Pastels help and advice

I hope you can find the information you need here

http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=17510&highlight=pastels

Thanks colorbook. You have no idea how much this helped me. When I start my first pastel piece I'll be sure to post it up here and hopefully get the same response as the thread you sent me. Thanks again.

carbon

You're welcome CS...by the way, I'm from Michigan too

Well it's good to know there's a fellow Michigander here. I don't see too many of them. The best landscapes we have to draw are mainly lakes and forests. Whereabouts in MI?

A bit northwest of Detroit.

I've just bought all of my supplies to start painting w/ pastels. The only problem is, I wasn't thinking when I bought them and I got oil pastels and not normal pastels. So I can't very well do the style of art I've been thinking of and I also bought 'canva-paper' to use. What is the difference between oil pastels and other kinds?

they are totally different and you can't use them in the same way.

I use them as a resist in sketches with watercolour - putting down some intense darks and some of the lights in oil pastel and then being able to slosh the watercolour about knowing that these areas are preserved, I do a lot of mixed media work. (also combined with acrylics and charcoal)

Personally I don't like them for using alone in a finished work - sorry if this is depressing when you haved a set! some other painters may have different advice.