Tips & Tricks for using watercolor pencils in your adult coloring books

[@mrsfrench847]

What a terrific follow-up to the RyanColors videos Queen! I'd love to see more things like this, or collaborations in this community. Very helpful, thank you!!!

[@QueenofFlannelColors]

Thanks so much for the kind comments and the watch. I’m glad you found it helpful ❤️

[@jengolo7]

I’m commenting early in the video but yay!!! Love the idea from our hangout the other night! We need more videos like this with explanations. Every few days I search for inktense videos. (I know I’m lame) I do follow you already of course, but you popped up for me!

[@QueenofFlannelColors]

I’m actually planning something for February working with Inktense, so you just might be in luck. Thanks for the watch! 😄❤️

[@waymire01]

I use a lot of wc pencil, it's my go-to for double sided books. I typically color with a marker base but was unhappy with every waterbased marker I tried, the wc pencil I use in the same way.. base, dry paper completely, then go in with the pencils dry. This is by far the most gentle way of using them, some papers just won't handle more than one layer of water. I've found good artist quality wc pencils are truly double purpose and tend to just use that set wet and dry.. but you can certainly go over the top with any other pencil of your choosing. I toss a white prisma in every set for highlights. I have done wet on wet too.. lay down the lighter color then lift pigment on the tip of the brush and do the shadows.. it comes out very much like a marker coloring. Cartoonish books like Lulu Mayo's are cute that way. Also the way you did here, putting in the shading then activating the whole thing, comes out more "watercolor" not as detailed. Good for illustrations with a lot of built in pen shading, like Kirby Rosanes. I have one set of the distress "pencils".. but haven't used them. I was quite disappointed they aren't really pencils or crayons, very stiff and thick, the colors aren't great, and I was concerned about bleed through after finding the distress inks are really prone to bleed if wet. I used to use the Tombow blenders a lot but found depending on the paper they can be a lot harder to use without damage, I think it's the stiffness of the marker tip. I've tried dozens of waterbrushes and finally found the Derwent push button in small.. it's not cheap and can be hard to find, but it's just the best waterbrush I've ever used... well made, easy to fill, just the right size, puts out just the smallest amount of water and the push button gives excellent control. I'm going to be a very sad kitty if they ever discontinue it. The best suggestion I have for anyone who wants to try wc pencil is buy good pencils.. like everything else dealing with watercolor, quality makes a huge difference. You are better off with a small set of good ones than 120 bad ones. Also if you are going to get a few to start, buy them open stock so you can choose your colors.. Carandashe museums come in a well selected 12 set but most don't.. you can do a lot better by selecting a split primary (warm and cool of red, yellow, and blue), a nice natural green, and a few earth tones open stock. If the brand you are looking at isn't sold open stock 90% of the time it's not worth your money.

[@QueenofFlannelColors]

Thanks for much for the tips. As for the Tombow blenders, I pretty much exclusively use them for water media like the Inktense and my watercolor pencils. Especially if I’m out and about. I took my Derwent pencils and a Tombow to jury duty. With a fresh marker, I will sometimes scuff up the tip on a scrap paper just to give it a bit of flex. I don’t use the whole marker as a brush, really just the very end. And you run into the same paper issues with the tombow or a water blender if you’re not mindful of the paper. Either option has the potential to ruin the paper if you scrub. I know there are some people who have issues with their hands that, even with a good brush pen, struggle to maintain control with water. So I like to present other options :) These aren’t bad pencils persay. Just different.