Combine Colored Pencil + Marker | Getting Started

[@AmyShulke]

Hey folks-- had an annoying audio gremlin issue with Part 2 of this video. I'm putting off the release until next Friday, August 9th so I can re-record. Sorry 'bout that. And if you're looking for the resource page for Part 1 with Strawberry Toast info, it's all here: www.vanillaarts.com/blog/5-tips-mixed-media

[@SteveUnderConstruction]

I'm a beginner in learning illustration, both mixed media (colored pencils/markers) and digital illustration (Inkscape), specifically for children's picture books. You're videos are excellent and encouraging. I think I have found my home-school teacher! I'm exploring your websites and courses... Thank you Mrs. Shulke!

[@AmyShulke]

I'm so glad I can help! BTW, I'll be messing with the website this winter, doing a massive software update and refreshing the look and organization. My apologies if you're reading through the articles in order and something gets moved.

[@phantom_psyche]

Just love ur work no drama no irrelevant talk just pure knowledge and personal experiences ...thnx mam for making such great content

[@AmyShulke]

My pleasure 😊

[@trinec9320]

Love your no nonsense tough love approach 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@AmyShulke]

Not everyone loves it but I'm glad you get me!

[@Sharkuterie327]

Your sense of humor and sound advice (dropping some materials science with media) and beautiful art is a deadly combination. 😂 I learned a lot here about the frustrations I’ve had with mixed media. Thank you!

[@AmyShulke]

I shall tell my materials engineer husband-- his influence has been noted and appreciated. Thanks for watching and for appreciating the nerdy aspects :)

[@SnowS162]

I love ❤ the food pictures!!❤😂 😊 Keep it coming.

[@SaraPacheco-r7m]

I have already watched several videos, I am planning on watch more - I have to say that I love how you make it so easy to understand why many people and beginners like me are struggling. I have the passion and motivation to color and make art but when it actually comes to the time of doing it I get so overwhelmed. This is one of the reasons I why I make excuses and search for videos with tips so that it can maybe give me something to start with. But I was wrong! I need to experiment, make mistakes, and go through the process to learn…. you give amazing advice thank you for making videos!!!!

[@AmyShulke]

Oh, I love how well you described this. I totally agree, while I'm sure some people watch tip videos and take notes on each tip, I know when I'm stuck, a tip video can often just point me in the right direction. Thank you for clearly describing it!!!

[@dianecourtney2724]

You are a riot ! I love your videos. You are not only a great artist but also a wonderful teacher. Thanks 🌷

[@AmyShulke]

Thanks, Diane! I'm glad you're enjoying several videos this morning. Hooray!

[@thoughtfulwatcher]

This is absolutely stunning. You made me hungry.... And answered a question I've wondered about for awhile about lightfastness.

[@AmyShulke]

The Strawberry Farmer's Association should be paying me for the free advertisement :)

[@NexusofLight777]

You had me at "Outlive Deadpool"....🤣😂🤣😂💀💀

[@IZZYCHAN13]

The fact that alcohol markers aren't lightfast makes the idea of buying Copic pointless; I will admit I prefer Prismacolor and in the Chinese market, Finecolour which has high end ink (both have the foam nibs). Blick Studio Brush is also a nice alternative for its refills and accessibility..

[@MaryYoungblood-xy8vg]

I have arthritis I never color with pencils alone or my pain would be out of control. Markers and pencils go together like PB and J

[@AmyShulke]

Totally agree. After decades of base coating with markers, every once in a while, I try to switch things up by doing a pure pencil project. OMG, it's sooooooo time consuming. I'm a very patient person IF the results are worth it. But the older I get, the more I appreciate the head start markers provide.

[@jirikir]

Thank you for reminding me on those points. Nottingham new to me but often forgotten. Have a nice weekend.

[@Yakita60]

great and informative video, thank you!

[@AmyShulke]

Glad it was helpful and I really appreciate the feedback!

[@Allison_Troy]

I've had great luck mixing markers with Prismacolor Scholar pencils -- which are extra soft. There are fewer color choices because it's student geared -- but there are a lot of bright and vibrant options and they stick well to marker if I'm using more marker friendly paper or more pencil friendly paper. Also thanks for this video as this has been something I've been trying to sort and having some extra info & thoughts helps greatly.

[@cherij9008]

Love your videos Amy

[@AmyShulke]

Thanks, Cheri!

[@Bellenoireprincesse]

I always wondered what was the best paper for combining colored pencils and alcohol markers! I'll have to give Bristol a try. Thank you so much for the recommendation! I have a question about adding acrylic markers into the mix. I noticed that you used a white Posca acrylic marker for some white highlights on the strawberries. Do you recommend using the acrylic before or after the colored pencil portion of the drawing? Can colored pencil go on top of acrylic markers or vice versa? Thank you very much!

[@Stroggoii]

If you want real lightfastness do oils, anything else is placebo. Also, if you're not doing realism, you can get some really funky interactions between some color pencils and marker. Such as how the pink Uni NanoDia color erasable lead blows up into a bright scarlet ink when in contact with alcohol markers.

[@AmyShulke]

Markers mixed with colored pencils? Yes please! Resource page with Strawberry Toast info here: www.vanillaarts.com/blog/5-tips-mixed-media

[@butterflyj685]

Thanks! I love all your videos! Why did you choose Strathmore Bristol and not Strathmore Multimedia paper? Is it that their Multimedia paper 50/50?

[@AmyShulke]

Awww man, you asked this question 24 hours too soon! I'm releasing a video with mixed media paper later today. I'll have to remember to come back and add a link here.

