Hello artists! My name is Michelle Boris of @doublemlettering (you can call me Missy).  I’m a brand ambassador for Zebra Pen USA and a hand lettering/laser cut artist living in central Texas with my little family of three (+1 rescue dog named Millie).

I am here to share this easy tutorial of blending the Zensations Colored Pencils together for a gradient effect. Let’s get started.

Materials Needed

Step 1: Sketch Words

On the smooth paper go ahead and sketch some words with the Zensations Tect 2Way Technical Pencil. Once you have your words sketched out, use the STEEL PM-701 Permanent Marker to trace the final letters.

Step 2: Practice Blending

Now it’s time to select some of the brilliant colors from the Zensations Colored Pencils (this is FUN stuff)!  These colored pencils are so cool because of the triangular barrel (so they won’t roll around your table), and they are retractable and refillable.

From the above image you can see some ideas for color blending or select what works for you.

Step 3: Color in Small Sections

Take the lightest color of the Zensations Colored Pencil you are working with and color in a small area of your letter. Short uneven strokes work great.

Once the lighter color is drawn, take the darker color and blend through the uneven strokes of the lighter color.  You will start to see the blending happen. To finish the look, you can take the lighter color and use small strokes over the darker color. There is no exact science to this technique, so do whatever works best for you.

Step 4: Keep on Blending

Continue the process outlined in Step 3 with all your letters until the blending is complete. Feel free to use the white colored pencil over the color blends to smooth out the blending as needed.

Step 5: Keep Practicing

Here is the final result. At the tip of each Zensations Colored Pencil is a number. For easy reference, use the above image to see the numbers/colors I used. Keep practicing the color blends and have fun.

I hope this easy tutorial for blending the Zensations Colored Pencils was helpful and gives you something fun to try with your lettering or art projects. I would love to see when you try this. Go ahead and tag me on IG with @doublemlettering. For more word art inspiration, check out How to Create Ribbon Lettering.

Now go have some fun!