“Do I color like a beginner?”
I get this question a lot, especially when people are trying to decide where to start in the Vanilla Arts class system.
It can be hard to determine where you fit because it’s possible for someone to color for years with Copic Markers or colored pencils and still be a beginner.
I know that sounds crazy but if you’re never presented with upper level techniques and if you never color anything but simple stamps for small cards, it doesn’t matter how long you’ve been coloring, you still have beginner skills.
To help you out, we have a placement page here but people usually want more personalized info.
So today, let’s look closer at the internal signs that you are still a beginner.
Beyond Coloring Skill…
And beyond the number of techniques you’ve tried.
Coloring is far more than hand-eye coordination and muscle kinetics.
When you first learn to ride a bike, it's a think-full process.
"Whoa! Keep the front wheel pointed forward. Stop wobbling the handlebars. Pedal. Pedal again. Eyes forward, don't look down. Pedal. Keep pedalling. Go a little faster. Try not to lean so far to the left. Oops, why do I stop pedalling when I look up???"
It may take an hour of intensive trying but eventually, you find your balance and learn to ride.
When you're a beginner, you have to think about every little step.
So I'm always at a loss for words when someone presents me with ten finished Copic samples and asks me “Am I a beginner, intermediate, or advanced colorer?”
Arrrrgggghhhh! That’s really hard!.
The dirty truth is that I can’t often tell from looking at your work.
I can't crawl into your head.
I don’t know whether it took you six days and four mental breakdowns to color a simple balloon or if you whipped it out in three minutes while reciting the Gettysburg Address and frying bacon.
Only YOU can tell us if you're a beginner.
Beginner-ness is not about how pretty the coloring is, it's about how much concentration it took to make it pretty.
So today, let’s help you help yourself.
I'm going to tell you about the things I never think about when I'm coloring.
Last week, I talked about the things I always think about as I color; so if after today, you decided you’re at an intermediate to advanced level, this article might be helpful to guide your thinking on the next project.
Let’s be clear, I’m not bragging here in this article. I’m not telling you how fabulous I am and how I never-ever-ever think about peon mortal stuff anymore.
If anything, I’m sharing because it’s the exact opposite of a brag.
My mommy told me I was special but I know darned well I’m not rare or unusual. In fact, I’ve set up this whole website to prove that anything I can do, you can do too.
My list of I Never Think Abouts is to share how advanced level coloring looks and feels.
So that you can better identify when you’re doing it too!
Artists and instructors don’t normally talk about this stuff. Many of you may find that you’re better than you thought. And some might find you’re not as good as you’d hoped.
But knowing where you’re at is important for deciding where to go next.
Use this as a measurement device to help determine where you are in the skill mastery process.
Things I Never Think About When Coloring:
Remember, this is not a list of things I want you to ignore!
Beginners NEED to think about this stuff.
But if you find you can do these five things really well without thinking about them, that’s a sign that you’re not a beginner any longer.
1. The Flick Stroke
If you've ever taken one of my live classes— either locally, a retreat, or you’ve joined in one the Vanilla Live Broadcasts, you'll notice that I can carry on conversations while I’m coloring.
In my local classes, because of the strange classroom set up, I actually color upside down and backwards while talking and walking around the room.
I’m not kidding.
I can only do this because flicking has become a reflex for me. It’s as easy as breathing.
Pointy flicks? Always.
Accurate starting points? Almost every time.
Blobs at the start of a flick? Nope.
The only time I think about the mechanics of flicking is when I demonstrate.
And that’s because I’m trying to find the words to describe flicking to you.
Otherwise, the less I think about flicking, the better the flicks look.
Are you still a beginner?
If you have to coach yourself through a flick
If you have to concentrate to make them consistently pointy
If you have to purposefully think through how to flick in a particular area
If you often wonder “should I be flicking or should I be using a different stroke?”
These things will become automatic to you in time, but for now— if they’re on your mind, you are still a beginner.
By the way, if you’d like more information about the flick stroke and how to use it, I teach flicking in these Marker Painting Workshops:
2. How to hold a marker or pencil
I've written a few articles that mention finger position, hand placement, and grip location but honestly, I didn't realize grip was even a thing until I saw some students try to color gigantic backgrounds with the teeny tiny point of a Copic Marker.
