6x8 oil stick in progress (Butch the Barber in the Caboose)

 I used the blender stick to cover the canvas panel before starting. It gave a yellow cast and took several days to dry. Then sketched the overall shapes in colored pencil before starting to paint.

Blocked in the basic shapes with underneath colors. Yellow ochre for the box car and green for the darks plus a moss green for grayish areas. The light blue I have is not a clean blue.

Let it dry overnight. Did not dry in 1 hour. Might be due to the 80F+ weather and high humidity.

Started adding basic colors and refining shapes. I'm keeping the oil sticks in a plastic box so they don't skin over so fast. Had to peel off quite a thick skin using a plastic knife. Fingernails work OK but then you have paint under your finger nails. Using rolled up bits of paper towel to blend.

 Here's the picture of Butch that I took. I see some things I need to change.