Recent content by sundiver

To add to Terri's great advice, with oil paints and soft pastels, a common method is to start with darks and add lights later, but that's very difficult with oil pastels and often results in chalky, muddy color. With textured paper, like sanded paper, you can sometimes get away with it by...

The surface of LaCarte is a vegetable material and will slide off the surface if it gets wet. Alcohol washes can be ok if not rubbed around. Since I switched to oil pastels I find using them on LaCarte kind of like coloring on toast.

Terri, oil pastel works are definitely less fragile than soft pastel, so I would hang the work with acrylic varnish on my own wall, or give away, but wouldn't risk selling it. Interesting, Christel. I would worry they'd get dirty, or dusty, and hard to clean.

I have put acrylic varnish on oil pastels in the past, but not for anything important, because if scratched the varnish will peel off. As far as I know oil pastels need to be framed behind glass because they never really dry, and since they are thus protected, fixative is unnecessary.

This is beautiful, and I'm impressed with the fine lines you got. Is this sanded pastel paper?

John and Kay, thank you for your very kind comments!

Beautiful! Love the palette.

Thank you, Perry!

Soft and lovely, and I like that saucy expression!

Great range of values, and I love that middle-ground tree line.

Thanks, Maureen! However I remember seeing beautiful soft pastel paintings of yours on WetCanvas years back!

Thank you, Sanlynn , redfox and Trier! There is no fixative for oil pastels that I know of, that can actually dry the stuff. The manufacturers will tell you that o.p.s never dry. I often leave the work for a few days to harden a bit, before I can add more layers. Perhaps because I use sanded...

Terri, I also put sanded clear gesso on watercolor paper. There are several brands that make some equivalent. You could try that as a less expensive option if you're exploring the possibilities. Thanks, Mike, back atcha!

Can prompts include images, with options to use other refs in the theme?

Pcj, Terri, Jo, Karen, QueenB, ColorE, laika, Donna, Artyczar, and Enyaw, thanks so much for your kind words! Sanded surfaces are my go-to for oil pastels, probably because I came to them from soft pastels after discovering I am allergic to dust. People who came to them after oil paint often...