Watercolor Pencils  

Ha ha...

(^_^)

I probably did a foolish thing by purchasing something that I do not know how to use.

Sometimes, people do foolish things and end up discovering something wonderful. (Or, they simply do something foolish and look silly...)

I think of the simple person who was cooking and following a recipe. The recipe said: "Boil a can of sweetened condensed milk." Sweetened condensed milk comes in a can. Most people would know enough to open the can and pour the contents - the sweetened condensed milk - into the pot to boil. This person put the unopened can into the boiling water! Silly... but then they discovered that something special happened when you boil sweetened condensed milk inside of a can... the result is caramel!

I am not defensive about doing foolish things. (I laughed when you said that I did a foolish thing. Your comment was funny... and true.) I also know that sometimes people learn more by making mistakes than by doing things the right way. Sometimes it is ok to take chances and do foolish things in order to learn in the process.

I think I will try to follow what it says on the back of the package and see how it turns out. If it turns out well, I will post my pictures in "my photos".

It's morning here and evening there; have a great evening and a good night!

Tell you the truth,I always do foolish thing like this. ha ha...^_^

Sometimes I can get the method how to use it and sometimes I just give it up(waste money).

How about you? Can you use it right now?

I have tried these pencils a couple of ways. First, I lightly colored a page and then brushed over it with a wet brush. The result reminded me of some of the watercolor coloring books that my children have received. (The result was ok but not impressive.)

I was more impressed with the technique of dipping the pencils into the water and then using them on the page. The best words that I can use to describe the effect is what happens when you draw with charcoal... The result has thickness and vibrant color.

Perhaps with practice I could make something of it. My attention span is too short, though; I will probably find an interest in something else! (My son was wanting to color with them, anyway...)

(^_^)

Hello lucky23, and welcome to myLot!

You have a lot of good suggestions for how to use watercolor pencils!

"You can colour a whole area with them and go back with a paint brush and blend" - I had sort of figured this one out. This is what I imagined myself doing to use a paint brush with the pencils: color first, brush water over afterward.

You can "dip the pencil nib in water to get a stronger colour" - this was one I hadn't imagined. Clever!

"Or you can simply use them dry" - this is what I initially imagined doing with them, but then others seemed to suggest that - being watercolors - I might want to use water.

I like your suggestion to practice and see what I like. I think that is what most artists do, whatever method or medium they chose.

Thanks for your comment!

Thanks, EnslinPorter! I'm not sure how I missed out on art classes in high school, but I don't remember having taken them. And I don't remember ever having used watercolor pencils before, so this is a new thing for me.

Color them lightly, brush them with a wet brush, and... voila, watercolor? As easy as that?

Could you be more specific about what you mean by the intensity of the color? Thanks!

Thanks, EnslinPorter! I'm not sure how I missed out on art classes in high school, but I don't remember having taken them. And I don't remember ever having used watercolor pencils before, so this is a new thing for me.

Color them lightly, brush them with a wet brush, and... voila, watercolor? As easy as that?

Could you be more specific about what you mean by the intensity of the color? Thanks!


Yup, it's as easy as that :) I feel happy they invented it since I'm not good with real watercolor :P

As for the intensity, you might want to color some areas a shade lighter or darker. For light areas, you can do some light scribbles in the middle and wet them with the brush. To fill that area, use the brush to spread the color using from the middle area towards the lines/edges. For darker areas, you can color the area darker but not near the edges since the color may cross the edges. When you brush these dark areas, the output will be a very intense or strong color. If it's red, it might even look like blood. Be very careful with these dark areas because it might be messy if there's too much of it especially when there's too much water. You might cross edges or involve lighter areas that aren't supposed to be dark.

Dang, I posted and didn't know it's my brother's account that's logged in. Anyway, that's how it's used. Hope I was able to explain it. :)

LOL - Your brother will get credit for a lengthy post and good advice! He should thank you for it...

The advice is good, and I will enjoy trying out your techniques. Thanks for the reply!