Tag: pen and ink

Pen and Ink and… Watercolor?

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My reference photo was blurry, taken in low light after the sun went down. Instead of putting in a detailed background and adding a lot of contrast to the deer, I kept everything soft.

Honest-to-goodness watercolor, something I set aside years ago in favor of pencils and fountain pens. I’m getting ready for a watercolor workshop, so I bought a few new brushes, some M. Graham watercolors, and tried a new paper, Canson rough. I think the break was needed. I’ve spent a lot of time sketching and taking a design course in embroidery, and I have a different process than before. It’s funny how much I enjoyed painting these deer, but using a brush! That will take some getting used to.

The truth is, only on occasion do I use fountain pens with sharp line work. Most of the time, my pen and ink sketches look like watercolor.

Pen and ink in a Strathmore 500 sketchbook. This is a rooster who lives at our new boarding stable. He’s a friendly fellow.
Monochromatic but still watercolor-ish. Pete, drawn with Monteverdi Blue Azure and the amazing Sailor Realo with a Zoom nib, my all-time favorite pen.

Categories: Art Ink Pen Watercolor

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Traveler’s Notebook

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Several years ago the traveler’s notebook trend began, but I wasn’t paying attention. I am now, however, and have not one but two: the standard size (above) and an A5 (below). I prefer the A5 as it’s just that much wider and the notebooks stay open while I’m sketching. Yes, I did buy a bigger purse to carry my art supplies on a daily basis.

I carry this in my purse every day, and deciding what tools to bring with is a small challenge. I’ve been happy with some primary color Neocolor II crayons, a waterbrush, some primary colored pencils, and a variety of pens and graphite. Probably too much.

A traveler’s notebook is a cover with elastic bands in the fold that hold a variety of notebooks, planners, folders, etc. Once you fill up a book, swap it out for another. The standard size has a nice sketchbook, but the A5 doesn’t have as many to choose from, so I’ve decided to make my own out of sketch, multimedia, and watercolor papers.

Even though I’m carrying a notebook for writing, I’m mostly using this as a place to sketch. Having a limited, primary color palette is great fun. I seem to be more creative with limitations.

I’ve asked myself, why not just carry a sketchbook? The answer is, I like the cover, the bands, the variety of inserts I can create. I also like a smaller sketchbook that fills up quickly.

What’s next? A super cool pencil case from Japan, still on its way here.

Categories: Art Pastel Pen Pencil Watercolor

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More Pen and Ink Drawings—and Lightfastness

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I’m sad to say I’ve done some research and discovered that fountain pen ink is not very lightfast. This lovely purple will fade to gray unless it’s kept out of the light. Sigh.

But you know what? I don’t think I care. I’m just along for the ride.

I’m hooked on using My Moonman Mini to draw. I start with a pencil sketch. I then add a layer of ink. Once the ink is dry, I erase all the pencil lines and use a water brush over the entire drawing. I let that dry, and then I reinforce the darks and any lines I want to stand out. Sometimes I add in a dreamy background by wetting areas of the surface and adding some scribbles of ink in the water.

Here’s a sweet little Chickadee from a Paint My Photo picture. I used a graphite pencil to quickly sketch this.

Here’s the next step–the basic lines are inked in, the graphite erased, and I’ve started with a water brush.

And here’s the final sketch.

I’ll keep most of these in my sketchbook, but I may investigate using a UV spray to see if it helps with fading. I’m also curious about leaving one out, knowing it will fade to a soft gray, and maybe being okay with that.

Categories: Art Ink Pen

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