Hi Jason, well I love her books and her products so much. You say you can't put lights over darks in the extent of pastels, but actually you can. With the textured fixative this has become possible! Give it a try!
Thanks Jason, I had seen the new book before but actually didn't know she had a previous book. It looks very in depth. I haven't really delved into colored pencils, just trying pastels after years of oil painting, but glad to know where to look if I want to try pastels.
I like the new colored pencil portrait book by Alyona alot. We've had it since June 20th in the states. I especially enjoyed her chapter explaining the underpainting and making it coherent as to why its important in taking the flatness out of any colored pencil portrait.
Nice review! :) Such a high quality book, it's very complete and her results show that she is a master. I really would like to try her products, I am so tempted, the only thing that stopped me so far is the expensive shipping from England to Italy, Texture fixative and Touch-up texture can only be sent through road parcel, not fun!
I bought this and it has some helpful information but I found it to be a bit limited because it focuses only on sanded paper which is fine but not everyone wants to use sanded paper as it can be relatively expensive for beginners. It should have included different papers. I also felt that it was more focused on advertising certain products which she is affiliated with, products such as the fixative which this method heavily relies on as well as a few other bits like blending powder. I'm not being funny but not all coloured pencil artists use all these extras and make amazing portraits. And it should have not been biased towards a particular brand. I'm disappointed with it to be honest and wished I had looked more into it before I bought it, luckily I bought the kindle version so wasn't too expensive and like I said it has some good tips.
thanks for your input - this book is all centred around the techniques and results she can get on this type of paper and using those products which she invented. It cant be done another way with this method.
@@RideHanna I don't know if you later found out, but power blender and texture fixatives work best with certain sanded paper and gesso. So it will not work on aquarelle papers, bristol papers etc. There is an explanation of why it doesn't work on other papers because of the tooth and valleys in the sanded paper and why this fixative and power blender work perfectly in this environment. of course, sanded papers are not cheap, but as many more advanced papers are not that cheap either.
You can get Alyona's products in Canada at Delta Art (deltaart.ca/) online. They are a great resource in Canada for all 'fine art' products and their service is excellent. Their prices are fair as well. I am in rural Nova Scotia (transplanted from the Chicago area several years ago) and I found them to be the best overall resource for art supplies here. They are not always the cheapest, but they are competitive and as I said - they are on the ball and the orders get shipped and arrive quickly. I have ordered from Jackson's in the States as well as Dick Blick and by the time I get the products, there are usually high customs fees as well as high shipping costs. The orders take a long time to arrive on top of that. Buying from a Canadian supplier helps keep them in business. I hope my Canadian readers here consider that. :) Great review too, Jason! I just received my book the other day and I agree - it is FULL of helpful tips and information- no matter what you are doing with your pencils. Thanks for another GREAT video!
Is this book realy healpfull? I'm not artist and it seems to me that is promotional book of aouthor supplies. Is this book worth to be gift for an artist?
Hi Ruslan, if you''re not an artist, then I don't know if this book will work for you. Because it heavily inspects her products in combination with color theory. So if you want to buy this book as a gift, better go for the first one painting bible.
Thank you for the review! I will definetly not purchase this book. I paint with acrylics, watercolor and watercolor pencils. Thought I would dive into regular colored pencils, but it seems necessary to use toxic solvents to blend the colors. Due to severe asthma and allergies, I can't use anything solvent based. Had to sell my copic makers because they gave me constant asthma attacks. Furthermore I expect from a book about portrait painting, that there are step by step explanations for beginners, not just printing finished works. That's the problem all of those "How to paint / Get better at painting" books have. Just general information, nothing really specific in the way of "Buy the materials and start".
In Holland we pay the equivalent of £19.61 and the equivalent of £20.94 for her old book (LoL we even pay the equivalent of £20.- for the E-Book versions) ;)
Hi Jason, well I love her books and her products so much. You say you can't put lights over darks in the extent of pastels, but actually you can. With the textured fixative this has become possible! Give it a try!
Excellent video. Thanks for helping me make a decision. I will definitely be getting this book.
Jason thank you so much for this review, I have Alyona her first book and I love it, so Portrait painting is a must for me.
Thanks Jason, I had seen the new book before but actually didn't know she had a previous book. It looks very in depth. I haven't really delved into colored pencils, just trying pastels after years of oil painting, but glad to know where to look if I want to try pastels.
