I began painting in oils after I was already an adult and painted sporadically while raising children and working. I fell into working in pastels through an accidental encounter in an art class and fell in love with the immediacy of the medium. I love the effect of the pastel on the various surfaces and the vibrancy of them-other than my hands looking like I've been working on cars most of the time, there's really no downside. I haven't abandoned oils and currently paint in both.