Sharon, here I go

[Jimmie Arroyo]

Sharon had asked to see me do color a couple of times and her recent pastels have inspired me to do so. Good weather has played a part also because it was way too cold to paint in the attic.

Anyhoo, the final size will be around 16x18 on Wallis pastel paper. So far it's been around six-seven hours work mainly using Giraults and Unisons. Which brings me to a question. I used to use Nupastels, but I heard it is not permanent. Has anyone heard that, because I know Daniel Greene uses them and I think Sharon uses them also (correct me if I'm wrong.) If so, can anyone recommend a good hard pastel substitute?

I'm also curious to know about pastel pencils. I have a small set of Derwents, but it seems to push color aside before it makes its own mark. Is this common, and if so, should I only use them in earlier stages? Chances are if the Nupastels are permanent, I wouldn't bother with the pencils anyway.

Please feel free to comment or critique, it is still early, but any suggestions may be helpful and appreciated. The colors on my screen are very close if you'd like to comment on color. Thank you.