Get ready for SILLY! I’ve been in a mode of late, and today’s no different…so brace yourself. I don’t want anyone coming at me for causing you to snort orange juice out of your nose! 🙂

But this isn’t ALL silly – I’ve been chatting with Lorie on Instagram DMs, and wanted to explain some things for her as a new artist. I figured there are others who could also benefit – so let’s get to it, shall we?

Administrative note: I’m testing something with ads on this blog – so if you’re suddenly seeing them pop up, there’s nothing wrong! You needn’t click on the ads for them to do me a little good; but if you see something to shop for, have at it. I have no idea what products will be here, I’m checking to see what Google does on its own. LMK if it’s anything offensive! I think I can block particular ones. Thanks!

My “Fishenstein Monster” aka Frankenfish – he’s a little dude who made it to my social media this week to show just what I did with the GINORMOUS list of ideas generated by my followers. Big thanks for all the contributions! See the video for how I ended up picking from them all.

Tutorial: Feeling out of control about color? (ft Poppies, Imaginary Creatures)

Watch the video below and scroll to the end to leave comments or questions — or click HERE to watch it on YouTube and leave comments over there. I read both dutifully!

The source of some color challenges

This is by no means an exhaustive list but let’s capture them here; they’re discussed in the video above in more detail:

1. Brand quality – the manufacturer themselves. Not all are equal!
2. Line quality – Artist grade are better than student grade, so beware substituting.
3. No global standards – we can’t rely on Scarlet Red always being the same Scarlet Red regardless of medium or grade. Bummer!
4. Swatches = good, use = bad – there are some companies whose swatches may photograph beautifully but colors become mud upon use on a project.
5. Fading – long term this is called “lightfastness,” and some mediums (alcohol marker particularly) are simply not lightfast. Then there’s mediums like watercolor and alcohol marker that also fade a bit when the paper dries.
6. Techniques – slow, overlapping strokes leave more ink on the paper than light, sketchy, quick markes with a pen
7. Statues of markers – Juicy? Dry? It can make a difference!
8. Flow – different brands release pigment at different rates.
9. Amount of color – the pecentage covered by the shadow, midtone, or light colors. If not the same, the image can change a lot.
10. Colored pencil – techniques for burnishing and blending can change the color a lot!

What’s more important: Value or hue?

If you get the value correct (light, dark, midtone) then even if the hue (color) is off by a bit, it”ll still have dimension and form!

In the conversion charts I make, I try to find a match for both value AND hue, but it’s not always possible. If you find a mismatch, ask yourself which is off – and figure out what to do to that color to adjust it!

Subscribe to receive blog posts by email:

Adapt color by layering

I can’t say enough that learning to layer colors – and to find out what happens when you do – is one of the best things you can do as a colorist! Each medium performs differently; alcohol markers lift colors underneath them. Pencils don’t. Each has its benefit!

Imaginary Creatures courses!

The colored pencil version has been around since 2021 – but I’ve had the Alcohol Marker version on my to-do list since then!

The alcohol marker class needs to be finished up, but the preclass lesson as well as lesson 1 are ready to roll. I’ll be working the holiday weekend to get ‘er done – I figure wanting some time off might get me to work extra hard Saturday so I get some time off for part of Sunday and Monday!

Imaginary Creatures (Alcohol Marker)

This Level 2 Alcohol Marker class teaches basics of coloring and line work in alcohol markers! Students will create imaginary creatures while learning coloring techniques, shading, and color mixing. Taught in Olo markers but all alcohol markers are welcome!

Imaginary Creatures (Colored Pencil)

Got questions?

I love answering YOUR questions in emails, DMs, and yes in videos! If it’s a question I think visuals will help with, and that others might also like to know, I’m happy to add it to my list. Drop a note if you’ve got wonderings!

Supplies

1. Copic Markers
2. Copic Hex Chart 
3. Neenah Cardstock, Solar White 250pk 
4. Olo Markers 
5. Olo Hex Chart 

A number of years ago, I was on a mission to try finding alternate brands to Copic; though I purchased my full set long before the changes at Copic/Too, I knew it was going to go from bad to worse. And I tested out all the brands as they kept cropping up on the market for alcohol marker users.

One of those brands was Olo, and I first tried them in 2022. They were kind enough to send me a set, I think they realized I was in testing mode and it would be a good opportunity for them if I liked them.

My review was mixed. But hopeful!

