How to Speed Up Colored Pencil Drawings; Colored Pencil Technique

Odorless mineral spirts for colored pencils
Blending with Odorless Mineral Spirits and Colored Pencils

๐ŸŽจ Hello Fellow Artists!

I don’t know about you but sometimes colored pencils really test my patience. ๐Ÿ™„ It’s a slow medium I know, and that’s one of the reasons I love them so much; colored pencils are super relaxing and therapeutic to draw with.

But sometimes I’ve got a commission to finish and I’m anxious to move on to my next project!

So it’s a good thing there are many mediums that work beautifully with colored pencils to speed up the process! Yay!


For today I’m going to give you tips on how to use Odorless Mineral Spirits (OMS) for base coats with your colored pencils. I’ll be doing future posts to review all of the different mediums, including watercolors-so stay tuned!

Because pencils are made of wax and oils, OMS is great for breaking up the pigments and blending them like paint.

The photo of my supplies shows the brush and the mineral spirits that I use plus the little container I put the OMS in. There is another brand, Mona Lisa that is the same thing as Gamsol so use whichever one you can find.

Mineral spirits are used mainly as a brush cleaner so they wonโ€™t harm your brush.

However, I donโ€™t like to use my expensive brushes because sometimes I like to press hard to move the pigment around with the bristles. So I usually find the inexpensive starter brushes work great for me mostly because I like them stiff and flat, not rounded.

Here is the Amazon link to the Gamsol: https://amzn.to/3JhtNP8

Safety Note: Just because the mineral spirits donโ€™t have any odor, you should still take precautions to not breathe in when using. Pour a little bit into a small container with a lid (I use travel pots sold at Target) and close the lid after you dip your brush.

Happy Drawing Everyone! ๐ŸŽจ๐ŸŒป -Molly


    I earn a small commission From the Amazon affiliate link so I can bring you more reviews!