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Friday, September 4, 2009

Color Pencils v. Copics

Happy Friday everyone!

I recently started investing in coloring mediums for my cards. Now, I’ve used color pencils and markers in the past, but I didn’t really have a good understanding of which ones to use and how to use them. Since I’ve slowly been purchasing Copics and since they are so pricey, I decided to take a beginners class at Scrapper’s Boutique. The classes are given by the wonderful Jen Del Muro and it was absolutely FABULOUS!! Since then, I’ve been experimenting more with my markers and practicing my new blending techniques.

Now, I’ve also been following Paula Tracey's blog for a while now and realize the value of color pencils and OMS (odorless mineral spirits), so I recently purchased some OMS and a small set of Derwent color pencils. At first, this technique seemed so time consuming to an instant gratification type gal. But now, as I continue to practice with this method, I find that I’m appreciating color pencils more and more. For one, there is something therapeutic about coloring and blending and shading. It just seems to soothe me in a way that blending with markers doesn’t. Crazy I know. Another reason is I can buy way more pencils than copics with the same amount of money, so that tiny speck of frugality in me is very pleased.

I know that there are several people out there that are very attached to one coloring method or another, but not me. I like them both! I like the soft dreaminess of color pencils and OMS and I like the vibrant pop I get with copics. So for now, I will continue to practice and learn both methods and use the one that suits my mood and my card the best.

Here are some side by side comparisons of the same stamp using copics and color pencils. Now keep in mind that I only have about 12 copics and 12 color pencils. Also, I’ve only been coloring with copics sporadically for a few months up until last week when I attended Jen’s class and I’ve used color pencils for about two weeks now. So the work here is far from professional or technically correct! They’re just for comparison purposes. Thanks for stopping by.













2 comments:

Dina Kowal Creative said...

Another option is to lay down a base color with the markers and then shade with Prismacolors... I have a tutorial here, sort of:
http://mamadinis.blogspot.com/2009/07/pencil-shading-over-markers.html

Susie said...

Nice post! I actually like both the Copic and colored pencils. I colored my cowgirl boots (Cowgirl Up! post)with both colored pencils and Copic. I liked the outcome in both mediums, but chose to submit my card with the Copic colored image. Why? They seemed to pop more. I'm working on a card now using colored pencils because I want a softer look. It's nice to read what others are trying. I like to see lovely cards and informative posts.