Copic and Prismacolor Rose

First, some background:

When I was given my first Copic markers I had no idea what to do with them. Coloring on watercolor paper was certainly NOT the right way to use them!

Watercolor pencils used on the left, my first attempt at Copics on the right

It took a while to find a Copic instructor anywhere near me, and even after locating a store that occasionally had a class, time after time the class was canceled because not enough people had enrolled. Finally I had a class and while pleasant, it sure didn't give me an inkling of what could really be achieved with Copics.

Another teacher was found but unfortunately, the woman had no teaching skills and I seriously doubt she was adept at working with Copics or other mediums. I was on the fence about Copic markers. By then I had a modest investment in markers as each class had required me to purchase colors I didn't yet own. By chance I discovered a store 45 minutes away that brought in a teacher once a month to teach Copic techniques. One class and I was hooked!

If you like Halloween, which I do, these images are moderately cute, but there isn't anything special about how they were colored. There is no shading and does this grouping say anything to you? They are just monster heads (no shoulders on Frankie or the ghost) stuck together. Ho hum. This was one of the classes at the nearby store. That teacher is long gone.

The last class from that store produced this. I'm not sure what to say about it. It was a small canvas board that was given to us with the background words and flowers already stamped on it. Because the instructor didn't center the images when she stamped them, she had us add the bow on the left. How could she not attempt to center the image?!!

One month later, after finding Amy (Vanilla Arts), these were done in a morning and afternoon class. The object of the women in the pool was learning different skin tones, their nuances and how to shade them. We also dealt with making clothing and inner tubes vary in color without overwhelming the image with a dozen dominant colors. Other fine points were how to make at least one of the inner tubes shiny and how to give the watery background an affect reminiscent of pool water.

If that wasn't enough to wow the caps off my markers, in the afternoon class we worked on metal finishes and how to make the fur trim on their hats look fuzzy. Both of these lessons also had us adding design touches that weren't part of the original stamps, such as the stripes and squiggles on the bathing suits, the stars on the front inner tube and the snowflakes on the elves' ornaments.

Now, the Rose:

The image is not a stamp but a drawing that Amy created from photos of roses, rose buds and a background that she liked. After teaching us how to pick colors from a color photo reference, we began coloring with Copic markers. At this point, everything you see has been done with Copic markers. The background is looking very odd, right?

Here, the rest of the background has been done and it still looks.....odd.

Prismacolor pencils are beginning to work some magic on the rose.  

More pencil work on the roses, buds and stems and now I'm going dotty, but that is a good thing. Pointillism means lots of dots. Lots and lots of them!

 More shades of green dots. I think this was the third pass across the image making dots. 

 And still more dots, along with lightly done scribbles on the background. 

 Maybe the last bits of detail, maybe not. Fresh eyes tomorrow will tell me whether or not I'm done. 

A woman sneered at the mention of art done with markers. Do I look like I care what she thinks?

(Image of Tina Fey found through Google search)

If you are interested in learning how to work with Copics and Prismacolor pencils and live within driving distance of Macomb, Michigan, live classes are taught at Remember When? Scrapbooking. For details on classes or to investigate taking online classes with Amy, click here, for Vanilla Arts.

As for me, I plan to continue to use Copic markers while I get back into watercolors, explore scrapbooking, knit, sew, continue to make cards and any other creative outlet I choose. I will probably never use Copics without enhancing the almost finished piece with Prismacolor pencils. I've come a long way since shoulder-less Frankenstein.