• Print your reference photo in black and white. • Your pencil needs to be so sharp that it can be used as a stabbing weapon. Turn your pencil after every couple of strokes to get a longer life on your sharp tip. • When starting a new area of the dra

• Take your time, don’t rush it. It does not matter if you finish it today or next week – as long as you’re happy with the end result. • Don’t be afraid to try new techniques; you can always paint over your work if you don’t like it! Experiment with

• 45cm x 45cm stretched canvas on frame• Watercolour pencils for sketching, and the following Atelier and Matisse acrylic paints: Titanium White, Prussian Blue, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber, Raw Umber, Cobalt Blue, Yellow Oxide, Payne’s Gray, Alizarin C

• I like to be in a “painting mood” before I start a new work. It’s really important for me to feel that I’m enthused not only regarding the subject matter, but also that my creative juices are flowing, and I’m up for the excitement and challenge of

• Half sheet of white Colourfix paper taped to a backing board• A workable matt spray fixative and SpectraFix spray for final fixing• Art Spectrum and Rembrandt soft pastels: Pale blue, dark brown, mid-brown, mid-pink, light yellow, light grey, orang

• I am sure you all have heard this before, a reminder never goes astray. It is very important to get your drawing as accurate as you can, because putting colour on an imperfect drawing will not make it better. • Practice, practice, practice and your

• Experiment with your colour mixing on a separate piece of scrap paper. That way if your colour combination doesn’t work out you haven’t ruined your drawing. • Keep a sheet of tracing paper to place over the finished section of your work so you can

• Art magazine.• Reference photographs.• Arches Cold Pressed watercolour paper.• Air brush.• Frisket film.• Winsor & Newton Series 7 brushes: Numbers 2, 1, 0 and 00.• Winsor & Newton or Horadam Gouache: Permanent White; Burnt Umber; Burnt Sienna; For

Nola Clark has a few early school day recollections which include ‘being the smallest girl in school’. She also has a fond memory of regularly topping the class for drawing and sketching. As a child she can’t remember having many toys, but vividly re

• Because of the fine detail, I only work on my paintings for around three to four hours a day. I often get to a stage in the middle of a piece where I don’t like it; or I get extremely bored. That’s the time to set it aside and focus on something el

• Colourfix Paper, Aubergine.• Art Spectrum and Holbein Pastels.• Charcoal Pencils – Pastel Pencils (Conte and Derwent).• Colour Shapers and Paper Stump.• Hog Hair Brush.• Plastic Eraser.• Mahl Stick to keep my hands off parts I don’t wish to smudge.

• Reference photos• Ruler (if using a grid)• Paper• Stonehenge White 245gsm• HB Pencil• Copy paper to rest your hand• Derwent eraser for use with graphic pencils• Faber Castell sharpener with large and small holes• National Art Materials Workable Fix

I define a clear border to contain the end result and leave reasonable space all around to facilitate handling. This space includes an area to ‘test blend’ colours. I use charcoal pencils and a brown pastel pencil to formulate the major shapes, befor

The basic difference when illustrating the eyes of dogs and cats relates to the difference in pupil structure. The pupils of cats’ eyes vary (according to light) from a slit to a large black ball. The pupils of dogs’ eyes are round, and soften gradua

• Make sure your working area is tidy and free of clutter; in my case my desk, as it can be a distraction when you are working. • Invest in a pencil extender as they are quite inexpensive and save you throwing out your pencils when they get quite sho

• Paper stumps are excellent to blend the first layer of pastel. They can be used to remove excess pastel, and are useful to stabilise a drawing so that it does not smudge. • Colour shapers are very useful to blend heavier pastel if you require a smo