If you're looking for a printable chart for the 150 Prismacolors that you can color yourself as a reference, you can download one from my website. I couldn't find one that suited me so I made one myself. The link is at the bottom of my "About" page. Happy New Year! http://www.denisejhowardart.com/mbr_bio.php

If the piece you're working on is large, you want to avoid reaching across it very much even if you have a sheet of paper protecting the art surface from your arm. Otherwise as you continue to work you may inadvertently cause small scratches or scuffs. So don't be afraid to turn it upside down! Drawing is about seeing, so if you're really seeing, right side up or upside down shouldn't matter.

When working on a portrait of a smiling person, don't fall victim to "chiclet teeth"! Instead of delineating each tooth, simply hint at their boundaries by way of the biting edge and gumline, then use a very, very light touch to shade each tooth so that a hint of highlight appears in the right place to give it subtle form. Teeth are never pure white, no matter how bright the smile, so there is always "room" for shading.

I just wanted to share what I've discovered with two popular solvents used for blending colored pencils: Turpenoid Natural and Gamsol (odorless mineral spirits). Turpenoid seems to add a yellowish tinge, and never seems to evaporate completely, leaving a slight oily residue. Gamsol, on the other hand, doesn't affect the pigment color and evaporates quickly and completely, with no noticeable residue. I'm liking Gamsol a lot--now what shall I do with this whole bottle of Turpenoid?

Spend a couple of hours to do this and you'll never have to search more than a few seconds for the right color from a large set. 1. Sort pencils in chromatic sequence per Prismacolor's website (http://www.prismacolor.com/products/colored-pencils/softcore-lead; click the Color Palettes tab, select your set size) 2. Wrap a little number label around the top of each pencil. 3. Create a sampler chart that includes the name, label number, and a color swatch for each pencil and post it near your drawing table. 4. Group pencils by general color in sequence. Now the next time you're looking for just the right brown, refer to your sampler, note the label number, and pluck the pencil from its group.

The tins in which Prismacolors are packaged aren't practical for daily use. I cut a piece of foamcore 6"x13". Then I went to the hardware store and had them cut me 8 pieces of 2.5" PVC pipe, each 3.25" long. I glued the lengths of pipe to the foamcore. Voila! A pencil holder that's beefy, nothing's going to knock it over. Yellows in one tube, reds in another, etc., tips up.

After a new kitten walked all over a pastel drawing I was working on a couple of years ago and not only ruined it but tracked the chalk everywhere, I knew I'd need to cover my colored pencil drawings in progress even when I step away for just a minute. My drawing table is right next to a window that's a popular bird-viewing spot! But I didn't want to lay paper directly on the drawing surface. The perfect solution turned out to be a 20x30 piece of 1/2" thick foamcore, with 1" squares glued to the corners. It's very light, very stiff (not even the weight of an adult cat can bow it), and the corners keep it up off the surface. When I'm working I keep it in arm's reach.