Step by Step Pastel Painting

Here is the step by step painting of a stethoscope I have worked on between work and school :)  Enjoy and as always, let me know what you think!

First I added all of the colors I saw in the photo in an underpainting.  I love beginning bright and vibrantly, and I think that when the painting is finished, those colors really help the painting pop!

Then I began adding some lighter colors that reflect closer to the colors of the skin and shirt in the reference photo I was using.

 Then I began blending and working on the shadows in the skin cast by the shirt and by the anatomy.  I also was trying to set the stage for the stethoscope to be added by putting in the shadow of it before I added it.

I was also working on the colors in the shirt and trying to get the light to cast correctly while keeping some of the vibrant colors.

 Now the moment of truth! Adding in the stethoscope.  I was nervous about this part because if I didn't do it right, correcting the underpating would be hard and it would lose the fluidity.

 I decided the stethoscope needed to be bigger that I had made it base on the rest of the scale.  But I was able to do it without muddying up the background.  I enjoyed adding lots of color to the head of the stethoscope to reflect its shape.

 Finally I added shading on the shirt and in the stethoscope to make it more rounded. And it is done :) I thoroughly enjoyed completing it!  Also below is my new piece that I have just started on!! The underpainting is in progress!

Yoga Series

Well, I am very excited to share the first finished piece of my yoga series!  As you saw from my last post, I layered on oranges, yellows and reds at first, then outlined the figure in a beautiful burgundy.  This elegant pose called for a swirl of energy where I added purple first, complimenting all of the orange.  Deciding to fill the figure more than just outlining it, I added pink, purple, burgundy, yellow, gold, violet, and more oranges.  I am super happy with how it came out and love the flow of enerby through the piece.  It is 9x12 and Nupastel on Colourfix paper.  I'm also sharing with you the second yoga pose in my series called "reverse warrior".  For this I'm layering blues, greens, and yellows.  I just began working on the figure and will keep you posted :)

Yoga Abstract Figure WIP

Working on a series of abstract figures in various yoga poses.  This is the first of about 8 and I definitely like where it's going.  I'm thinking about adding some lights and darks into the background but not sure if I should change anything about the figure.  Comments and suggestions would be much appreciated!  I will post more as I work on it!  The first picture is how it looked originally and the second is after adding some lilac purple into the background.  I love the oranges, reds, and yellows in the picture and have added the lilac, a dark purple, and dark burgundy to try and balance all of the hot colors.
Of course this is on a 9x12 piece of Colourfix paper and is made with NuPastels.