How (And When) To Use Solvents With Colour Pencils

Understanding the best times to use solvents to blend your colour pencil work can make your life easier. Here are a couple of my recent pieces and the thought process behind using solvents on them.
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Faber-Castell Polychromos Color Pencils: amzn.to/2KVIoa4
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[@chriscraft8636]

Oh by the way I just subscribed. The fact that you are trying art tutorials on KZbin in this day and age is admirable. part of the reason why I even watch the art side KZbin in the first place is to watch or tutorials and it's made me very sad to see their steady decline. Jazza recently made a video about how he's going to do more tutorials and I can't freaking wait for his. However I'm going to be sticking around for yours as well. Anybody trying to push into the tutorial Market I am a subscriber and loyal viewer. Congrats on the 11k you are going strong and I can't wait to see how far you can go. Your art definitely looks like it's there. So if that's any indicator you'll never stop growing, even once you get to what is seemingly the peak. Take care never give up and keep doing what you're doing I am so many other people love it and can't wait for more. Now, if you'll excuse me I'm going to go binge some of your videos 😄

[@GemmaChambersArt]

I definitely wish I had started making them years ago, I'm just glad people still want to see tutorials. I do want to experiment with some other types of content too - who knows what the channel will look like a year from now!

[@tupello9]

You had been quiet for awhile- glad to see another video posted.

[@GemmaChambersArt]

I'm glad too! It's good to be back 😀

[@soulart1225]

The pig is so cute! You drew the characteristics of the pig so well😮

[@Hat6000]

My solvent blending will be much better after watching your tutorial Gemma, thanks so much, glad I found your channel.

[@GemmaChambersArt]

That's awesome to hear, thanks so much for watching and good luck with the blending!

[@Hat6000]

@@GemmaChambersArt Thanks Gemma. I have sold one of my drawings and today talked to a gallery owner about displaying some of my work, looks positive. Thanks for your help.

[@susanschmitz5871]

I love your videos, they are perfect. Thank you for taking the time to make these!

[@coleshaffer2853]

Wow you rock me socks off! Thank you so much Gemma!❤

[@glenda7921]

More animals like these please! YT is full of cats dogs….more pigs, sheep, cows, chickens! Love all kinds!

[@SBClaude]

Brilliant. Thank you.

[@1artmaan]

You are amazingly talented!

[@ackytrax7552]

Amazing work Gemma! Well done. Very inspiring and I have to say it was the perfect subject for using plenty of pig-ment haha :)

[@chriscraft8636]

You just made realistic drawing actually look like it could be realistic for me to actually do it. I've avoided even looking it up simply because of my imagined distance between it. Now don't get me wrong, I know that a lot of what you're doing is years of skill building and art techniques. that you are not going over verbally. However you made it abundantly clear that realistic style drawing is obtainable. I just need to get out of my head and put my medium on the paper and start. Art is one of those fickle things that I truly always have believed anyone can do so long as they put the time and effort in. You are making me eat my words today and reminding me that I'm holding myself back by not even trying just because of some past failures with no guidance. Which obviously is not going to produce realistic style drawings over a week and I gave up too quick. Not only is this going to help me but I also think it will help my family realize anyone can draw and maybe give it a go themselves. I always said I can't draw realism. they say they can't draw a straight line(sometimes it feels like I can't either LOL). But just like how art isn't about drawing straight lines it's also not about drawing every mynute detail with hyper-focus like I thought I needed to do. You seem to be focused on the details but not to the extent that I thought( like pixels) which I imagine is a way to do it but that's beside the point

[@GemmaChambersArt]

Thanks so much for the comment, this was really encouraging to read - If I can help just a few people try something new with drawing then that's a win for me. As you say, the bug often spreads when others see it can be done! You definitely don't need to be intimitated by all the little details - I could spend hundreds of hours on each drawing looking for everything but 1. I'd never get any new videos finished and 2. I wouldn't enjoy it as much, and that's what matters!

[@KarelChytilArt]

Thanks

[@1artmaan]

I wish you do VS drawings between different colours Faber Castell vs Prisma Derwent vs Steadller

[@jacarts5265]

How do you know when to burnish or when to use solvent? I've always blended by burnishing, usually with a white pencil. But I've noticed this sometimes leaves my drawing looking spotty or muddy as I think you put it. Great video btw! Subbed!

[@taurus8263]

What paper do I need to use to go with the solvent? What grammature would you recommend?

[@fuzzydragons]

I never use solvents with coloured pencil, just not how I learned to use them years ago, use them with oil pastels tho

[@robertadrsvensson]

I love your channel Gemma! A quick question: I really want to use solvents but I am afraid, I am so worried I will be breathing too much of it (even though it says odourless) the smell tends to give me a headache, after all there are many warnings on the bottle. I have also tested Zest It and an odourless mineral spirit. How do you do with your solvent, are you really careful with it? Do you have any tips?

[@scuttlebuttlodge]

Use Gamsol. There is no smell. I just pour a few drops in a lid.

[@loriwyuk]

same here. I cannot use zest it, it gives me headache, light headedness, so will try Gamsol.

[@matthewkane1417]

As someone who has experience using solvent, mostly incorrectly, I see a few problems that someone who is just starting out using solvent is going to run into if they take your advice. First, you said it's important not to use too much solvent, then you show yourself dipping your paint brush in the bottle, wiping it against the side of the bottle twice, then going into blend. That's too much solvent. There's no way you dip your entire paint brush in the solvent, wipe it against the rim of the bottle twice and start blending, if you do, your brush is soaked with solvent. Secondly, and the thing I find is the most difficult for me personally, is how do you keep your brush clean and not stain it for life or worse, muddy your entire botttle of solvent you just opened and started using. Again, if someone were to do what you suggest and dip the brush in the solvent, wipe it twice, start blending, come back to the solvent and dip it in again, wipe it twice and start blending again, all of the pigment from the pencil you just blending is going to come off the brush when you iniitally dip it in and more pigment is going to come off when you wipe it against the rim of the bottle, causing your once clear bottle of new solvent, to become murky with the pigments of the pencil and after you do this a couple of times you realize you can't even use the solvent anymore because of how dirty it is, you can't use the paint brush anymore because it is stained with pigment and most likely your drawing is ruined because you transferred pigment from all the different sections of the drawing you were blending to the other sections it shouldn't be in. If a beginner with solvent stumbled upon your video and did exactly what you instructed them to do, they would end up with a ruined bottle of solvent, a dirty paint brush and a drawing they have to throw away. Obviously you're trying to keep the length of the video to a minimum, however, if you can't find a way to explain the entire process correctly in that amout of time, I would say it's best not to make the video at all. I didn't see or hear any mention of a paper towel at all in this video, or kitchen paper or whatever you guys incorrectly refer to it as in the UK, as it is literally paper towel, and there's no way you did that drawing of a pig using solvent and not having something to wipe your brush on other than the rim of the bottle of zest it, it's just not an accurate portrayal of how solvent works and I guarantee you that if any of the 5,300 people who watched this video and didn't know any better tried using the solvent the way you explained, it didn't work out well for them./