Simple shapes make for a fun and successful art time! Learn some lighting and shadow techniques.
A Simple Start in Chalk Pastels Video Art Course (full year)
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What is included in the course?
- Step-by-step instructions
- A Simple Start in Chalk Pastels ebook
- Techniques encourage both new artists and challenge more advanced ones
- Independent learning for older students
- FAQs
- Glossary of art techniques
- You ARE an Artist Facebook group – share photos of art work, ask questions and encourage each other!
Begin with any art lesson that appeals to you. Each of these tutorials is designed for students of all ages. If this is your first time using the chalk pastel medium, we suggest you begin with Apple or Pumpkin and then move to A Path to the Beach.
General Suggestions for Chalk Pastel Art
In addition to a starter set of chalk pastels, there are very few supplies we suggest you have on hand. Regular copy or printer paper works very well. Construction paper is also wonderful for the layering and blending of colors. It is our favorite. Dampened paper towels or baby wipes make for easy clean up and help in cleaning off hands between colors.
Lessons
Apple and Pumpkin
Path to the Beach
The very first time Nana taught her grandchildren a pastel lesson was in February 2010. That day, we created one of our favorite subjects: the beach! Funny thing was, she was snowed in at our house. Inches of snow were piled up outside. But inside, we created puffy clouds, an ocean view and a path to that beach…
Emphasis on blending techniques in this lesson plus perspective with the horizon and cloud creation. Other techniques include: underpainting, skumbling, layering colors, blending and smoothing plus tapping grasses.
At the Beach
Even if you aren’t heading to the beach any time soon you can imagine feeling the warm sun on your back with this dreamy chalk pastel lesson. Learn shadowing and use the fisting blending technique.
Beach Umbrellas
Learn perspective by beginning your beach scene 3/4 way up on your paper and the use of darker colors further from the viewer. Have fun adding people and beach umbrellas!
Sailboat at Sunset
Learn how to create an ocean horizon and to make waves with chalk pastels. Blend dark, medium and light chalk colors.
Twilight
Learn techniques for lighting and evening sky with the beautiful blending of colors and wispy clouds over the evening moon. Add some twinkling stars! Learn more about perspective by drawing a barn in the distance. Bonus: how to handle excess chalk as you create!
Harvest Moon Nocturne
What fun to make a night time scene with chalk pastels! Add the moon’s reflection in the water…
Lily Pad
Learn how to draw water in motion with this beautiful chalk pastel lesson! Techniques include blending, fisting and reflection. Also an explanation of why we love black construction paper.
Medieval Castle
Embellish your castle with a story! Also, learn what to do if you don’t have a grey chalk pastel.
Marsh
You will love how the setting sun is reflected in the water. Enjoy the techniques that give the scene depth, the blending of trees, the tapping in of grasses.
Tornado
Swirling, blending and fisting techniques for this powerful depiction of weather in action.
Approaching Storm
At the beach, with the flat, unobstructed horizon, you can view approaching weather amazingly well. Sunrises, sunsets and especially cumulonimbus clouds. Use of the “drawing on the right side of the brain” technique.
To the Woods
Draw a path that leads your eye deep into the woods and make some underbrush with – can you believe it – purple! Plus you will add some shadows on the path to show the afternoon light.
Dogwood Blossom
Create a pink dogwood blossom with chalk pastels. Nana shares how to layer colors to create the depth of each petal and explains the painterly effect technique.
Tree Reflection
A fall favorite and great lesson in perspective.
Leaf
A short and satisfying art lesson for all ages. First, trace a leaf from your own yard. Then draw one yourself. The first time we enjoyed this tutorial our youngest joined in at age two!
Bird’s Nest
Learn how how to weave the colors just like birds do – making layers with chalk pastels. The results are gorgeous!
Three Little Chicks
Learn how to skumble by turning your chalk pastel stick on its side – and make some fluffy chicks!
Robin
Chalk pastel colors are beautiful blended and layered on top of each other. Learn how rich the colors can be! You may want to pull out your favorite bird field guide.
Love Bird
A fun art lesson for Valentine’s Day or to use to decorate a get well card! A sweet, five-step set of directions.
Sandpiper Shore Bird
Art and nature for our fellow seashore enthusiasts! After seeing these fast and delightful birds swooping down and racing the waves at the beach one morning, we decided to see if we could sketch one with chalk pastels.
Sunflower
Make petals like a candle flame and shadows for depth. Add seeds and have fun layering colors!
Hydrangeas
Make this art lesson as easy or as challenging as you’d like. Make the hydrangea realistic and create shadows, dots of the flower, sunshine, summer shadows – lovely!
Queen Anne’s Lace
Learn how the different colors of an underpainting makes the focus of your painting stand out. Learn how to show the ‘light’ in chalk pastel painting. This is a longer tutorial and you could spend up to 30-40 minutes or more if you’d like.
Butterfly
When you go out of the lines, it is perfectly okay!
Tomato
A delicious art tutorial with some simple shadowing and lighting techniques.
Fruit Bowl
But for this tutorial, you start with the beautiful blue bowl. Pick your prettiest blue chalk pastel – or feel free to make your bowl any color you’d like.
Strawberries
Strawberries and bananas just go together. Well, so do strawberries and whipped cream. Strawberries and pound cake. Well, anyway, you get the idea. This fruit is so much fun to create in chalk pastels!
Blueberry
It is a summer time easy art lesson in 1-2-3 steps! You may decide this could be a follow up lesson to a favorite book.
Watermelon
What says summer better than a luscious watermelon?
Macaroni and Cheese
A delicious art tutorial of a favorite meal!
Fudge Pie
Let’s make a delicious chocolate pie with chalk pastels!
Christmas Star
This lesson is a simple, yet a lovely one to celebrate the Christmas season. Enjoy painting the bright colors and the velvet blue night sky.
Christmas Tree in the Snow
Just six simple steps! Includes instructions for making the five point star at the top of the tree.
Christmas Ornaments
Begin by choosing your favorite two ornaments. Place them on your table where you can get a good look while you use your pastels. Supplies needed: Paper – plain white…
Winter Fun
Do you see how you can make tree branches like upside Vs? Nana explains this in more detail in the tutorial with a snowman too!
Fireplace
A fun lesson with many shapes and sizes with a bit more difficulty level. Add a favorite pet getting warm on the fireplace hearth or hang your stockings with chalk pastels with care. A warm, winter art lesson!
Mug of Hot Chocolate
Stay warm and cozy and enjoy this fun art tutorial!
Sparkler
It’s fun to see all the color wrapped up in a sparkler!
Bubbles
A fun spring time or any time art lesson.
Tree Silhouette
Add some color beneath your tree – on the ground – here and there. This will show that some of those brilliant, orange leaves have fallen to the ground.
Sky Vista
A lovely, western landscape in blues and oranges. Chalk pastel colors: blue, aqua, brown, orange, yellow.
Banana
Paint a banana in chalk pastels. Chalk pastel colors: Brown, yellow and white.
Chickadee
A fun chalk pastel lesson of a favorite feeder bird. Chalk pastel colors: black, white, brown, green.
Bluebird
A fun chalk pastel lesson of the beautiful and brilliant bluebird. Chalk pastel colors: blue, black, white, orange, brown.