I’ve also seen folks trying to color small details with the fat side of a Copic brush nib.
WHERE I hold the marker or pencil shifts depending upon my needs.
In any demonstration, you will see me coloring from several different locations on the barrel. I change position constantly. I choke up on the marker or move back depending upon the size of stroke and how much ink I want to dispense.
With pencils, I have an even greater variety of positions. I move up and down the barrel.
Writing position is a grip that’s down near the point, giving you lots of control. I move my hand to the middle for general coloring. If I need to color very softly, you may see my hand cupping the very end of the pencil.
HOW I hold the marker or pencil also changes as I color.
I have a standard pincer grip for detail, a looser hold which allows the pen to bob and bounce, and an overhead grip for expressive strokes.
Here’s the thing: I don't even realize I'm doing it.
For a long time I didn’t know to teach about grip type and location because I didn’t know YOU didn’t know about it. I also don’t tell students when to breathe or take bathroom breaks. Hand position and grip style are that far off my radar.
Advanced level colorers intrinsically understand that simple position shifts the tool from dexterity mode to coverage mode. Advanced colorers understand this with the non-verbal part of the brain.
It's not a "I'm going to loosen my hand now" kind of decision, you just automatically do it.
Are you still a beginner because of your grip?
If you use the same grip for everything
If your grip hampers your coloring
If you never realized your hands could shift position or placement
If you’re thinking about grip and hand position while you’re coloring, you are still a beginner.
Read more about grip here: 6 Easy Tips - Improve your Grip for Better Coloring
Practice your grip in this online Marker Painting Workshop:
3. Paper saturation
The key to a good marker blend is to get the paper nice and juicy wet.
The key to beautiful pencil color is gently filling the tooth of the paper.
In both cases, advanced colorers use the correct amount of ink or pigment to get the desired effect.
But I can't remember the last time I had to debate with myself about "hey, is this the correct amount?” I don’t ask myself “should I add another coat of Copic?" or "gee, would it look better with another layer of pencil?"
It’s not a conscious process.
I'm simply not done until it’s done.
I don't think about it, I just know.
If the marker zone looks dry or streaky, an experienced color doesn’t stop and ask “does this still look dry or streaky?” They keep going until it feels right to stop.
And they stop before the paper gets overinked. They naturally stop adding ink before they damage the paper.
If the pencil zone looks grainy or underdeveloped, there’s no stopping to ask “should I do one more layer?”, they don’t finish until it feels finished.
And they don’t burnish the paper or fill the tooth by accident either. It’s not a decision, it’s intuition.
By the way, "I just used four coats of B32!" is another mark of a beginner. Experienced colorers do not count and if they try, they easily lose count because the number of layers is unimportant.
Are you still a beginner because of inconsistency?
If you have to stop and wonder if it’s done
If you realize you should have called it quits 2 layers ago
In time, you will learn how to read the paper and what rich layering looks like. But until you develop this instinct, you are still a beginner.
Watch me demonstrate basic blending with Copics Markers on the Gummy Bear project at YouTube here:
4. Paper rotation
This is another thing I always feel a little silly teaching.
I don't think about it, I just do it.
Your hand is has an anatomical design. Muscles can only pull and ligaments keep bones from shifting in undesired directions.
This is why you stink when it comes to drawing straight horizontal lines.
You're not stupid and it’s got nothing to do with talent or training. The human hand simply wasn't built to work horizontally.
You will always make straighter lines and more beautiful strokes when you pull the line towards your body. A vertical stroke.
Experienced colorers constantly rotate their paper for an ideal stroke.
But I don't sit there thinking "now turn the paper 32 degrees south by southwest...", I just do it.
And by the way, the fact that you don’t turn your paper is not totally your fault.
Most YouTube coloring videos use a fixed camera position over a fixed piece of paper.
Viewers don’t like it when the paper spins on camera. They complain loudly about getting seasick or about not being able to track what you’re doing if the project moves.
So taping the project down to the desk avoids negative comments.
I was guilty of this myself for years until I realized that without my body on camera, you didn't understand the strange contortions I was going to through to film a stabilized project.