Thanks for this review! I have both of her books ordered and on the way. : )
Great video Jason! 😁
I like the new colored pencil portrait book by Alyona alot. We've had it since June 20th in the states. I especially enjoyed her chapter explaining the underpainting and making it coherent as to why its important in taking the flatness out of any colored pencil portrait.
Nice review! :) Such a high quality book, it's very complete and her results show that she is a master. I really would like to try her products, I am so tempted, the only thing that stopped me so far is the expensive shipping from England to Italy, Texture fixative and Touch-up texture can only be sent through road parcel, not fun!
I bought this and it has some helpful information but I found it to be a bit limited because it focuses only on sanded paper which is fine but not everyone wants to use sanded paper as it can be relatively expensive for beginners. It should have included different papers. I also felt that it was more focused on advertising certain products which she is affiliated with, products such as the fixative which this method heavily relies on as well as a few other bits like blending powder. I'm not being funny but not all coloured pencil artists use all these extras and make amazing portraits. And it should have not been biased towards a particular brand. I'm disappointed with it to be honest and wished I had looked more into it before I bought it, luckily I bought the kindle version so wasn't too expensive and like I said it has some good tips.
thanks for your input - this book is all centred around the techniques and results she can get on this type of paper and using those products which she invented. It cant be done another way with this method.
you are not required to use sanded paper, if you are using Alyona's products a thin coat of the textured fixative is all you need to get started.
Rachel Baker I haven't tried it yet, but Golden sells a pastel ground that comes in a jar. You might want to look into it.
@@RideHanna I don't know if you later found out, but power blender and texture fixatives work best with certain sanded paper and gesso. So it will not work on aquarelle papers, bristol papers etc. There is an explanation of why it doesn't work on other papers because of the tooth and valleys in the sanded paper and why this fixative and power blender work perfectly in this environment. of course, sanded papers are not cheap, but as many more advanced papers are not that cheap either.
The Brush and Pencil products after 5 years (23 Jan 1) still not available outside the USA, unfortunately.
You can get Alyona's products in Canada at Delta Art (deltaart.ca/) online. They are a great resource in Canada for all 'fine art' products and their service is excellent. Their prices are fair as well. I am in rural Nova Scotia (transplanted from the Chicago area several years ago) and I found them to be the best overall resource for art supplies here. They are not always the cheapest, but they are competitive and as I said - they are on the ball and the orders get shipped and arrive quickly. I have ordered from Jackson's in the States as well as Dick Blick and by the time I get the products, there are usually high customs fees as well as high shipping costs. The orders take a long time to arrive on top of that. Buying from a Canadian supplier helps keep them in business. I hope my Canadian readers here consider that. :) Great review too, Jason! I just received my book the other day and I agree - it is FULL of helpful tips and information- no matter what you are doing with your pencils. Thanks for another GREAT video!
Thanks for this review. I'm going to buy a copy as a Xmas gift for my artist-GF Stephie! Stephiel
Thanks...looks good 😀
I'm jealous, had this book ordered since last year, Amazon says I've still got at least a week to go
its out in 3 days. I got a review copy from the publisher :)
Jackson Art Supplies do the Brush and Pencil products
Is this book realy healpfull? I'm not artist and it seems to me that is promotional book of aouthor supplies. Is this book worth to be gift for an artist?
Hi Ruslan, if you''re not an artist, then I don't know if this book will work for you. Because it heavily inspects her products in combination with color theory. So if you want to buy this book as a gift, better go for the first one painting bible.
Thank you for the review! I will definetly not purchase this book. I paint with acrylics, watercolor and watercolor pencils. Thought I would dive into regular colored pencils, but it seems necessary to use toxic solvents to blend the colors. Due to severe asthma and allergies, I can't use anything solvent based. Had to sell my copic makers because they gave me constant asthma attacks. Furthermore I expect from a book about portrait painting, that there are step by step explanations for beginners, not just printing finished works. That's the problem all of those "How to paint / Get better at painting" books have. Just general information, nothing really specific in the way of "Buy the materials and start".
US paying equivalent of £14.05. UK ripped off once again.
true unfortunately
In Holland we pay the equivalent of £19.61 and the equivalent of £20.94 for her old book (LoL we even pay the equivalent of £20.- for the E-Book versions) ;)