If you are new to pastels you may not know how to save your paintings and keep them in the best possible way. This is fixing.
As to why we fix it is a personal thing. Some people are of the reasoning that maybe their colours may not appear fresh. Therefore not all artists like to fix. Artists differ on this subject with some only fixing at the end, others just fixing a certain segment as the work progresses.
Should you want to fix your painting without spraying, there is something you can do. A good alternative, perhaps is, to cover the painting with a sheet of cellophane paper or even tissue, then place a board on top of this and press hard. Your pressure then makes the pastel specks go more definately into the grain of your paper. Do not apply too much pressure or this could change the texture surface of your painting.
Another way is to fix the back of your painting - this is to avoid you overspraying the painting. What happens is the fixative will soak through so that it makes the pastel damp to hold it in position, but does not really upset the surface. Some paper is pretty absorbent, therefore this is an improved way of fixing, rather than creating like a skin of fixative over not settled pigments.
I would never say that fixing is an easy task. You can use maybe a diffuser, which usually clog up. So the disadvantage being that you have to take a thin wire to them after use, so they are clean for your next usage. With these stand your distance, a good two feet away. Spray from this distance the outside first.
You will need a steady hand and spray backwards and forwards across your work slowly. Past the edges, but don't ever make a stop in the middle. The aim is to keep your arm moving, but you also only want a fine spray. It is horrible if the spray sticks somewhere and ends up dripping all the way down, most probably giving you nasty dark patches.
So now what happens? You have decided you want your painting to keep the bright colours, and yes, you really want to fix it. My suggestion would be to spray it on as you paint various parts. This needs to be done before you put on any last layer of colour or do any retouching. And this way it should keep its freshness.
Otherwise you are likely to find that you are disheartened by the fact that your work seems to be ruined by a dull effect. I also find that if you apply it this way, you will not have problems with new colours mixing amongst ones applied earlier.
To get the best and freshest colour result leave the final colour layer unfixed. The choice is yours, but like I said it is never easy!

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Article Submitted By: AnnaMeenaghan
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