I just ordered some pastelmat after watching you get those amazing blooms in the background - I love to get those effects for fluffy fur - thanks for a great video!
This is the first time I’m really impressed with a result from the watercolor pencils. I bought my set on a whim many years ago and honestly hated using them. I’ll keep your advice in mind next time I’ll try. Thanks!
I'm glad you enjoyed it! I think the trick is to keep adding layers so it becomes more saturated! A lot of people who use watercolour pencils tend to stick with one layer and it can look a little washed out 😊
I use wc pencils under Pastelmatt and Luxarchival. Yes you mentioned about the need ro wait for it to dry which is very important. I also use them to to fur like I would color pencil and so I use both or one or the there. I don’t have as much bleeding issues, I really wait and use minimal water to pigment. Since watercolor is more of my base, then I just felt it would work. Your painting turned out very nice. I do like to top of with a wax based pencil or the Lightfast if I am mixing. Also for those who really want to use colored pencils and watercolor pencils but can’t afford both the wc pencils are less expensive but I would get a Derwent drawing white, or Prismacolor white and a few of the Derwent drawing pencils. The wc pencils on Pastelmat or sanded paper do very well. Very lovely!
Thank you 😊 Yes, I will definitely be using less water and waiting for sections to dry next time! I agree, the Derwent Drawing range are amazing - especially the Chinese white! Too bad there are only 24 colours in total!
Hi, i love this piece of work it looks stunning. Just to check the final layer of pencil that you used - was this the dry watercolour albrech durer pencils or a different pencil altogether?
It was mostly dry Albrecht Durer but I did also use a Derwent Drawing Chinese White coloured pencil because it is more opaque! As long as you do your watercolour pencils first, add water, then let it dry... then add your wax/oil-based coloured pencils on top without adding any more water, it will be archival and works quite well 😊
I have some of that Clairfontaine paper, so I may give this a try. I use the Albrecht Durer and other watercolor pencils on hot press paper, and then, at the end, I move the piece to my Icarus Art Board, a very expensive hot plate, basically. This heats up the paper and allows me to add highlights with wax-based pencils. Great video!
I've heard of the Icarus board and it seems interesting! I'm not sure it would work with Pastelmat but it's probably a good alternative to adding bright highlights on watercolour paper 😊
Thank you 😊 I've recently been diagnosed with a chronic illness that I have been dealing with for the past year, but I am slowly improving so I am hopeful that I can begin uploading regularly again soon!
Wow! When I see that bleed close to the nose of the leopard, I was scared of the end result of this peace! And when I see how you can fix it, I said, oh my God! she solved the problem! It's very interesting, how you can use this tipe of watercolor pencil, and take care of use it. Thank you for all your advice!
I wasn't expecting the pencils to bleed so much like that, I like using my watercolor pencils when I want to be more controlled with them but still get that watercolor look. Did it bleed under the tape too? Beautiful piece by the way!
Thank you 😊 Yes, it bled a lot under the tape (the white border gets covered up when it's framed, but I also went over the edges with some white gouache to cover it up!) I think if you used less water and allowed areas to dry a bit more, then it could be controlled a lot better than mine was!
That's interesting, I'll have to keep my eye out for it (they aren't easy to find in Australia!) Most people I have heard from don't like the Holbein pencils though, so I'm a bit hesitant! 😊
@@margaretf667 It is just way too soft for me. So soft that one could injure themselves using a blade to sharpen. I only hand sharpen and the Derwent drawing white, Prisma are very very good so when I compared them white was just white. Besides whiskers aren’t necessarily bright white, some have grey and browns. I reviewed the whole Holbein set and sent it back but to each their own . They were very slick to me, didn’t mix with my other pencils and it nearly ruined my painting. Yes both whites are opaque but the others are also. No offense if you enjoy them.
