Why We Love Colored Pencils (And You Should, Too!)

Here at Adult Coloring for Beginners we love colored pencils. Why, you ask?? If you have a set of colored pencils sit down and you will soon see! Colored pencils are much more forgiving than other art mediums to work with. If you are new here make sure and check out How to Choose an Adult Coloring Book.

Most often we find ourselves using one of these popular supplies to color with….

• Colored Pencils (Prismacolors are my favorite!!)
• Gel Pens
• Sharpies
• Watercolor Pencils
• Pan Pastels (Pan Pastels are often used for your background)

So why do I love colored pencils so much??

• Easy to Use – All our lives we have held a pencil in our hands, so how hard can it be right? It’s easy to hold and doesn’t take a lot of practice because it is something we are already used to.

• Great for Details – Colored pencils have a very sharp point, as long as you keep them sharpened. The sharp point makes it easier to keep it in between the fine lines of an adult coloring book.

• No Mess – They basically make no mess at all. There is no paint to drag out and spill. No gel pens to leave the cap off of on your brand new couch that leaves a huge stain that nothing will get out (it happens peep’s, don’t forget the cap).

• Easy to Carry – Want to take a trip to the park with the kiddos? All you need to do is grab your colored pencils and your adult coloring book and you are on your way!

• Forgiving – Colored pencils are a very forgiving medium to work with. Drop a glop of paint on your artwork and it’s a done deal (unless your going for a modern look). Have your child bump you when your working with your watercolor pencils and you will have a long streak across your sheet.

• So Many Colors – There are so many colors of pencils out there and did you know that you have tons more colors that you can have out of each and every pencils that you have. For instance, take your red colored pencils and start pressing it back and forth across the sheet. Start out pressing very lightly as you move it back and forth across the sheet making a square, now do it again and add in just a little pressure on your next square. You can get quite a few different looks from one colored pencil by just changing the pressure that you are using.

• Fancy or Cheap – It doesn’t matter what your budget is. I have seen artists make some beautiful pictures from plain old Crayola colored pencils. The better brands of course make it easier to achieve but you absolutely do not have to have an expensive brand.

I could probably keep going on and on with the reasons I love colored pencils so much!!

What is your favorite medium to work with? Do you share a love for colored pencils too??