The Sitting Reader (fauvism)

I looked into fauvism and Matisse's The Dance II. I thought I could try my own fauvism.

I had two problems. 

First, my acrylics didn't cover my pencil marks. Would any acrylics cover the pencil or should I have used oils?

Second, I had trouble controlling where the paint went. It got sloppy. I either must find much thinner brushes or follow my teachers' advice and paint larger. 

Also, after trying to adjust it, I couldn't figure out how I wanted the left foot to face.