Drawing with Graphite II

I chose to execute this image of Lindsey with graphite pencil as opposed to charcoal so that I would have more precise control on depicting the various patterns and textures of the fabrics. Her "Lady Jack" outfit in charcoal had velvet, satin, lace and feather boa, which was a nightmare to get right in charcoal without interfering with the each other. This maid outfit had a translucent lace skirt and the fine detail of the lace really called for the precision that graphite allows. A taxing process on the arm and hand to be sure, but once you get into a healthy rythym the results are just right. One must take care to not overdue each passing as it is easy to give in and burnish the darks or push too thick of a line, especially as the arm fatigues. Pay attention to keeping lines consistant and clean and the pencils well sharpened, not neglecting to switch the pencil grades when necessary.

Colored Pencil II

The image above was done with colored pencil on a brown sheet of paper. The paper one uses helps balance out the colors used, in this case the brown helped bring out the warmer hues of the skin allowing an easier time to get Lindsey's skin color right without having to worry about blending in red pencil. The most difficult part was trying to mimic the reflective aspects of the sequins on the dress, but I managed by flecking with pure primary and secondary colors covered with white. Again, as with all pencil drawings, it is time consuming and harder on the hand than charcoal or paint, but well worth the effort.