my pastels & card
There they are, those beautiful sticks of soft pastels. They are about the size of my pointer finger, and while mine may be a bit messy, they are full of beautiful, creamy, vibrant color.
I have my pastel card cut and I’m ready to begin.
Wow: big pastel, tiny paper. How is it to be done???
My biggest sellers are mini pastels, 2×3″ to 4×4″ pastels on card, framed. When teaching classes, one of the tricks my students are encouraged to master is the ability to hold a chunky pastel just right, in order to achieve a very fine line. It can be done!
No matter how rounded my pastels look, I can always find an edge. Sometimes I have to break them (painful, I know…but it must be done!), or use a small “crumb.” When handled correctly, I can get a thin eyelash even on a small piece of art.
Something I like about tiny pastel art is that I am forced out of my detail-oriented, perfectionistic tendency into a looser, more impressionistic style. I began mini pastels as an exercise in loosening up, and also so I didn’t waste my paper (hee hee! I’m thrifty too!).
Now, of course you can get fine lines with pastel pencils or harder pastels, such as Conte, but I’m a pastel purist and love to use soft pastels all the way. Plus, hard pastels and pencils are never as vibrant as a good, creamy, super soft pastel stick.
Try some mini art today, and tell me what you think!
Take a peek at some of my small pastels:
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- small pastels
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- 2×3 pastels on card
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- 2×3 oyster shells, pastel on card, framed
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- Red Mountain pond, 2×3 pastel on card
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- Farmland, 4×4 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- 4×4 pastel on card
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- 3×4 pastel on paper
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- 4×4 pastel on card
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- 3×3 pastel on card
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- 2×3 pastel on card
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- Labyrinth, 3×3 pastel on card
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- Goose, 4×4 pastel
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- Hen, 4×4 pastel
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- Sunflower Bee, 3×3 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Honey Bee close up, 2×3 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Red Flower Bee close up, 3×3 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Bluebird, 3×3 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Chipping Sparrow, 3×3 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Wren, 3×3 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Tufted Titmouse, 4×4 Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Sparrow, 3×3 framed Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Bee, 3×3 framed Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- Sparrow, 3×3 framed Soft Pastel on Card, private collection
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- 4×4 pastel on card, framed
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- 4×4 pastel on card, $65 framed
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- 4×4 pastel on card, $65 framed
My previous posts about small pastels:
