Transform Ideas into Drawings: Everything You Need to Know About Pastels

Scribbling random lines and doodles can be quite soothing, don’t you think? It’s one of those hobbies that can easily clear your head and help you relax. If you take into consideration the fast-paced world we live in, we could all use a bit of de-stressing every now and then. And what better way to let your mind wander than to engage in some light sketching to let your creativity thrive? Mind you, they don’t have to be breathtaking pieces of artwork so don’t feel pressured to make everything look perfect. Sure enough, my own scribbles look pretty random and out of place and you don’t see me stressing about it. It’s all about enjoying the process and worrying about the end result too much.

With that out of the way, the first arts and crafts supplies that normally come to mind when you’re on the precipice of your creative journey normally include a range of coloured pencils. But what if there’s an even better way for you to capture your imagination on paper? Putting all your best pencils and erasers aside, it’s time to delve into the world of pastel art supplies. Never used them before? No worries, by the time you finish reading this, you’ll be up to speed on everything you need to know to get started.

Why Do Artists Use Pastels?

There’s a very simple reason behind that. It’s because it can be very satisfying in many ways. First and foremost, the colours used are very bright and vibrant, with an interesting, velvety texture. This means that your final drawing will be intensely colourful and aesthetically pleasing. In addition, they’re quite versatile and can be applied to almost every drawing surface. The deep and saturated pigments produce a strong colour quality with a smooth and luminous finish.

Do you want to know the best thing about pastels? The endless colour combinations you can try out while drawing. Their powdery texture is what makes them blend in with one another effortlessly, giving you the ability to layer on lots of different colours and create all sorts of creative effects. It’s your very own artistic playground. Sounds exciting, doesn’t it?

What Are the Different Types of Pastels?

Much like myself, you might be surprised to hear that there are a few different types of art pastels. Here’s a quick breakdown of all the major differences between each type.

Soft Pastels

Starting off with the classic and most popular type, soft pastels are exactly what they sound like – they have a soft, creamy consistency which allows them to effortlessly glide along the paper’s surface. As a result, you’re able to create art with different types of strokes and fine lines. Moreover, soft pastels are have the most extensive colour and shade range which means you won’t have a limited set of options.

Due to their fragile build, they’re prone to crumbling if you don’t take proper care of them. This includes wiping them down after each use to keep them clean and prevent specks of different colour mixing together.

Hard Pastels

Essentially, hard pastels are made of the same materials as the soft ones, with the addition of more binder and a tad less pigment. Because of this, the colours are less saturated but less likely to crumble as well.

Hard pastels are especially convenient for use on the finer details of your drawing since you can create sharp and precise lines. Normally, those would get smudged if you were to use the softer alternative.

Pencil Pastels

These are the perfect blend of pastels and conventional pencils. Inside their wooden core, the pigment consistency is somewhere between that of soft and hard pastels. The major benefit with these kinds of pastels is the fact that they’re less messy but just as good as their soft counterparts. You can easily create quick, precise drawings that are rich in detail and vibrant in colour.

Oil Pastels

Last but not least, oil pastels take advantage of the creamy texture of oil paints but without all the smelly chemicals. Depending on your preferences, you can use them both dry and wet to produce a whole bunch of different lines and effects.

Despite their similarities with soft pastels in terms of being on the softer side, oil pastels won’t smudge, crumble or release airborne particles that easily. And yet you get the same vivid colours and intricate textures as the final result.

Additional Pastel Accessories

Before we wrap this lesson up, let’s do a brief overview of some accessories that might come in handy. Next time that you’re shopping for pastel art supplies, don’t forget to have a look at a few additional ways you can make drawing more enjoyable.

Fixative

Seeing as pastels can oftentimes be smeared, blurred or even wiped off, you might want to use fixatives to secure those pigment particles into place. All you have to do is spray the fixative over your drawing and you’re all set! By doing this, you won’t have to worry about smudging that stunning landscape depiction you’ve spend hours trying to perfect.

Erasers

Bear in mind that these are different from your regular pencil erasers. These are specifically designed to lift colour without hindering your progress. You can even give your eraser a sharper edge that allows you to erase small sections of colour.

Pastel Boxes

Now that we know how fragile and delicate pastel colours can be, it’s not at all surprising that they require special storage boxes. Whether you decide to use plastic, metal or wooden containers, your pastels will be kept safe and protected in tiny slots so they don’t move around and mix with one another.