Copic Marker + Colored Pencil: Vibrancy & Translucency, a Halloween coloring lesson

Copic Marker + Colored Pencil: Vibrancy & Translucency, a Halloween coloring lesson

Bright color on Kraft paper?

It doesn’t have to be so hard!

Folks, I’ve seen a ton of Colored Pencil on kraft paper tutorials and videos. Ugh, they make my heart sink.

It seems like everyone advises you to basecoat the heck out of everything with thick layers of white colored pencil.

Have you ever tried this?

Because seriously, once you spend 15 minutes coloring everything white, you’ve got no tooth left over then to add all the brilliant color!

If you basecoat in white, you’re saying goodbye to any shot you have at realism.

Artistic Coloring: 10 Tools that Never Leave my Desk (Copic Marker & Colored Pencil)

Artistic Coloring: 10 Tools that Never Leave my Desk (Copic Marker & Colored Pencil)

“What do I need to buy for this class?” The supply lists for your average coloring class or free tutorial, whether it’s with Copic Marker or colored pencil… well, they’re always a little spartan. The list tells you exactly what you’ll need to complete the class project. Nothing more. Nothing less. Meanwhile in art classes, you’ll get a general supply list of things you sorta-kinda-maybe might need at some point. Today, let’s look at the top 10 tools I use every day, things that I grab so often, they never get put away. Some tools are borrowed from my work as an illustrator and may be new to you while others are common in the papercrafting world…

Spotlight Cards: Showcase Your Advanced Copic Marker Coloring (Dewy Rose)

Spotlight Cards: Showcase Your Advanced Copic Marker Coloring (Dewy Rose)

Elena Cazares teaches bright cheerful images using Copic Markers and colored pencils lessons at CraftsforPaws.com. Like Vanilla Arts classes, Elena’s class projects are too large for cards. Join us for the next episode in her Spotlight series making cards from big bold projects. Spotlight Cards let your coloring take center stage rather than the fancy papers, complex layout, or purchased ephemera normally used in cardmaking…

Realistic Florals: Why Traditional Copic Marker Blending Technique Makes Fake Flowers

Realistic Florals: Why Traditional Copic Marker Blending Technique Makes Fake Flowers

Do your flowers look fake?

Do you dream of coloring realistic flowers with Copic Markers, colored pencils, or even watercolor? Do you practice— coloring lots of flower stamps and trying out new tutorials… but you never seem to get the look of a real flower? My latest video at YouTube is a free lesson on why traditional Copic blending techniques fail miserably when it comes to florals. It’s not you. It’s the technique…