What kind of colored pencils do you use? I adore the way it looks c:

These are prismacolors. :)

Bah! I have prismas, but mine always turn out so grainy! I love how smooth yours look! I'm wondering if maybe it's the paper I use :C

These are being done on sketchbook paper, since I need a thinner paper for these badges BUT I usually use Borden & Riley's pen paper. Sure its meant for pens but it is super smooth and great for colored pencils if you're not into a grainy look. :) Its smoother than bristol, not as thick, but thicker than sketchbook paper. Its also not nearly as pricey as other fancy paper which is a big plus!
http://www.dickblick.com/products/b.....aper-for-pens/

As far as smoothness on the paper I'm using for these, its been a bit of a challenge since I am used to smoother paper. I go rather light with the first layer and the pressure builds up from there. This one looked particularly messy and grainy before the last two colors came into play. I go hardest with the light pencils cause they'll smear out the darker ones. :) Go in with the light tips being really sharp, but start with light pressure to cause a hint of blending. Once there's a good layer on you can go harder and harder with it to get a nice soft looking blend. Take a bit to get down and your fingers will hate you but it seems to make for a happy after effect. :)

Bahhh! Thank you SO much! I'm looking into that sketch paper right now, and this was all just SUPER helpful! I'm already itching to go back and experiment :] I guess my only last wonder is- do your pencils break easy? I don't know what it is about ALL my prismas, but if I sharpen them too much, they just break... and it's super frustrating, and holds me back from getting the nice sharp point =/ which could also be one of my problems, I think. But I'm definitely using a super rough sketch pad, so I'm excited to work with smoother paper! :] seriously, thank you MUCHLY for the advice! It is all too kind c:

I do get the breaking problem. Some colors seem to do it more often though, which is weird. o_O I work around breakage by going in super light with the pressure when the pencil is fresh out of the sharpener. Once the tip gets a hair or two rounded off from that, it tends to break less for me. I also tend to not bring a pencil back and forth over the paper, at least not without a complete lift from the page (outlining with pencil is a bit different, same for getting into dark areas. But yeah, with the actual shading part, the pencil doesn't have to go through a sudden on-paper tension switch over, which might cause breakage for some people. Even with all this, it does happen from time to time but its no more than other pencils have ever done to me.

Well you are just my art savior <3 I'm going to keep all of this in mind, and thank you so much, super helpful once again x] I read that prismas can sometimes break all the way through and I was worried that happened, but I'll try the one direction thing- it makes definite sense. Ho man. Thank you! <3

I've maaaaybe had that happen once but I tend to drop them on carpet rather than hard surfaces. ;)

Oh man, that came out amazing! =O
Thank you so much for doing these!

Yay!! I'm glad you like it. :D

oh this is BEAUUUTIFUL ;u; all of these have been but this one is particularly stunning!

the colors and shading on this are just superb! and ohmigod the little Cheshire cat on his shoulder!!!!!

I like this one the best so far! Wooow!

ohhh Your cheshire Is sooo Cute~