Start to finish with Stephanie Blaylock, part two

Here's the second part of Stephanie Blaylock's foal painting journey. Thank you, Stephanie!

Start to Finish

by Stephanie Blaylock

When we left off, my foal was still very yellow.

I went back with a layer of pastels adding darker tones and then sealed in gloss. 

I like to use at least one layer of gloss seal halfway through so the horse doesn’t become too flat and chalky.

You can see the grain is almost gone. The little bit of texture is because I didn’t spray a heavy layer of sealer. It will smooth out with the next layer.

I’ve adding more layers of acrylic and then pastels. I’ve also gone back to my Mr. Super Clear Matte.

It’s a lot of going back and forth between the two. I sealed twice this day, once gloss and once matte. I’m almost ready for details.

I’ll probably add one more layer of washes to darken the body just a bit.

Here's a second layer of pastel on the tail.

She's almost ready for details, but not yet. I'm going to the barn!

The next day I started in on the details. This is the part of the process I LOVE.

I’m likely to be sucked into this until I can be completely happy with cell pics from all angles. I use my phone to help me see things better. This can be frustrating because my phone wants to over edit the photos.

I am dry brushing acrylics with tiny brushes, shading, filling in areas that needed more coverage, and working on the eyes and muzzle.

This is going to seem like a lot of progress, but really, it’s just sort of roughed in. 

First layer of whites. I use a mix of acrylics.

Mmy favorite detail brush came recommended by Maggie Bennett years ago, and it’s still my favorite. 

I’ve starting adding some ear fluff. Her legs need another layer or two of thin washes to have good coverage. Hooves are not done. I also haven’t added any details to the mane or tail. It’s only been a week, but it seems like forever at this point. But yes, she finally has EYES!

Side note: this is about the time I get nervous with sealer. I’ve invested so many hours. I make sure I wait for really nice low humidity warmer days. Sometimes I have to walk away from a project for a little while to get that.

To be continued...