Yes, I used watercolour pencil for most of the process until I got to the end (where I'm adding whiskers) where I used the Brush and Pencil Products for the white highlights 😊
First: for someone who isn't German you pronounced the name pretty good (I still wonder why Faber Castell gave these pencils a name that is so hard to pronounce - sure he was a famos Artist, but still...) I personally love them, I love to work them on PastelMat and I usually use them as an underpainting and then go on with my normal pencils.
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt Maybe thats useful for you. I use for activating the pencils not my watercolor brushes (they hold way to much water for this), I use filbert brushes with only a little water. With that method I have very little problem with bleeding.
Hi, what about the lightfastness of the Albrecht Dürer watercolour pencils? I have them too and i have made pretty bad experience with them fading away. Did you see any changes in colour? I refer to the ochre and reddish colours. Black and white are stable. Very realistic drawing/painting. Very inspiring. Johann
Honestly, I am wondering about the lightfast ratings as well.... I have found out that apparently they test the lightfast ratings of the dry pigment (before they are activated with water) so that wouldn't be an accurate rating once water has been added I believe it's the same for all major brands as well, which is disappointing I have tried to contact them but haven't had any response yet I will probably only be selling prints of any pieces I create with them and I may have to add a disclaimer to my tutorials because my students are aware that I only use lightfast materials (unless I state otherwise) Sorry I couldn't be more help, but if you find an answer, I'd love to know!
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt I'm on a German forum where there's also a guy from Faber Castell, and we just had this same discussion about lightfastness of water color pencils. They are indeed only tested dry and they lose lightfastness when water is added. But Faber Castell themselves do not know how much lightfastness is lost. I'm going to start doing my own tests at home. I was disappointed about this too. @johannarias9659 What was your experience exactly, did you hang a painting you did with the Albrecht Dürers on the wall and then saw it faded? How fast did it fade and how bad was it?
I panicked when I saw you adding water on your patreon. I was wondering how you fixed it --- such a beautiful piece. Knowing myself, I would have tossed it out. Pastelmat is so forgiving. Great work
Haha I always try and finish a piece - even if it doesn't turn out as well as I though, it's always good to try and fix any mistakes you make so you can learn for next time 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt I agree with you. I've struggled with mixed media on pastelmat too. (BTW- mineral spirits works on pastelmat too) I've learned through trial and error. I REALLY thought this was a goner. But then, why would it be? It's a tutorial. Lisa @ Animal artbyLaw has done some fabulous works using watercolor on pastelmat too. 😉
@@JMMCAArt I think it would be refreshing to see an artist make a mistake they couldn't fix - or talk about it in a tutorial! Not many people post things like this but it's totally normal - I go through problems that I fix in every piece of artwork 😊 I actually use Solvent with coloured pencils on Pastelmat quite often! It blends our the colours so smooth and vibrant! I've seen her work and it is amazing 😊
The main mediums I work in are pastel and coloured pencil so I don't do a lot of watercolour/graphite/charcoal/watercolour pencils, so unfortunately, there are only a couple of tutorials using watercolour pencils 😊 You can view all of the tutorials that are available here in categories (the water-soluble pencil tutorials are under the watercolour category); www.kirstyrebeccafineart.com/krfineartacademylibrary
It's also hard to find things in Australia, but sometimes I use Jacksons (in the UK) because they ship worldwide 😊 www.jacksonsart.com/en-au/brush-and-pencil-coloured-pencil-titanium-white?___store=jacksonsart_au&acc=07a96b1f61097ccb54be14d6a47439b0
Yes, I did mention that later on in the tutorial - I will definitely be waiting for separate areas to dry before starting on the area next to it next time 😊
4:19 I got super scared when you used the brush with solvent on the leopards nose. I was like "YO~ YOU JUST RUINED IT"! Lol I had to relax afterwards in the video bc honestly it turned out best doing it. Also that powder product is so freaking cool! Ive never heard of this, im for sure going to use this over my gel pens that I use- I'm all about archival. Thanks so much for this video!!!
