More Lil' Friends ACEOs!

Hi my friends!  It has been awhile since I last posted anything so today I have 4 new lil' images to share with you since my last post.

I am enjoying working on my "Lil' Friends" series and taking my time with each new little creation.  I am trying to hone my colored pencil techniques by not rushing through any piece, which is hard to do because I am always exceedingly anxious to see the finished piece!  One thing I truly appreciate about colored pencils is the fact that I can stop what I am doing at a moments notice and it will be there waiting for my return. A small blessing when you life becomes a bit more hectic than one would prefer.  

A necessary tool in the art of colored pencil painting is a good blender and after trying a multitude of blenders a friend of mine suggested I try a "Caran D'Ache Full Blender Bright" and now I am one of its biggest fans!  It is really an amazing tool and seems to cut down on blending time by at least 50%!  The only draw back I have so far found is that it doesn't provide a good foundation for applying ink because of the glossy surface it produces, but an application of a workable matte fixative helps to reduce that problem; one does have to wait for the fixative to fully dry before trying to apply ink to the piece.  

On "Lil' Miss Steampunk #1" I did not wait long enough ... I had finished the piece except for the background and so I colored it in, blended it with the Caran D'Ache Full Blender and began applying ink for the wall paper design.  When I was nearly finished I noticed I had smeared nearly all of the inks (gel pens and art pens alike) ~ I was horrified!  All that work and at the nth moment I had ruined the piece!  OH NO!  

After studying the mess I had made (luckily none had smeared on the subject) I decided to smear the entire background together which created a purplish greenish gray effect.  I then sprayed it with a matte workable fixative, waited for it to dry and then re-did the wall paper designs ... happily it worked out and the piece was salvaged!  Actually, it looks better with the darker wall paper ... guess you could say "God" was helping me out by providing a learning experience.

Without further ado, here are my latest four colored pencil miniature paintings in the order in which they were created....

"Lil' Witch #4"  (recently adopted by a dear friend of mine in Canada ... Stacy)

"Lil' Witch #5" (currently being auctioned on eBay)

"Lil' Miss Steampunk #1" (original not currently for sale)

"Lil' Steampunk #2" (original not currently for sale)

All four pieces are now available as Open Edition ACEO Authorized Art Prints in my Etsy Shop for a staggering $1 each!  

ACEOs make wonderful little stocking stuffers and fun additions to Holiday, Birthday, and gift cards!

Wishing you all a very happy day!

Karen Anne Brady aka Ireland Brady