I have been painting with pastels for the past three years with a break from art of over 30 years, back then I worked with oils. Currently I use mainly pan pastels using brushes and sponges, making the transition from oils relatively easy. I love the vibrancy of colour and the painterly effect I can get with pan pastels and like to take them to anything from 80% to 95% then pastel pencils for finishing touches and highlights.