Color Pencil... the check list... To practice with...

 •  Use the elements & principles of design in your drawings.
 •  Try varying the hue intensity in your artwork. Use complementary colors and blend or/and burnish.
 •  Use several layers of different colors together, to add some spice to your drawings.
 •  To keep white or light areas, white and/or clean, try using a masque pen or masking film.
 •  Start off with light pressure when adding layers of color and gradually increase your pressure.
 •  Try not to use black to much, it draws attention to the black areas, make your own black by layering dark blue, dark red, brown and violet.
 •  Make sure to add a diverse range of values throughout your drawing, the more layers and the heavier the pressure, the darker the color.
 •  Make sure the cool and warm areas in your drawings are well balanced.
  •  Careful of over saturating your paper's surface with too much color, the color will start to no longer stick to the paper's surface. It will also start to wear and possibly tear the surface of the paper. It makes it very difficult to add to, you will need to thin the area if it does get to thick with wax.
 •  Be careful when applying heavy pressure, such as when you burnish, some pencils tend to flake. Remove the flakes by using a brush or tissue or blow and tap.
 •  Try creating different vibes and feelings, by using different colored and textured papers.
 •  Make sure to keep the surface of your paper clean.
 •  When working on a tonal drawing, work from dark to light.
 •  Keep pencil strokes even, and consistent in pressure and in direction.  I like to use a circular motion for blending and adding layers of color.
These are some tips I share with my students.  I thought I would post as it is always good to refresh your brain and share ideas.  Some of the tips are from friends, trial and error, books, and the world wide web.  I hope you can use some of these when sketching this month.

Sketchbook Journals... What can you do with them?

• Plan on a regular routine of sketching and commit to it.
• Think of every drawing in your sketchbook as being disposable. If you wouldn't dare erase or scribble over drawings in your
sketchbook then those drawings are not serving the purpose for which they were intended.
• Work quickly to make on the spot records of subjects that interest you.
• Sketch out preliminary drawings for future paintings, collages, prints or other projects.
• Make hand written notes in your sketchbook that help you record details and ideas that are too difficult to draw.
• Record the date the sketch was made and the location. Make comments on the theme, idea, or subject in the sketch.
• Use your sketchbook to make spontaneous drawings (doodles) that have no predetermined subject.
• Record ideas in your sketchbook that come to you in a dream or just seem to appear out of the blue.
• Observations or learning to look is key. Developing the ability to notice and remember the defining qualities of an object will help you draw it later.
• Use your sketchbook to keep materials like color swatches, texture samples, photographs, or collage materials for future projects.