Lily Coloring in Oil Pastels for Kids. Introduction to Short Strokes and Blending.

Color and Fragrance: A Beautiful Sensory Experience for Preschoolers

It was a beautiful introduction to short strokes and blending with oil pastels! Let me say, we fully enjoyed the fragrances while observing the grace and colors of the lily carefully chosen and cut from our flower garden. My Firefly (3 years old) was able to pick and name the colors of the lily flower after some prep work the previous weeks. The last one can be found here: Invitation to Play with Colors: Lollipops for Bears.

Invitation to Observe a Lily

Lilies and tulips are perfect to observe the parts of a flower. Our lily had all the parts of a flower in distinct colors. I asked My Firefly to point to the colors she noticed and choose the oil pastel of the corresponding colors from the bowl.

For this activity we used a fresh flower and green construction paper with the lily outlined; pink, green, yellow and brown shades of oil pastels, a paper towel for wiping oil pastels.

Lily Artwork: Introduction to Short Strokes

Pictured below, the steps of coloring the lily we used. The lily fragrances were so relaxing and inspiring for the creativity - we talked about it all while coloring.

1. We noticed the green midlines of the petals. The darker green was used in a long stroke.
2. The lighter green was applied in short strokes around the darker green lines. The lightest pink was applied in short strokes, starting in between the green strokes and advancing outwards.
3. My Firefly continued practicing the short strokes using darker shades of pink moving to the edges of the petals.
4. The last step: fill the remaining space around the petals using the darkest pink chosen.

Introduction to Blending with Oil Pastels

We used both techniques on this flower for practicing them. Blending was more fun for the little one: it is so forgiving. The oil pastels allow for the hiding mistakes by layering the shades again and again.

1. For blending we moved the opposite way: from darkest to lightest. We used the lighter shade to smooth the edges and transition to the lighter color. She colored moving from the edges towards the inside of the petal.
2. Outlining the petals was a favorite. She outlined the flower twice: first with the darkest pink, then with the lightest pink. This makes the lily pop from the green background.
3. My Firefly put the dots on the lily using the pink-red shade.
4. She drew a stem using light brown, and two shades of green. To draw a leaf, she outlined a fresh leaf we had. The leaf is colored using long strokes in light and medium green, outlined in yellow.

 

Coloring a Beautiful Lily from the Garden

It was a beautiful experience! My little one is not usually into coloring activities. The rich sensory input helped her concentrate on the project and use her best effort - so wonderful!

For more inspiration for coloring activities, please, visit here: Tips for Making Coloring Activities Fun .

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