Haha it wasn't ideal.. but I knew I could fix it, so I kept going anyway! PS: I only used water (not solvent) as they are watercolour pencils 😊 I'm glad the tutorial was helpful! ua-cam.com/video/xA_Xhj3ogHQ/v-deo.html This tutorial shows you a bit more about how to use the Brush and Pencil products (it's more towards the end!)
Honestly I don't think the Albrecht Dürer pencils are very good. On Pastelmat they work well enough as you demonstrated in the video. Obviously you were able to create something beautiful, but having owned these pencils for years myself I know their shortcomings. I utilize watercolor pencils for the underpainting on pet portraits. They're handy for all those small details that I can't use PanPastels for (important fur markings on a cat, eyes, teeth or nose on a dog etc). But even just using them for those small areas, I notice such a huge difference between the Albrecht Dürer pencils and the other "big" brands. Pigmentation/ opacity, solubility, ability to layer.... They fall short in every way. I would recommend the Supracolor over these any day.
Thanks for the info! This set was a gift and I've enjoyed them, but honestly never tried any other brands! I've heard Caran D'ache have good watersoluble pencils but I've only heard people use the museum aquarelle, not the supracolor! If I were going to invest in a different set, I'd be more inclined to use pencils with better lightfast ratings (which I assume the museum aquarelle have?) - Do you know much about the difference between the two?
Albrecht Dürer watercolor pencil are really good. You have to know what they can do and what your own limits are. Almost every one who says this kind of pencil are not good, dont really no how to use them in the right way.
@@phalanxoti3997OK so I shouldn't have called them "not very good" considering lots of people do like them. You're right in saying that it depends on the technique used and the expectations for the product. However, the supracolor, museum aquarelle and inktense pencils all do exactly what I want them to do. When 3 products work and 1 doesn't it isn't unreasonable to assume that the product that doesn't work isn't very good, right?
I still don't see the point of using watercolor pencils. I hate that because I have the Albrecht Durer pencils too. You could just as easily gone in with watercolor for your first layer followed by regular colored pencils, right, since you're not blending beyond the first layer? Edited: I guess I should have watched the whole video before commenting, lol. I'm not a colored pencil artist so I'd much rather grab a brush than a pencil. Dang, I so want to like my Watercolor pencils.☹️
Haha yeah I think they're great for an "all-in-one" type of medium, or if you want a bit of a change, but if you have a choice of mixed media, there are probably other options to create the same effects! I think I would use them more for under-painitngs to coloured pencil pieces (but I would use less water to control the bleed) That would make coloured pencil drawings a lot faster! Then again, if you like using normal watercolours and can control them well enough to use as an under-painting, you could also use that! That probably didn't help you, sorry!
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt Lol, didn't help one bit! I see the value of using them for specific things, like the spots on your painting. Maybe adding texture to tree bark for example, or getting darker values that can be challenging sometimes with watercolor. But mine are in the tin in another room so they're not convenient.
I just ordered some pastelmat after watching you get those amazing blooms in the background - I love to get those effects for fluffy fur - thanks for a great video!
You're welcome, I hope you like it - it's such a versatile surface 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt I got a small pad in the mail today. It does amazing things wet in wet. Can't wait to play with it this week!
Terrific tutorial! This is the technique I was looking for.
Glad it was helpful 😊
This is the first time I’m really impressed with a result from the watercolor pencils. I bought my set on a whim many years ago and honestly hated using them. I’ll keep your advice in mind next time I’ll try. Thanks!
I'm glad you enjoyed it! I think the trick is to keep adding layers so it becomes more saturated! A lot of people who use watercolour pencils tend to stick with one layer and it can look a little washed out 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt Happy New Year! And that's a very good point :)
I use wc pencils under Pastelmatt and Luxarchival. Yes you mentioned about the need ro wait for it to dry which is very important. I also use them to to fur like I would color pencil and so I use both or one or the there. I don’t have as much bleeding issues, I really wait and use minimal water to pigment. Since watercolor is more of my base, then I just felt it would work. Your painting turned out very nice. I do like to top of with a wax based pencil or the Lightfast if I am mixing. Also for those who really want to use colored pencils and watercolor pencils but can’t afford both the wc pencils are less expensive but I would get a Derwent drawing white, or Prismacolor white and a few of the Derwent drawing pencils. The wc pencils on Pastelmat or sanded paper do very well. Very lovely!
