Tag: scratchboard

Claybord Birds

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These are both 6”x6” Ampersand Claybord panels with ink for the backgrounds and a combination of graphite, ink, and scratchboard techniques for the birds and branches. I can use a spray varnish on these and simply pop them into a frame, which is a real plus when using a surface like Claybord.

I love using this type of surface compared to paper because it’s both an additive and subtractive process. I add in colors, shapes, and values, and then I can scratch and erase detail and highlights. With these two birds, I used graphite for shadows and dulling some of the bright white lines that happen with scratching.

Categories: Art Ink Pencil

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Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker

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I snapped a picture of this medium-sized woodpecker this weekend and discovered it’s a female yellow-bellied sapsucker. I took a 6”x8” Ampersand Claybord that had the start of a project that wasn’t going well and painted black ink over it. This drawing is mostly scratchboard with some additional Ampersand ink for the tree and bird highlights.

Categories: Art

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Coffee Warmer as a DIY Heated Surface

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A cheap way to try out using heat with colored pencils and crayons is to use a small, inexpensive coffee warmer. Mine gets up to 130 degree (F), which is probably too warm, but it works fine as a way to melt wax to see what happens.

I sampled a variety of pencils and crayons, finding the Neocolors melting the quickest, but all of them worked to some extent.

I chose a $15 coffee warmer that was smooth on top. This one turns on when there’s weight on it, and it only has one setting.

This very, very quick drawing was done on drafting film with melted Neocolors and then scraffito techniques. Certainly not my best effort but overall fun and very creative feeling.

Doesn’t this one look like a coloring book? I drew in the horse first and then melted it afterwards, blending the colors with a clay shaper. Honestly, I’m not certain I’ve hit upon a look I like with using heat, but it’s very intriguing all the same.

Categories: Art Pastel Pencil

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