I'm going to have to try some plain rubbing alcohol when I get a chance. If only I had time to play now!

[shanismom]

i got the prismacolor pencils and i was looking for a technique. i'll try the rubbing alcohol.

[guidinggirl]

I too can't wait to try either technique. I am running out this week to try and find some gamsol as well.

[guidinggirl]

Cool be sure to let me know how well that works.

[dini]

Be sure to get the more concentrated alcohol...I think he uses 90%. I can't bear the smell of it, so I prefer the OMS. Baby oil works good too, but it takes a lot of practice to get the right amount.

[mkgmt]

I use odorless Mineral Spirits that I bought at Wal-Mart. I bought a huge bottle for $4 and just pour a tiny bit into a very small tupperware bowl. It works great! I have 24 pencils and now I want more! LOL
Melinda

[Joelyn]

I have used the gamsol but I like the floor wax instead. It blends very nice and leaves a shiney finish. It can get gummy if you over work it though.

[mjbonoan]

I've never used them before either, but I should be getting my Prismacolor pencils by Friday and the Gamsol and tortillions should be coming in soon also... Another question that I can't find an answer to is, what paper works best with Prismacolors and Gamsol, mineral spirits, floor wax, etc.?

FYI: I got 48 Prismacolor Premier Pencils on Ebay for $27.00. New, sealed box.

Thanks,
MJ

[dottiejdavis]

I, too, bought the set of 120 prisma pencils on ebay and love them though I haven't spent as much time with them as I would like. I paid 74 bucks for them; I waited a long time to get the bid where I wanted it, though!

[guidinggirl]

Thanks to all of you for the tips. I think I am going to go and raid ebay and see what I can find for cheap prismas. I would love the 120 pack but even at Mikes with a coupon here in Canada it's just over 100 dollars. YIKES!

[Rubberliscous]

I have all the Prismacolor pencils and it is my favorite medium. However, I prefer to blend with the Rembrandt Lyra Splender pencil (It's better than the Prismacolor blender, in my estimation) Gamsol/alcohol is okay, but I like the blender pencil better. I took a class by colored pencil artist Terry Medaris a few years ago and he taught his technique of blending with just the Prisma pencils using a scribbling technique with heavy pressure. Very effective. You can go to terrymedarisartstamps.biz and see his wonderful work.
Judy:p

[shanismom]

yes, ebay is the best place. i got my prismacolor pencils (24) there too.

[LotRFan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mjbonoan

I've never used them before either, but I should be getting my Prismacolor pencils by Friday and the Gamsol and tortillions should be coming in soon also... Another question that I can't find an answer to is, what paper works best with Prismacolors and Gamsol, mineral spirits, floor wax, etc.?

FYI: I got 48 Prismacolor Premier Pencils on Ebay for $27.00. New, sealed box.

Thanks,
MJ

I use SU's whisper white, works perfectly.

[Penascodragonfly]

I use turpenoid. It blends very well with my Prismacolors. I have the 24 set plus the verithins in the same colors. I really like them. When blended, they take on an almost watercolor look.

I blend the turpenoid on the color with a stump blender.

[dolphinprncss03]

Here is a web site that you can get them i was able to get mine at a stamp show www.inkyantics.com

[karaoke_lola]

Are you all referring to the Prismacolor watercolor pencils?

[stamps&cars]

Quote:

Originally Posted by karaoke_lola

Are you all referring to the Prismacolor watercolor pencils?

No, regular colored pencils.

[Penascodragonfly]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mjbonoan

Another question that I can't find an answer to is, what paper works best with Prismacolors and Gamsol, mineral spirits, floor wax, etc.?

FYI: I got 48 Prismacolor Premier Pencils on Ebay for $27.00. New, sealed box.

Thanks,
MJ

I've used the pencils on all different types of paper including blank index cards. Works great. I don't use turpenoid/gamsol all the time. Sometimes I just color and then use the fixative spray, then I usually spray with a gloss sealer (I like the gloss look the best).

[Tavias Charms]

please, what is gamasol? thanks, lorraine

[Tavias Charms]

sorry, another post, how do you apply the alcohol to the pencils? can you use watercolor pencils for this? why prismacolor pencils or will any do? thanks again

[stamps&cars]

Gamsol is a trademark name made by the Gamblin company. It is artist grade Odorless Mineral Spirits. You can also get Mona Lisa brand artist grade OMS at Michaels. gamsol is available at Dick Blick and Art Media, depending on where you live. You need to use regular colored pencils. Prismacolor pencils are an excellent brand but not the only brand that will work with this technique. You use paper stumps to blend. Dip them in the Gamsol and apply to your colored area to blend. Get either paper stumps made in Taiwan or Creative Mark brand stumps. Don't use the 'made in China' ones as the stumps are too dense and do not wick the gamsol good enough. I don't have the website at my fingertips but if you google Debbie Gimbel and prismacolor pencil you should come up with her web tutorial on this technique. You can also go to SCS's Resources section and see the tutorial called Gamsol Magic. Now isn't that more than you wanted to know!

[stamps&cars]

I'll be doing another stump share around August. Let me know if you are interested. They were about $2.75 for a package of 12 plus postage to you. A wonderful price for the Creative Mark stumps.

[stamps&cars]

One of the best places to get Prismacolor pencils is ebay. You can get the 120 set for about $60 or so which is a steal!

[alicia79]

The paper stumps you are talking about, are they the ones you can get at Dick Blick? If nto where do you get them?

[stamps&cars]

I looked at the ones on the Blick site. They don't say who makes them. You want to get ones that are made in Taiwan or ones made by Creative Mark. I guess you could e-mail them as ask who the manufacturer is or where they are made. I get mine from Jerry's. The whole reason I did the stump shares was their high shipping. Minimum of $11.95, which made one or two packages of stumps very unreasonable! I'll be doing another stump share in August or earlier if I have enough people sign up. Depends on when Jerry's has them on sale again. Right now they are regular price.

[alicia79]

Great, thank you for the info! I will keep my eyes open come August!

[JASH]

I use a dried out blender pen, dipped in baby oil to blend....now I haven't tried Gamsol, so I can't compare the two, but I do like the effect with baby oil!!

[BearingFruit]

The difference between gamsol and alcohol.

Gamsol - smooth blending of color

alcohol - grainier effect

each has a purpose, but I like the Gamsol better.

Blessings,
Pam

[stamps&cars]

I have a stump share in bulk buy forum for any who is interested.

[sln1294]

Oh please don't anyone gasp at my ridiculous question. But...Can regular crayola colored pencils be used with Gamsol, instead of prismacolor pencils? Are they specially designed to be blended with the mineral spirit type stuff?

[tiggerandco]

I tired blending the crayola colored pencil using a low odor solvent it it worked. I used a q-tip to blend....It is worth trying to see if you like the results before investing in the PrismaColor pencils. Now I will have to experiment with some more crayola pencils....good for my dd to use instead of PrismaColors and maybe color options not found with other pencils????

[TheAfricanQueen]

Mineral Spirits are highly toxic. I have used rubbing alcohol with Prismacolor pencils and it does work and is safer than mineral spirits by far. I live in a 900 square foot apartment and don't want to inhale any poisonous fumes for my husband, dog or myself!

Isopropyl alcohol was recommended to me by a clerk at Aaron Brother's Art & Frame shop.

Also check out Beg Borgeson's Color Pencil Technique. I got a copy from the library and loved it and am going to buy a used copy from Amazon.com. She shows so much technique, it's absolutely wonderful!

Happy coloring!
Roberta

[TheAfricanQueen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sln1294

Oh please don't anyone gasp at my ridiculous question. But...Can regular crayola colored pencils be used with Gamsol, instead of prismacolor pencils? Are they specially designed to be blended with the mineral spirit type stuff?

Crayolas tend to scratch cardstock, as the lead is not pure. I got a set a number of years ago and e-mail Crayola about said problem.

Bet Borgeson in Colored Pencil Technique and How to Use the Medium says not to purchase Prismacolor pencils in sets, but rather individually that way you can get the colors you will really use. I had purchased a set of 12 and then have added to it. Aaron Brother's Art & Frame shop sells the pencils individually as well as the Prismacolor watercolor pencils and the verithin.

If you live in the Seattle area, Daniel Smith Art Supply is another good place to go. Or, you might want to check out this site:

http://www.in2art.com/art-supplies/p...vidual-pencils

Happy coloring! It's one of my favorite things to do!
Roberta

[TheAfricanQueen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tavias Charms

please, what is gamasol? thanks, lorraine

Gamasol is a brand name for mineral spirits.

If you are going to use this, please make sure you are in a well ventilated area.

Roberta

[SusieQ4417]

I'm purchasing prisma pencils from ebay. I need the color pencils correct? They have a lot of different ones. Is there a tutorial on how to blend and what to use without using the Gamsol. I don't want to use toxic stuff.
Thanks.

[SusieQ4417]

Ok, another question, I went on ebay and they have tons of different kinds of pencils. What exactly should I buy. I saw watercolor ones and regular ones and lightfast ones. So confused.

[stamps&cars]

Yes, you want the colored pencils. Some people have used Zest (a product from England) and some have used baby oil with success. I even heard of someone using alcohol. I haven't tried any of them though.

[SusieQ4417]

Oh my gosh, forgive me, but I have another question. What kind of blender pens do I buy and from where if I just want to use them. Is that what the stump is?

[stamps&cars]

All the stump is.......is a paper 'pencil' of sorts. I have a picture of one in my bulk buy near the bottom of the thread. The only way it will blend is if it it dipped into a liquid like gamsol or baby oil. It will not blend by itself.

The prismacolor case that I got (the 120 size) has a Polynesian looking woman on the front. You don't want the lightfast...you don't need it and you don't want the verithin ones.