I was practically sitting on my desk to color some areas!
I also noticed that because my project never moved, people assumed that their project should also be taped down too. Students were coloring bent, crooked, or jiggly flicks. They were also coloring in strange directions, like coloring hair across the grain or water against the flow.
Now I let you see my paper rotate. I get complaints from some viewers, "it makes me dizzy!" but hey, at least you are seeing real coloring with real paper rotation.
Are you still a beginner because of directionality?
If you fight your hand anatomy
If you have to remind yourself to rotate the paper
If you haven’t even considered that ficks have a flow and that the flow needs to run in a particular direction
Until you start working with your hand anatomy on an automatic basis, you are still a beginner.
We cover hand anatomy and finding the best flick for your musculature in the Marker Painting Foundations course here:
Check out Amy’s favorite art supplies, click above.
5. Fixing Mistakes
Hey everyone! I just made a boo-boo over here in the bottom left corner. Don’t move a muscle, we’re going to halt all activity until this has been cleared up. People in the exit aisles need to stand by and perhaps review the latest safety protocol pamphlet located below your seat cushion…
I don’t know folks, maybe I’m a big meany. Maybe my heart is three sizes too small…
But I don’t get the big deal.
I make mistakes all the time.
A flick might wander outside the line. Maybe I grab the wrong marker. Sometimes I take the underpaint out just a little too far.
I might fix it or I might not.
I certainly don’t call a town hall meeting to discuss it.
I’m a Calvin Coolidge kind of girl:
If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch before they reach you.
That’s how I color. I could stop everything and fix the mistake but I’d likely damage the paper trying to erase something that might not even be visible when we’re done.
One reason why I produced the Marker Painting Live class format was because I wanted to show students the mistake making process, real and live.
I wanted to prove that you don’t have to hire a Greek Chorus to wail when your marker slips.
Gnashing your teeth doesn’t solve anything.
Move on!
The odd thing is that while I intended for Marker Painting Live classes to show the mistake making process, I actually found that if I’m not deliberately looking for mistakes to point out, I forget to say anything. I just don’t think about small mistakes and oopses enough to mention them.
Advanced colorers know that most of the time, the next coat will hide the problem. So unless the project spontaneously combusts into a burning ball of fire, the experienced person isn’t going to notice most mistakes.
Are you still a beginner because of mistakes?
If you stop everything and can’t move on until the mistake is gone
If you fix things to death
If you feel compelled to tell everyone “well it looks good except for this little part over here…”
Mistakes happen and if you obsess over every single one, you are not a mature colorer. Until you get over it, you are still a beginner.
Marker Painting Live classes are live coloring demonstrations where I make plenty of mistakes on-camera. If you’re intermediate to advanced level with Copics, get more info on the classes here:
Beginner is a State of Mind!
Only YOU know if you're still a beginner.
It’s not about how great the coloring looks, it's about how much concentration it took to make it great.
5 things beginners think about:
1. The Flick stroke
Or any other stroke for that matter. Beginners have to coach themselves through the stroke making process. Intermediate and advanced colorers rarely think about the “how to” parts.
2. How to hold your marker or pencil
Intermediate and advanced students alter their grip style and location depending upon how they want the stroke to look. Beginners have a one-grip-fits-all approach.
3. Paper saturation
Beginners tend to stop before the project is truly done or they add one layer too many. They can’t quite tell when to call a project finished.
4. Paper rotation
Experienced colorers understand how to position their wrist, arm, and body for more fluid strokes and for coloring efficiency. They turn their paper automatically to maximize comfort and stroke directionality. Beginners haven’t quite developed a feel for fluidity yet.
5. Fixing mistakes
Mistakes are a big deal to beginning colorers. They get wrapped up in trying to make things perfect before moving on to the next step. With experience comes a more relaxed attitude.
There’s nothing wrong with being a beginner!
Don’t worry if you match with several of the five beginner traits.
Beginners NEED to think about this stuff.
But if you find you can do these five things really well automatically, that’s a sign that you’re not a beginner any longer.
And hey, keep in mind: nobody is a beginner forever.
This stuff naturally gets easier as you keep coloring!
So keep coloring!
Supplies used in Poinsettia Kisses:
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