- 1). Sharpen all your pencils before you begin to sketch. Keeping a pencil as sharp as possible when beginning a piece of art will lessen the number of times you need to stop and sharpen when working. Also, it will help to maintain a narrow stroke width while you work. If the pencil begins to dull or the stroke length widens undesirably, sharpen as much as possible.
- 2). Press lightly on your paper. Pressing too hard will cause your pencil tips to frequently break off. This can be particularly bothersome if you hold your pencil too far near the unsharpened end where a break in the colored lead is likely to occur inside the unexposed part of the pencil. Also, pressing too hard will make your hand weak, and you will tire from drawing quickly.
- 3). Draw the darkest parts of your image first. Colored pencils are difficult to be erased. Therefore, if you draw a light portion of your art with very heavy pencil pressure, it will be difficult to achieve an even darker look for the remaining portion of your art. When creating a darker look, always work your way up using individual strokes of the crayon in layers so as not to get too dark too quickly.
- 4). Blend colors together using your finger. If you wish to create a color that is not found in your colored pencil pack, draw an image with multiple colors on top of or next to one another. Use a dry fingertip to rub over the pencil markings until the colors begin to blend. Covering your fingertip in a tissue can help to keep your drawing hand clean while creating a blended look not affected by your fingerprints.
- 5). Erase mistakes with a kneaded eraser, which you can purchase at any local art shop. They are often used in graphite pencil drawings, but they have been known to work relatively well on soft-lead pencil crayons as well.
- 6). Wipe away flakes of the colored pencil which may come off while drawing. If caught between your hand and the paper, these flakes will cause smudging and ruin your work. Blow them away gently with your mouth when flaking occurs.
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