[@janelcloutier9543]

12:28 Markers first then pencils … wine first then beer 😂

[@ninestela1697]

Hello, is it also advisable when doing a portrait drawing/drawing a person?

[@AmyShulke]

I do use the same concepts but portrait artists all vary in how they treat their materials.

[@christeepascale4483]

As a card maker I color small images. Until I discovered Vanilla Arts I struggled with adding detail to those images. Maybe all of my tiny space marker detail coloring luck went to someone else. I'm learning that underpainting and colored pencils enhance my basic marker coloring. Is it overkill to develop creative marker blends then add colored pencil details to an image I stick to a card? Not to me. Thanks Amy for the great tips, the reminder that no one needs permission to play, and, that ink, pigments, and paper are meant to be used.

[@AmyShulke]

Awesome! And I do realize some people do think it's overkill to fully marker something and then fully pencil it, but for me, I always think more clearly on the second approach. The pencil layers are a chance to fix errors or adjust the places where I chickened out and didn't go dark enough.

[@christeepascale4483]

@@AmyShulke After challenging myself to create purple tulips and a white mouse, I can attest that every single point you make is 100% my experience. I'll add that I am still learning to shade form. I was surprised to discover that once I had the marker layer down I could see -- really see -- where shadows, mid-tones, and highlights needed to go. Using photo references with stamps is an interpretive dance: sometimes I get it, sometimes I don't.

[@tammysunderman4734]

This looks so yummy. You always make me laugh so hard.

[@AmyShulke]

Thank you. Glad you enjoy my humor; not everyone gets me 😋

[@3kboom]

Thank you Amy! Question: Windor & Newton markets claim to be lightfast… is it a false claim?

[@AmyShulke]

Easy mistake to make, the names are confusing. Their watercolor Promarkers (with a silver gray label) are pigment based and I think the lightfast ratings on them are pretty good. On the other hand, their classic Promarkers (mostly black label) are typical of alcohol markers and not lightfast.

[@pellier08]

I would like to try markers but don't want to spend too much money as I also need to buy some good coloured pencils. Is there a small set of generic/ neutral colours you would advise to use as an under coat before colouring? Would tones of grey work? Could I apply grey tones to a strawberry and then colour in with coloured pencils?

[@AmyShulke]

In theory, you can color images in gray and then add pencils on top. There are several artists making Grisaille coloring pages which people purchase to add pencils over the top and you'd essentially be coloring the gray parts of the page yourself instead of buying it pre-grayed. I know people enjoy coloring over grayscale art but I personally find it rather artificial looking-- it's essentially the same thing as colorized movies. It never looks quite right. It'd be much more effective to base coat the strawberry with 1 marker matching the lightest pink, the toast with a light beige, and the nutella with the lightest brown. Then use the pencils to develop the forms over the base color. Sure, the pink marker isn't as versatile as a gray marker but it's closer to your end goal than gray. BTW, all of this seems kinda moot if you're wanting to learn markers. Everything I've described above would sharpen your pencil skills and will not develop marker skills. If you want to learn markers, buy markers, not pencils.

[@pellier08]

@AmyShulke thanks that's very useful. I'm trying to learn pencil drawing, not markers but I like the way you do it and how quicker it is to fill spaces with markers first. I just found a cheap off brand small set of pastel markers. I'll test that out and see if I like it better than pencils only.

[@AmyShulke]

@ let me know how it goes!

[@K1a_224]

Does it have to be expensive pencils like prisms colour

[@AmyShulke]

Instead of thinking of pencils as "expensive" or "inexpensive", it's better to think of them in terms of pencils which work and pencils which don't work. Inexpensive pencils are inexpensive because they're low on pigment (which makes the color weak) and full of fillers (which makes the pencils unpredictable). You don't need to use Prismacolor but you do need a soft, buttery, almost sticky pencil with high pigment load and a good variety of both transparent and opaque colors. I think Prismacolor are an excellent value because they're artist grade (high pigment, low filler) and yet they're on the cheaper end of the artist grade category. The color range is excellent and they offer opaques and transparents for every color.

[@typicalgamergirl]

Lol slipping around like a greased pig...so accurate

[@donnacarraway9182]

Amy, you seem like a very talented artist! I think that you must not know that one reason this video has so few likes even though the basic information is very sound might be because you sound like you are very much belittling people and especially newbies. Please watch it and see for yourself. I don’t think that you really mean to do that but sometimes playful sarcasm just comes across that way. I just want you to succeed and I don’t want us newbies to give up before we begin because we are being made fun of, but that’s what I feel here. Only meant to help. I’m probably not the best at constructive criticism but that’s really what this is meant to be. Good Love you to you!!

[@AmyShulke]

@@donnacarraway9182 Hi Donna, I really appreciate the feedback and it was kindly given but also kinda wrong. I have 1 video with a ton of views (the one I know you’ve watched) but the rest of my video stats are just like this one. So no, this 3 day old video isn’t doing worse than the others, in fact it’s performing a bit better than average. If my humor isn’t for you, I totally understand. I’m fine with you not watching; we’re just not a good match. But I question why you would recommend me hiding a vital part of my personality to suit your taste? There’s also the problem that I teach live. So that sense of humor you don’t appreciate comes out in the normal conversations I have with students. Wouldn’t you be shocked if I hid my humor and then it leaked out in a class you paid for? Thanks for the advice and I do understand that it was offered with good intention. And please allow me to say with equal good intention: No thank you.