Thank you 😊
Yes, I will definitely be using less water and waiting for sections to dry next time!
I agree, the Derwent Drawing range are amazing - especially the Chinese white! Too bad there are only 24 colours in total!
Hi, i love this piece of work it looks stunning. Just to check the final layer of pencil that you used - was this the dry watercolour albrech durer pencils or a different pencil altogether?
It was mostly dry Albrecht Durer but I did also use a Derwent Drawing Chinese White coloured pencil because it is more opaque! As long as you do your watercolour pencils first, add water, then let it dry... then add your wax/oil-based coloured pencils on top without adding any more water, it will be archival and works quite well 😊
Gorgeous leopard. You are a wonderful artist! God bless you.
Thank you so much!
I have some of that Clairfontaine paper, so I may give this a try. I use the Albrecht Durer and other watercolor pencils on hot press paper, and then, at the end, I move the piece to my Icarus Art Board, a very expensive hot plate, basically. This heats up the paper and allows me to add highlights with wax-based pencils. Great video!
I've heard of the Icarus board and it seems interesting! I'm not sure it would work with Pastelmat but it's probably a good alternative to adding bright highlights on watercolour paper 😊
Great work, pls upload more videos😀Your videos are much inspiring😊
Thank you 😊
I've recently been diagnosed with a chronic illness that I have been dealing with for the past year, but I am slowly improving so I am hopeful that I can begin uploading regularly again soon!
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt Get well soon dear Kirsty, God bless you. As a great fan of your art work, I am waiting for your more inspiring videos🥰
You are an amazing artist!! Thankyou for prociding such a great channel 🙂
Thank you so much 😀
Wow this was fantastic to watch your amazing :)
Glad you enjoyed it 😊
Wow this is so beautiful 😍 Great job and inspiring, keep creating ❤️
Thank you so much!
Wow! When I see that bleed close to the nose of the leopard, I was scared of the end result of this peace! And when I see how you can fix it, I said, oh my God! she solved the problem! It's very interesting, how you can use this tipe of watercolor pencil, and take care of use it. Thank you for all your advice!
Haha that bleed was not ideal, but I knew I could fix it so I kept going anyway 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArtyeah, if you don't fix it immediately, and fast, the result was other, you're amazing artist! Bravo💪🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
You are the best teaching about the drawing❤😮
I wasn't expecting the pencils to bleed so much like that, I like using my watercolor pencils when I want to be more controlled with them but still get that watercolor look. Did it bleed under the tape too? Beautiful piece by the way!
Thank you 😊
Yes, it bled a lot under the tape (the white border gets covered up when it's framed, but I also went over the edges with some white gouache to cover it up!)
I think if you used less water and allowed areas to dry a bit more, then it could be controlled a lot better than mine was!
Try the Holbein soft white pencil! It's even more opaque than derwent drawing.
That's interesting, I'll have to keep my eye out for it (they aren't easy to find in Australia!)
Most people I have heard from don't like the Holbein pencils though, so I'm a bit hesitant! 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt I'd say just get the soft white if you can. Also, sharpen with a knife, it's very soft.
@@margaretf667 It is just way too soft for me. So soft that one could injure themselves using a blade to sharpen. I only hand sharpen and the Derwent drawing white, Prisma are very very good so when I compared them white was just white. Besides whiskers aren’t necessarily bright white, some have grey and browns. I reviewed the whole Holbein set and sent it back but to each their own . They were very slick to me, didn’t mix with my other pencils and it nearly ruined my painting. Yes both whites are opaque but the others are also. No offense if you enjoy them.
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt it’s way too soft for me and the other ones out their already do well.
