Eyes First When Painting a Portrait

So, yes I always paint the eyes first.  It immediately gives the painting life and not just a mask.  I'm just filling in the blanks, leaving out the eyelashes and details for now.  I will darken and highlight when they are dry.

For the flesh tones, I am using Scarlet Lake, Lemon and a dot of Viridian.  I am also experimenting with a Flesh Tint.  Both of the boys have a more ruddy complexion than the girls, and the flesh tint mixed with Alizarin Crimson is giving the dark tones a lovely dark, red/orange.

I'm just loosely making my way around the face with the different tones and hues for now, with a very thin layer of paint.  No doubt I'll be going over this little face quite a few times.