Artwork from Week One: The Materials Matter!!

I am beginning to realize that when it comes to art, it pays to invest in some good quality supplies.

We are using Artistic Pursuits art curriculum this year and I am very happy with our first week. They did the lessons and then continued to work on their own projects. They were very excited about the new materials and couldn't keep their hands off of them.

Of particular interest was their new drawing pencils (Ebony pencils for the younger kids and some good quality woodless graphite ones for Ellie). They make a difference!! The kids love the way they feel when they draw. They make much darker lines and the end project turns out much nicer.

They also used watercolor pencils this week. They drew pictures with their new drawing pencils, then colored them in with the watercolor pencils. Next, they took a paintbrush dipped in water and wet the colors in their pictures. They turned out so nice!!

I also love how nice the projects come out when the thick watercolor paper is used. I wish it wasn't so expensive - especially since they all want to use it and it seems to come in pads of 12-15 (which won't last long in this house!)

By the way, the pictures turned out much darker than I had expected. I took pictures of them and the lighting in the room was very dark. They look much brighter in person. :)