What is Pastel?
The term pastel refers to the art medium that is in the form of a stick that consists of pigment and binder.

Types of Pastel:
Soft Pastel- Soft Pastels are the most common and widely used type of pastel, known for its vibrant colours and the ability for the drawing to be easily smudged and blended.
Hard Pastel- Hard pastels produce harder and finer lines that soft pastel and are useful for fine details and are often mixed with soft pastels to produce crisp hard lines. The colours are not as vibrant as soft pastels.
Pastel Pencils- Pencils with a pastel lead, used for fine detail but also have the bright colour and ability to smudge like soft pastels.

Oil Pastel- Has a more soft and oily consistency unlike the other dry powdery forms of pastel. These pastels are slightly harder to blend but do not require fixative on the finished piece.
Water-soluble pastels- Similar to Oil pastels but have a water soluble component which always the colours to be thinned out with water to create a wash or blend colours easily with water.

Also used with Pastel: Charcoal, Conte.

Safety Issues:
When using soft pastel never blow the dust off your work, as the dust when inhaled can cause health problems. Take the work outside and tap the back gently to remove dust.
Always wash hands after use or wear gloves in extreme cases as the pigment can be absorbed through the skin.
Only use pastel fixative in well ventilated areas.

Hints and Tricks:
Work on an easel and work from top of the paper down, this way loose pigment will drop down out of the way instead of mixing with colours already applied. Also this will prevent smudging of the work if you lean on the page when drawing.
When storing pastel sticks in a box together, store in flour to keep sticks clean.
To stop pastel from smudging after completion, spray with pastel fixative. If none is available, hairspray works just as well.
Watercolour artists work light to dark, it is best when using pastel to work dark to light.

Amazing pastel work from dA artists: