Pastels and water??
 

I've always used my pastels (chalk) dry with a Q-tip for coloring images. But I think you can use them with water. How exactly does that work?? Do you wet a brush and rub on the pastel?? Do you wet the pastel and then pick up with a brush??

Help!

I have not tried water, but I have used pastels with my blender pen and it works great. You can either rub the pastel on the paper and then "color" over it with your blender pen, or you can put the tip of you blender pen on the pastel and then color on your paper.

I've never had any success with the blender pen with pastels. In order to get the color with much depth at all, the paper tended to "pill". I only use my pastels with the popping pastels technique or occassionally just giving a hint of color using them dry with the q-tip. For the most part, my pastels sit un-used because of the issue with the pilling of the cardstock.

Are these chalk pastel sticks, or the little round cakes? I've used the cakes with water and a brush. I use a mister and moisten them just like I do H2Os. I guess an aqua-painter might work, but it's not my favourite tool, I prefer a wet medium and ordinary brushes.

This is how I use mine, too. Works like a charm! If you want them to look a little more like painting, you can do the same thing with a blender pen.

Keep in mind, as with any form of watercoloring, you have to use the correct weight paper. Ultrasmooth cardstocks aren't your best choice. Watercolor paper is best, heavy weight or rough texture cardstock works great, too!

~Wendy

Maybe that was my problem. I never used pastels anyway except dry until I had signed up as a demo. In the cd that SU sent showing how to do a workshop, etc., they showed using the blender pen with the dry cake pastels and they used their ultrasmooth white. Since I was trying to show things like SU was supposed to be showing me, I tried using what they used but the results were lousy, so I just never used them in that way again.

I was told the blender pens effect the pastels somehow and that you should put the tip of the pen in a corner if you use that method. I love that look and use it frequently.

I know that this isn't exactly what you were asking but you CAN use pastels with water. Just not the way you ware wanting...heehee! Take a tray of water, scrap some pastels into it and then dip your paper. Makes cool backgrounds.

As for the blending.....I had purchased some blending solution from a booth in our stamp convention where they sold some of the pastel cases and it works in the blender pen and does work like painting. So easy.

If they are chalk pastels, think of the old saying 'like chalk and water'...they don't mix easily! The pastels are a very 'light' medium- even with the darker colours you don't get intensity in my opinion. The blender pens are a whiz with them. Just realize that you are using them to get a pastel look! Each medium has it's own beauties and drawbacks.

Thank you all for the advice and suggestions. I guess I need to buy a blender pen (haven't had one in years) and get to practicing!!

What a great thread! Thanks "e waterous" for asking the question. My pastels don't see much paper as I always use them 'dry'. This will change now.

Blending solution?
 

Hi Ann, May I ask what kind/brand of blending solution you used? I've recently begun using Gamsol with Prismacolor pencils and the stumps, but I never thought about putting the Gamsol into a blender pen. If that works, I'm SO on top of that! Advice? Thanks!!

Irene

blending fluid
 

There is a recipe for making your own blending fluid and I think it is on this site . Don't want to write the recipe here in case I am not abiding by rules and don't want to have blender fluid police knocking on my door

Thanks for all the great ideas! I used my chalk pastels with a damp brush to get an air brushed look, since I don't have an air gun.... just brushed normally with chalk pastels for the soft part & then added darker stipples of colour...


To get highlights I just rubbed some of the chalk off.

To get darker shaded areas of stippled chalk colour, I dampened my brush (rubbing off excess water) and used it in the chalk that way--pouncing up & down on the paper.

The stiffer the brush the smaller the stipples, or dots, will be. & I found testing it on a scrap of paper is a handy way to tell if you'll like the effect.

I used it on the sand castle here, if you'd like a visual: http://melstampz.blogspot.com/2010/0...el-topper.html

Happy chalking. Can't wait to try the blender pen out.

GinaK sells a product, called chalk enhancer. Thats what I use.

Here's a link to it
http://www.shop.ginakdesigns.com/pro...&categoryId=46