Colored Pencil and Petroleum Jelly -- Saxon Alley Times Four

Here are some Saxon Alley pictures all done in colored pencil, using petroleum jelly and burnishing pencils.  This isn't photo realistic art, (which I love), it's just fun stuff, easy and as quick as you like.

(Notice the picture on the home page is done in water color.)

1)  Color smoothed with petroleum jelly (Vaseline)

 After I colored this picture, I smoothed the colors over with petroleum jelly, either with my finger, or swabs. This technique causes the pores of the paper to be filled in tightly with color, whether you use inexpensive pencils or the higher grade ones. 

2)  Petroleum jelly applied before coloring

In this picture of the Alley, I used patriotic reds, whites, and blues,with green foliage and a little yellow and neutral color added. The technique I used here was to cover the entire picture with a coat of petroleum jelly, (Vaseline), before I added any color at all. It doesn't take away my ability to shade in any way, but makes the darks and solids both more vibrant, less muddy, and easier to apply. Such fun!

3) No petroleum jelly used here -- just burnishing

I colored this picture using a tighter pallet of color--neighboring colors--blues, greens, blue-greens, and some very yellow-greens and neutral colors. I burnished the colors with a white pencil. (I often use a hard, inexpensive grade of white pencil to burnish. It does a great job of pushing the color into the tooth of the paper.) Then I used another layer of color on top of the white to make shading outlines pop.  Notice the difference that can be obtained using solid colors or shaded colors. I don't often do this kind of cell-by-cell shading, but many people love to do it and love the effect.

4)  Petroleum jelly used on pencil tips as needed

I can almost taste this picture. What fun it can be to add in textures and fanciful colors that warm up a picture and invite others into the fantasy. It's absolute fun, though less realistic. I used petroleum jelly on the tip of my pencils as needed, then did some burnishing.  Enjoy your coloring, you amazing artists!