If you got here from my Weekly Newsletter and found the link for the next video about color didn’t work from that email…. here’s a good link for ya!  It has the discussion of color that was mentioned in the video on this post. One day I’ll remember to check links before clicking ‘send,’ huh? 🙂 

While a lot of people looked for “cheap” as their highest priority, I was looking for quality of product AND innovation. I’ve never liked when ANY company – art supply or otherwise – just replicates something that’s already out there, not putting any creativity into it! (I know I own a lot of products that have done this, but….I don’t review makers of my pajamas.)

Olo markers were immediately innovative: customizable markers, realizing that artists may or may NOT like a chisel nib, whereas other pens were automatically shoving both at us. While I use my Copic chisel nibs for airbrush, I don’t draw with them, and having the ability to only have to buy the brush marker end? That was very appealing.

The quality of the pens was good, the nibs were fantastic, the caps seated really well (in some cases too well; I’ve heard some people have trouble getting the caps ON, which hasn’t been an issue for me). The biggest drawback? Colors.

They had 128 colors, which back 30 years ago would have sounded fantastic, but I wanted a lot of colors that were missing; the greens only had a few color options and not great ones, and there weren’t good natural blending groups for hardly any colors to make it easy for newbies to color. 

But I remained hopeful, because that kind of innovation isn’t cheap. I’d much rather have a company work at expanding their line to fill out their vision than do what a lot of other fly-by-night manufacturers did—rushing out with 300+ colors and failing miserably to deliver on quality.

And so I waited. When Olo announced new colors would be coming, and let affiliats pre-order them, I squeezed the money out of my budget for a half-marker of each new color. And that brings us to today: new colors are finally here!

Tutorial: Getting started with Olo Alcohol Markers

Watch the video below and scroll to the end to leave comments or questions — or click HERE to watch it on YouTube and leave comments over there. I read both dutifully!

32 new colors

This release has a good number of colors in it, thankfully; when companies come out with 3 or 6 colors, it’s stressful to even consider putting out a new hex chart to include them for just a few pencils. It takes me a lot in my process to alter a chart, and 32 colors is plenty to be worth it!

Out of these colors, a lot are neutrals for skin, hair, animals. Most interesting to me are 2 natural blending groups in the pink and purple (Natural groups have a light, medium, and dark in markers that all share the same first digit, making them easy to blend well). But a thrill? All the new greens! It’s almost as if they heard me, though honestly I don’t think anyone hears me cry into the wilderness. But I’ll take it!

Order markers here.

Alcohol Marker Jumpstart Class

I decided, on advice of a lot of folks on Facebook, to change some wording – instead of using “Copic” in class and video titles, I’ll be trying to make things apply to more people with the term “Alcohol Markers.” Which means I’ve changed the name of my most popular class: Copic Jumpstart is now Alcohol Marker Jumpstart! It’s the same course, but hopefully more inviting to users of other mediums.

The hand-drawn chart will be added to the class for students to download and color as a reminder of what the letters and number codes mean.

Subscribe to receive blog posts by email:

Revised conversion charts

The two charts in this free set, Olo to Copic and Copic to Olo, will help you use a tutorial for Copics while using Olos, or vice versa! I’ll have more to say about the chart in my next view this coming weekend.

Get the free chart here.

A word (or 500) about other marker brands

Every brand of an art supply handles the naming and numbering of its product in its own way!

The cheaper craft companies often use random numbering/naming conventions; maybe it means something to them, but there’s no artist on staff making a color wheel of their colors and understanding why anything exists in their line. I find those extremely frustrating, and figuring out a company’s rhyme/reason for color codes tells me whether or not they have a colorist on staff. LOL.

Then there’s traditional art companies like Faber Castell who use traditional art names for colors and it’s the identical numbering system and colors across allllll their products.

In general, knowing some fo that info can help tell you whether an art supply is “good” —well thought out, quality, etc—or if it’s one that’s just put out there to make money. The latter companies are often not interested in pressing quality, just in cutting expenses to keep their product cheap and able to undercut the others in the industry. 

That doesn’t mean those supplies can’t be used. It probably means they won’t last as long as good supplies, might fade faster or other problems could happen down the road. Some of the companies I ttested over the years were this kind of flash in the pan; they didn’t last, and anyone who bought their inexpensive line of markers (me!) can’t get refills or nib replacements. Thus why I like that Olo is taking its time and pacing its growth.

Supplies

1. Olo markers & sketchbook 
2. Olo marker hex chart 
3. Neenah Cardstock, Solar White 250pk 

A quick little heads up: it’s new release day for my friends at Sunny Studios! I combined 3 stamp sets and did some wild masking just to see if I remembered how. It’s like riding a bike, eh? Go see the short video!

Check out the new release!

Open Studio Zoom is this evening!

Be sure to pop in to Artventure to RSVP and pick up the link 🙂