“Siletz Bay, October Morning” 9.5″ x 12.5″, Schmincke soft pastels on Sennelier 170lb pastel card, 2026
This piece was inspired by the changing landscape of Siletz Bay on an October morning of plein air painting on the fourth floor balcony of my hotel room. I delight at the sight of faint clouds of pastel dust floating away on the breeze. It was moody and misty as the day began. The lighting shifted quickly towards sunshine, sparkling off the surface of the water. I did my best to keep up.
The pastel card is wonderful as a pastel surface, but the coarser grit (compared to Ampersand Pastelbord) really tears through the pastels themselves.
“The Drain” 9.5″ x 12.5″, Schmincke soft pastels on Sennelier 170lb pastel card, 2026
Something seemed to pull me into the studio tonight, like a powerful current near a sinkhole or enormous drain.
This was painted using Schmincke soft pastels, and Henri Roche (the “Feu d’artifice” were used in the sky). This combination of pastels and paper is lovely to work with, and the specific coarseness of the page gives a peculiar smoothness to the sensation of each stroke.
“Autumn Afternoon” 11″ x 14″”, Schmincke soft pastels on Ampersand Pastelbord, 2026
A walk on a crisp autumn afternoon inspired this piece. The breeze was chilly, the leaves rustled, showing off their fall colors. It was a beautiful sparkling moment.
Photographed in full sunlight. (Not recommended for long-term placement.)
This piece takes advantage of the vibrant hues of fall in my selection of Schmincke pastels. It is available for sale.
“A Pond in the Slough” 9.5″ x 12.5″, Sennelier soft pastels on Sennelier 170lb pastel card, 2026
Inspired by treks across various savannahs and sloughs in Oregon, and particularly a recent visit to Basket Slough, looking down from the hillside towards a number of ponds and small lakes.
This piece was done using a selection of Schmincke pastels which recently entered my rotation. I’m very pleased with them.
“Nightlight” 9.5″ x 12.5″, Sennelier soft pastels on Sennelier 170lb pastel card, 2026
This one was inspired by nights camping in the forests of Oregon, surrounded by silent sentinels and quiet nocturnal creatures. Safe and snug at camp, just the string of colored lights to dispel the darkness.
This was painted on Sennelier pastel card, which is new for me (I like it, and my very first piece was done on a sample of it, but I couldn’t find a local source at the time). The pastels are Schmincke, from Germany. Quite nice to work with.
It has become increasingly difficult to source Henri Roche pastels in the US, and they’ve temporarily closed their online store. With that in mind, I decided to give Schmincke’s line of soft pastels* a try. I purchased an assortment of half stick and got started.
*This review is not sponsored content; all supplies were purchased by me, using my own funds.
Four small assortments of six half sticks made a nice general purpose assortment.
I’ll be ticking with the same details as in my prior review.
I painted two pieces using just the Schmincke soft pastels to get a feel for them.
Here’s what I observed about the Schmincke pastels:
Color characteristics: the Schmincke soft pastels have vibrant clean colors. Considerable attention is given to the tints and shades of each full saturation hue. They create contrast easily without muddying when smudged.
How they feel in my fingers: these pastels are firm and dry and very even and consistent in size. They are less brittle than the Henri Roche pigments sometimes are. I’d call them “fine”, and they feel very good to use.
How they lay down on a surface: these apply evenly and are comfortable to use. I noticed that they lay down enough color in a single stroke that I’ve almost used up a couple of them on just two pictures.
How much dust do they make? I found it easy to get coverage and lay down a heavy layer of pigment with little dust pretty easy, and the dust falls to the floor or into the dust catch of my tabletop easel. Less airborne dust than with the Blue Earth pastels, but they do create quite a bit of dust.
How easily they smudge and blend: the Schmincke pastels blend easily and smudge beautifully with a bit of pressure. They maintain the clarity of the colors when blending.
How much I enjoy using them: sometimes a particular product just works for me. I like these enough to put them in my permanent rotation. They fit neatly somewhere between the Sennelier soft pastels and the Henri Roche soft pastels. I’ll definitely be getting more of these.
“September Sunrise”, 9.5″ x 12.5″, Sennelier soft pastels on Sennelier 170lb pastel card, 2026
Inspired by a recent sunrise, seen in McMinnville, Oregon. I find sunrises give me a sense of hope. I’ve been needing them a lot more lately. This is available for sale.
This piece is my largest pastel to-date, and is also on a different surface; Sennelier pastel card. I did my very first pastel on a small sample and I was very pleased with the results. I like the coarseness of the grit on this card stock. It holds pigment well. More delightfully than the texture and tooth of the card stock, I really like how well it stays flat (unlike the Claire Fontaine Pastelmat, which reliably curls).
“What The Last Witness Saw” soft pastel on Pastelmat, 2026, 7″ x 9.5″
Inspired by the unknowns of the future we’re creating right now. Will there come a terrible dark night, silent, on some lost shore, unseen, forgotten?
This piece is painted primarily with Henri Roche pastels. (Applying white over black and maintaining the density and clarity of each requires very pure rich hues.)
Inspired by the dread and destruction of western wildfires during dry summer months. This piece is painted using Blue Earth, Sennelier, and Henr Roche pastels, on Claire Fontaine Pastelmat.
“Siletz Bay Low Tide” soft pastel on Pastelmat, 7″ x 9.5″, 2026
I took a couple days on the coast to paint. I am fascinated by the tide coming and going from Siletz Bay. The most challenging detail is tearing myself away from the view long enough to paint at all.
This piece was done using Blue Earth and Sennelier soft pastels, on Claire Fontaine Pastelmat.
