Giving Inktense Pencils a Try

My Inktense pencils arrived...

and I had the opportunity to give them a test drive last night.

I had one sole reason for ordering them...

(because goodness knows that I have more than enough coloring tools and supplies..

I really don't need another set of anything....

not pencils..not markers..not ink pads..not nuthin'

BUT...I was interested in the Intense pencils because I've heard that the colors are rich & vibrant.
I also LOVE to water color...
so the Inktense pencils seemed like a possible love match, for me.

I watched some YouTube videos to see what others are doing with their Inktense pencils.

I found a common denominator in the videos...

well...2 common denominators, actually.

Some people use regular card stock

(even though they are moving the pencil color with a wet brush or aqua painter.)

and...

some people used water color card stock/paper...which is what I would have chosen.

So...

I decided to try both.

(and I decided to use a really great Catherine Scanlon stamp for the test drive)

Now...for the results...

First up...regular card stock.
I used Spectrum Noir Ultra Smooth card Stock.
(This is what I use exclusively when I color with alcohol markers.)

 I was happy with the vibrancy of the colors...for the most part....

and was impressed with how quickly the pencil coloring liquifies 

and moves when touched with the aqua painter.

However...I noticed that some scribbly pencil lines remained on the card stock...even after blending with water via an aqua painter.

I do like the result..

but the remaining unblended lines were something that I wasn't liking.

Still..in the end..

I was okay with the result....mainly because I got nice deep dense color from the pencils...

and the fact that I LOVE Catherine Scanlon images helped a lot

Here's a close up...

When the image was dry...I brushed a little bit of Wink of Stella on the flowers...

and little swirly flower buds.

I'm okay with this card...the coloring...and how the Inktense pencils laid down color 

(They're very smooth...and easy to blend.)

Of course  about the smoothness...

I have to remember that I was using Ultra Smooth card stock...

and...that could be a factor..

Okay...so now...

on to the water color paper/card stock.

Again...

I like the card and am happy with the density of the colors..

I DID notice much better blending on the  water color card stock...

as opposed to blending on the Ultra Smooth card stock.

I wasn't happy though...with the center flower ..

The purple just isn't my favorite on this card

To my eye..its just too much purple...too dark..

Well...Look at me!

First I want dense color.....that's why I bought this pencil set...

then I complain that it's too dense

Anyway..

bottom line is..

I liked how the pencil coloring moved when hit with some water...

It's kinda magical, actually.
and...in the future...I'll have to adjust how much of the darker color pencils I apply to an image...
I am thinking that a mess heavy touch on those dark colors
might remedy my displeasure with this purple flower.

and anther photo...

(you can't see the Wink of Stella on this card in either photo...

but....it's there!

Did I mention that I LOVE Catherine Scanlon stamps?

Love Love Love.

Okay..

so to sum it all up...

my first try with the Inktense pencils was a good experience.

I agree that they DO offer nice deep rich color.

Thumbs up for that.

I actually like how the blended colors look when dry...

on the Ultra Smooth card stock.

(almost more than the way that they look on the water color card stock)
Shading with multiple colors was easy...and I liked the end result.

The color look..to me..to be brighter on the Ultra Smooth card stock..

and a bit more muted and dull on the water color card stock.

However....

and this is a big however...

I am not a fan of how the pencil lines/color remained scratchy looking 

on the Ultra Smooth card stock...

even after the pencils coloring liquified while blending with water.

This being said...

I am going to give this another try on Ultra Smooth card stock..

to see if the scratchy line thing happens again.
I'm going to pay extra attention to the color coverage as I color..
moving the pencil in swirls will help, I think.
It's worth a second try.

I'm glad that I have this great set of 72 Inktense pencils...

I think that I'll enjoy using them

and I look forward to experimenting with blending some colors 

and exploring the possibilities and potential of the Inktense pencils.

Thanks for visiting!

Have a wonderful Wednesday, my crafty and creative friends!

Michelle.