I’m excited to share that my FREE Soft Pastel Trifecta workshop is back by popular demand!
Join me on September 26 as I walk you through the three most important parts of soft pastel success - and how they work together to bring your art to life.
More details and save your seat here 👉🏻 https://www.pastelgrowthstudio.com/workshop
Can’t make the live? No worries! Register anyways, and I’ll send you the link to watch the replay!
I had so much fun painting this scene on homemade pastel paper!
I brush on a layer of clear gesso, let it dry, lightly sand with 400 grit sandpaper, and repeat. That gives me a really nice textured paper to work on, and sanding knocks down an high points that might catch on the sticks as I paint.
I find I have to use softer pastels than what I normally do on UArt 400, but light layering and blending allows me to get a lot of layers down. As the tooth fills up, I use my softest sticks to make my finishing marks and details.
Tip: brush the gesso on in the right direction! You’ll have brushstrokes to content with, so really think about if you want them to be horizontal, vertical, random, or even intentionally different where objects are like big flowers, trees, or water.
The full video lesson will be on my Patreon channel in September.
Today’s painting “Musings” is the largest I’ve done so far, 18”x18”. I think I’ll stick to 16x20 as my max size - something about that extra 2” height makes it harder to paint on my easel lol.
This will be one of my September lessons on Patreon.
On UArt 400 with mostly Rembrandts.
I always tell my students and clients to treat their paintings as if they’re wet paint… forever.
Here is the card that I include with every painting I sell, even if it’s already framed.
It’s important that buyers understand that pastel paintings can’t be handled or framed the same way a typical painting is. The surface is much more delicate, and if the painting isn’t framed properly, the pastel can come off through contact or static electricity.
While there are various ways to safely frame a pastel, the card only recommends the way most people are familiar with - matted, behind glass - because I would need a small booklet to educate them on all the methods 😂.
Here is a video showing how I package and ship my paintings (including where I put this card): https://www.patreon.com/TiffaniWilliams/posts/how-to-store-159287410
What other things do you tell people about handling pastel paintings?
I had so much fun painting this little landscape today with my Adventurer members! Now I just need to think of a name for it. Any suggestions? 👀
I’m right handed 😂. I struggle with painting abstracts, so I thought maybe if I switched hands I could break out of my habits. It was a lot of fun!
I painted this on sandpaper for an upcoming lesson on my Patreon. It’s a great surface to use for practice! I find 400 grit sandpaper feels very similar to UArt 500.
Soft pastel is a fun, rewarding medium. It’s also very different than more common ones like watercolor and pencils! Here are my top five tips to give you a leg up. What tips would you add?
1️⃣ Start with your hardest sticks
Harder pastels take up less tooth, so you can layer more. Your palette should include a mix of hard, medium, and soft sticks.
2️⃣ White is not your brightest bright
White can feel dull next to other colors. Using a complementary color will create vibration, which feels brighter than white. It’s subtle, but it makes a difference!
3️⃣ Only blend your under layers
Too much blending creates mud and removes detail. Blend the first few layers, and then add your details on top.
4️⃣ Unwrap and break your sticks
Pastels are your brushes! You need different sizes and shapes. Don’t be afraid to break them - you wont regret it!
5️⃣ Stop before you think you’re done
The best paintings have a place for your eye to rest. Too much detail is confusing and overwhelming. Let it breathe!
Soft pastel is a fun, rewarding medium. It’s also very different than more common ones like watercolor and pencils! Here are my top five tips to give you a leg up. What tips would you add?
1️⃣ Start with your hardest sticks
Harder pastels take up less tooth, so you can layer more. Your palette should include a mix of hard, medium, and soft sticks.
2️⃣ White is not your brightest bright
White can feel dull next to other colors. Using a complementary color will create vibration, which feels brighter than white. It’s subtle, but it makes a difference!
3️⃣ Only blend your under layers
Too much blending creates mud and removes detail. Blend the first few layers, and then add your details on top.
4️⃣ Unwrap and break your sticks
Pastels are your brushes! You need different sizes and shapes. Don’t be afraid to break them - you wont regret it!
5️⃣ Stop before you think you’re done
The best paintings have a place for your eye to rest. Too much detail is confusing and overwhelming. Let it breathe!
I’m starting to work on my July lessons in the Pastel Growth Studio. This one is so cute! I rarely paint people, but when I do, it’s only from the back 😂
I just wanted to drop a reminder that my free beginner soft pastel workshop is tomorrow! I’m super excited about it - this is my first time doing something like this, and I have over 150 people signed up!
If you want to attend, you can sign up here 👉🏻 www.pastelgrowthstudio.com/3s-workshop
I get so many questions about how I store and ship my paintings, so I decided to make a short video to show you what I do! It's a pretty simple process and needs minimal supplies. I hope it's helpful!
I just finished this today! It’s the first painting in my new series “Of Air.”
I’m challenging myself to paint the four elements, starting with air. There will be five paintings for each element, showing a range of ways they are represented in our lives.
“The Majesty of Air,” 12x18 on UArt 400 with Richeson and Blue Earth pastels.
I’ll be sharing a timelapse of me painting this in the next few days as a BTS video on my Patreon.
I did some emotional painting the other day using ink and soft pastels. I love how it turned out!
A sneak peek at one of my June lessons 🌺🪻
Hi everyone! I wanted to let you know about a free beginner workshop I’m holding in June.
During this beginner-friendly workshop, I’ll be demonstrating:
• Different pastel hardnesses and shapes
• Why the way a pastel is made matters
• Multiple paper surfaces and how they behave differently
• Various stroke types and pressure levels
• How sticks, surfaces, and strokes interact together in real time
You’ll also walk away with a series of exercises designed to help you better understand your own painting process, plus a downloadable PDF handout with supply links and practice ideas.
The workshop is completely free, and if you can’t attend live, everyone who registers will receive access to the replay.
📅 Saturday, June 6
🕰️ 11:00am Central
Reserve your seat here 👉🏻 https://www.pastelgrowthstudio.com/3s-workshop
Painting on the shore of Lake Michigan this morning! It started out gorgeous and sunny, but by the time I was wrapping up, it was cloudy, windy, and cold. 🥶
I’ll be posting the video later this month on my Patreon, along with my review of the Lightwish soft pastels. I also used a few extra dark Blue Earth on Pastelmat paper.
I did a painting with the Maimoufin paper and pastels (available on Amazon). I was pleasantly surprised at how well they work for being so cheap!
You can see them in action here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/157274025?utm\_campaign=postshare\_creator