Is the second layer watercolor pencil as well? Including the white? Nice work! Thank you for the info ❤
Yes, I used watercolour pencil for most of the process until I got to the end (where I'm adding whiskers) where I used the Brush and Pencil Products for the white highlights 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt thank you! 🫶🏼 it looks amazing!
First: for someone who isn't German you pronounced the name pretty good (I still wonder why Faber Castell gave these pencils a name that is so hard to pronounce - sure he was a famos Artist, but still...)
I personally love them, I love to work them on PastelMat and I usually use them as an underpainting and then go on with my normal pencils.
Haha thank you 😊
I'm loving them on Pastelmat as well! I'm definitely going to experiment with them as an underpainting more!
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt Maybe thats useful for you. I use for activating the pencils not my watercolor brushes (they hold way to much water for this), I use filbert brushes with only a little water. With that method I have very little problem with bleeding.
Hello so beautiful and very nice water color pencil video
Thank you so much 😀
Hi, what about the lightfastness of the Albrecht Dürer watercolour pencils? I have them too and i have made pretty bad experience with them fading away. Did you see any changes in colour? I refer to the ochre and reddish colours. Black and white are stable. Very realistic drawing/painting. Very inspiring. Johann
Honestly, I am wondering about the lightfast ratings as well....
I have found out that apparently they test the lightfast ratings of the dry pigment (before they are activated with water) so that wouldn't be an accurate rating once water has been added
I believe it's the same for all major brands as well, which is disappointing
I have tried to contact them but haven't had any response yet
I will probably only be selling prints of any pieces I create with them and I may have to add a disclaimer to my tutorials because my students are aware that I only use lightfast materials (unless I state otherwise)
Sorry I couldn't be more help, but if you find an answer, I'd love to know!
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt I'm on a German forum where there's also a guy from Faber Castell, and we just had this same discussion about lightfastness of water color pencils. They are indeed only tested dry and they lose lightfastness when water is added. But Faber Castell themselves do not know how much lightfastness is lost. I'm going to start doing my own tests at home. I was disappointed about this too.
@johannarias9659 What was your experience exactly, did you hang a painting you did with the Albrecht Dürers on the wall and then saw it faded? How fast did it fade and how bad was it?
I panicked when I saw you adding water on your patreon. I was wondering how you fixed it --- such a beautiful piece. Knowing myself, I would have tossed it out. Pastelmat is so forgiving. Great work
Haha I always try and finish a piece - even if it doesn't turn out as well as I though, it's always good to try and fix any mistakes you make so you can learn for next time 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt I agree with you. I've struggled with mixed media on pastelmat too. (BTW- mineral spirits works on pastelmat too)
I've learned through trial and error. I REALLY thought this was a goner. But then, why would it be? It's a tutorial.
Lisa @ Animal artbyLaw has done some fabulous works using watercolor on pastelmat too. 😉
@@JMMCAArt I think it would be refreshing to see an artist make a mistake they couldn't fix - or talk about it in a tutorial! Not many people post things like this but it's totally normal - I go through problems that I fix in every piece of artwork 😊
I actually use Solvent with coloured pencils on Pastelmat quite often! It blends our the colours so smooth and vibrant!
I've seen her work and it is amazing 😊
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt yes. And I think it shows us we all aren't perfect. I learned a lot in that tutorial. I'm almost finished with the video
Felicidades mi artista favorita 💐😉🎉🥳
I am looking at your Fine Art Academy but I don't see any tutorials for watercolor pencils.
