Caran d’Ache products are the crème de la crème of art supplies. Any item they manufacture – whether it be colored pencils, water-soluble pencils, graphite sticks, etc. – is a shining jewel in an art supply collector’s studio.

I was introduced to the brand while meandering through my local art store and stumbling upon a giant open-stock display of Neocolor II water-soluble wax pastels. At the time, I had no idea how to use them, but the vibrant colors beckoned to me. I picked up a tin and went to my studio.

There was a bit of a learning curve. Actually, I’m still learning different techniques. Today, though, I just felt like coloring, so I did some swatches.

I used Arches Rough Watercolor Paper which turned out to be an excellent choice. Because the paper is so toothy, I only needed to make a light pass to get adequate coverage for filling in the squares.

Eventually, I’m going to cut these out and put them in my scrapbook.