1.Velazguez began with canvas.

2.He would size with a thin application of rabbit skin glue, scrubbed into the weave rather than laid on as a solid layer. 14 parts water to 1 part glue granules.

3.A ground is applied with oil priming white. This was scraped on with a broadly curving knife. Two coats of scraped applications. The white ground is then covered with a reddish brown ground, something like a burnt siena or umber.

4.Velazguez would then begin painting the figure directly from life onto the canvas with transparent lead white, color, and a large rodent hair brushes. He would immediately lay in the light mass with course strokes and indicate the shadow mass by using a little lead white on the edge showing the reflected light.

5.Glazes, and velatura are applied with similar translucency in every stage, but the final highlight stage. Velazguez appears to mix colors both mechanically and optically.

6.Glazing serves to darken and unify shadow areas while velatura (glazing with white plus a color) is used to model the light mass and light zones. Velazguez, in the final stages of the painting uses impasto applications of both light and dark colors most especially black and white in order to create an optical vibration between the opaque layer and the translucent ones below.