The main mediums I work in are pastel and coloured pencil so I don't do a lot of watercolour/graphite/charcoal/watercolour pencils, so unfortunately, there are only a couple of tutorials using watercolour pencils 😊
You can view all of the tutorials that are available here in categories (the water-soluble pencil tutorials are under the watercolour category);
www.kirstyrebeccafineart.com/krfineartacademylibrary
In Spain you cannot get this liquid for Black titanium 🥺
It's also hard to find things in Australia, but sometimes I use Jacksons (in the UK) because they ship worldwide 😊
www.jacksonsart.com/en-au/brush-and-pencil-coloured-pencil-titanium-white?___store=jacksonsart_au&acc=07a96b1f61097ccb54be14d6a47439b0
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt I used to buy in that store, but due to the flammability of the product they do not ship to my country by plane 🤷🏻♀️
Should have done the light colors then blended then added the spots, at least that’s what I woulda tried.
Yes, I did mention that later on in the tutorial - I will definitely be waiting for separate areas to dry before starting on the area next to it next time 😊
4:19 I got super scared when you used the brush with solvent on the leopards nose. I was like "YO~ YOU JUST RUINED IT"! Lol I had to relax afterwards in the video bc honestly it turned out best doing it. Also that powder product is so freaking cool! Ive never heard of this, im for sure going to use this over my gel pens that I use- I'm all about archival. Thanks so much for this video!!!
Haha it wasn't ideal.. but I knew I could fix it, so I kept going anyway!
PS: I only used water (not solvent) as they are watercolour pencils 😊
I'm glad the tutorial was helpful!
ua-cam.com/video/xA_Xhj3ogHQ/v-deo.html
This tutorial shows you a bit more about how to use the Brush and Pencil products (it's more towards the end!)
Honestly I don't think the Albrecht Dürer pencils are very good. On Pastelmat they work well enough as you demonstrated in the video. Obviously you were able to create something beautiful, but having owned these pencils for years myself I know their shortcomings.
I utilize watercolor pencils for the underpainting on pet portraits. They're handy for all those small details that I can't use PanPastels for (important fur markings on a cat, eyes, teeth or nose on a dog etc).
But even just using them for those small areas, I notice such a huge difference between the Albrecht Dürer pencils and the other "big" brands. Pigmentation/ opacity, solubility, ability to layer.... They fall short in every way. I would recommend the Supracolor over these any day.
Thanks for the info!
This set was a gift and I've enjoyed them, but honestly never tried any other brands!
I've heard Caran D'ache have good watersoluble pencils but I've only heard people use the museum aquarelle, not the supracolor!
If I were going to invest in a different set, I'd be more inclined to use pencils with better lightfast ratings (which I assume the museum aquarelle have?) - Do you know much about the difference between the two?
Albrecht Dürer watercolor pencil are really good. You have to know what they can do and what your own limits are. Almost every one who says this kind of pencil are not good, dont really no how to use them in the right way.
@@phalanxoti3997OK so I shouldn't have called them "not very good" considering lots of people do like them. You're right in saying that it depends on the technique used and the expectations for the product.
However, the supracolor, museum aquarelle and inktense pencils all do exactly what I want them to do. When 3 products work and 1 doesn't it isn't unreasonable to assume that the product that doesn't work isn't very good, right?
I still don't see the point of using watercolor pencils. I hate that because I have the Albrecht Durer pencils too. You could just as easily gone in with watercolor for your first layer followed by regular colored pencils, right, since you're not blending beyond the first layer?
Edited: I guess I should have watched the whole video before commenting, lol.
I'm not a colored pencil artist so I'd much rather grab a brush than a pencil.
Dang, I so want to like my Watercolor pencils.☹️
Haha yeah I think they're great for an "all-in-one" type of medium, or if you want a bit of a change, but if you have a choice of mixed media, there are probably other options to create the same effects!
I think I would use them more for under-painitngs to coloured pencil pieces (but I would use less water to control the bleed)
That would make coloured pencil drawings a lot faster!
Then again, if you like using normal watercolours and can control them well enough to use as an under-painting, you could also use that!
That probably didn't help you, sorry!
@@KirstyRebeccaFineArt
Lol, didn't help one bit!
I see the value of using them for specific things, like the spots on your painting. Maybe adding texture to tree bark for example, or getting darker values that can be challenging sometimes with watercolor. But mine are in the tin in another room so they're not convenient.