It’s Easy As…

I’ve created a couple of new pages showcasing all the materials I use as well as my own personal tips on how to handle them or how I use them. I dont have any professional background when I offer this advice, it’s garnered from regular use and a lot of jumping in the deep end but I hope it helps. I would also love other people’s feedback on anything listed below.

COLOUR INKS

My new love. Using colour inks is like moving into a new house. It’s all very exciting in the beginning – new scenery, new thoughts but mostly unexplored and you’re not quite settled in. Some things are still in boxes and only the necessities have been unpacked.

My drawing style is a bit out there, but as far as exploring what these inks and other kinds of colour inks can do I still haven’t breached the surface. I have no idea what the difference is between my Winsor & Newton drawing inks and Acrylic inks, so if anyone has any info to share that would be great. Click here to read my review on colour inks.

INDIAN INK & DIP PENS

People familiar with my old blog will have seen my extensive use of Indian ink and dip pen. It’s still a favourite and I will continue to push it to its limits, despite the mess! Click here to read my review on Indian ink and dip pens.

GRAPHITE PENCIL

Not a medium I use a lot, but when I see objects sitting in natural light, my first thought is “That would look great in pencil”. I recently did a small drawing using a rubber or eraser as part of the drawing process. I quite liked it and will explore that technique more one day. Click here to read my review on graphite pencils.

INKTENSE PENCILS

Another new medium that has great colour intensity. I love its saturation. It reminds me of those picture books where all you had to do was add water with a brush and the colours would appear. Of course the paper was terrible and by the time you finished “painting” a page it looked more like a swimming pool. But it was always exciting to see colours appear from nothing just by adding water. And Inktense pencils are the same – I cant wait to add the water to see how it all comes together. Click here to read my review on Inktense pencils.

WATERCOLOURS

Watercolours have become my salt and pepper, I add it to almost everything. Especially my half pan palette. As much as I love using watercolours, I think it’s more the format which makes it so handy. You can add colour quickly to a sketch, or paint up a last minute birthday card. If you have a travel palette small enough you can even sneak into a museum or gallery. Click here to read my review on watercolours.

FELT PENS

Not sure if that’s what you call them these days. But I always make sure I have a handful of fresh pens around to use. When I use to work in a design studio I hated it when the “suits” wanted to use these pens to write with. They were under the false impression that it made their writing neater – WRONG! They were so heavy handed with them that they would push the nib into the metal bit and ruin a perfectly good pen. Bloody suits! Click here to read my review on pens.