Day 235 – Buttons

February 25, 20152 Comments

making me cross eyed. More homework. Love the brown De Artremos document ink. Delicious. On Strathmore 500 Mixed Media paper.

This took about 6 hours and is about 8×11 “. There are about 115 buttons. It’s almost impossible to count them.

A friend asked me how do you do it? I told her one button at a time. I probably should not have drawn it I. Two three hour sessions. It could literally been drawn one button at a time whenever I had time.

After about three hours.

After an hour or so.

Fun exercise. Give it a try!!!

Day 234 – Cross Hatching

February 24, 2015Leave a comment

And other fun ways to draw!!

I have an extensive button collection. How many cans of them do I have? You don’t want to know. This is a few of them.

It took three or four hours to draw and cross hatch them all. I was really pleased I didn’t have any ink smears like I usually do. For once I worked left to right. No pencil was used drawing the buttons. I did pencil I the letters so I could get them spaced out correctly.

All that clean background paper demanded zero messes on the letters. I frequently get into trouble when I start scribbling all over the drawings like I am prone to do. Then I collage over the words. If you see a sketch collaged you can just about be sure theres a mess under the paper.

Done with my Noodler Creaper Ahab on Strathmore 500 mixed Media journal paper.

A Sbs assignment was to practice continuous writing. I think I did that.

A quote from a funny friend on a blank page in my Handprint journal with a pink Varsity Pilot pen. This is the third attempt.

The others follow. I learned that paper and pen does matter when writing these quotes. The handprint journal did not bleed like the Strathmore did when using a fountain pen.

Varsity pilot pens again on another blank page in the old handprint journal. There were two blank pages because I really hate using watercolor in this journal though it is supposed to be watercolor paper.

Another Noodler on the Strathmore 500. It seemed to catch on the paper. This looked to be an easy exercise but it wasn’t. Just trying to space the writing out wasn’t easy.

This is a great pen I got last week from Goulet so I really think half the problem was the Strathmore 500. Not smooth enough for calligraphy. The rest was this was harder than it looks!! Spacing the words out is hard when you have been programmed for years to quit writing after each word.

The fly page of a Moleskine watercolor journal. The paper was terrible to write on. But don’t you love the quote!? This is not done on the regular Wc paper in the journal but the back of the page that you wrote your name on.

Kilimanjaro paper with a Varsity Pilot Pen. Not bad. The pen liked the paper and didn’t stick to it like some of the others.

I guess you could conclude that the paper has a lot to do with how easy it is to do calligraphy. If your assignment didn’t turn out well try another paper.

Thanks for looking!!

Day 233 – Madly Sketching

February 23, 2015February 23, 20152 Comments

Nothing unusual about that is there?

Both of these are on Strathmore 500 Mixed Media and done with my beloved Noodler Creaper Ahab.

grantchesterbw

I drew this last nite while I was watching Grantchester on PBS Mystery. Mystery is my favorite show on PBS. I just love Grantchester, and of course it doesn’t hurt that the hero James Norton is such a cutie.I wasnt wild about him in Murder at Pemberly….too foppish for me. BUT in Grantchester he plays a wounded but sweet guy.I looked at his face and though as square as his face is its NOT hard to draw and I was right. His partner Robson aka Geordie was NOT as easy to draw though I think it looks like him. His face is too wide. I did draw him off the tv.

His side kick Robson Green is not bad either. He’s been a favorite of mine since his show Wired in the Blood where he’s a profiler. Wired in the Blood is A VERY creepy show set in Scotland. Even my sons love it!

I don’t seem to be able to leave them in black and white. I finally threw in the towel and colored it with my Caran d’ache watersoluble crayons. Was nice curled up on the sofa coloring and them painting with the water brushes.

Some of the lettering in this version was done with the Kuretake- the heavier lettering. I have five of Kuretakes and rarely use them. I was so surprised because I kept adding words and the Kuretakes dried INSTANTLY. I painted over the lettering at the top immediately after writing it…usually a guaranteed bleed with my Pentel Brush Marker especially when its heavy like the word Grantchester.

I think it got a little cluttered…I kept adding words to it as I thought more about the characters…I could have done a better job organizing it!!

My faithful companion Zoe snuggling on the sofa while Mom aka me messes with the computer. I think I am drawing a dog everyday lately. Well most days!! Zoe is helpful laying next to me on the sofa.!! This one is still in black and white. I had just watched Andrea Joseph’s video in SBS…maybe where I got the idea for all the crosshatching?? Or maybe its because I drew her with the brush marker yesterday. I wanted to see what the Noodler would do with her fur…MUCH easier to draw and get good results. I dont know why people complain about their Creapers. I LOVE mine…had it four months without a problem.

Thanks for looking!!

Day 232 Sunday Experiments

February 23, 2015February 23, 20152 Comments

A grey rainy Sunday makes for a good day to draw the birds at the feeder. Two double page spreads and two single pages later I think I am done. One page of Zoe too.

I was trying to get the hang of drawing with the Pentel brush pen making those fine lines Roz Stendahl gets with hers. Not easy. I drew two pages in the Strathmore 500 Mixed Media journal then changed to the Stillman and Birn Zeta hoping it’s smooth paper would make drawing with the pen easier.

I even changed to a Kuretake brush pen by the page labeled p. 3 to see if it made it easier to draw fine lines. Kuretake pens, another Japanese pen, seemed to dry much quicker than my beloved Pentel brush pen which never fails to run when I hit it with water when I paint. The Kuretake did NOT run even if I got water on it right after drawing with it…VERY quick drying.

FYI I bought my Kuretakes at Binders in Atlanta -the only Atlanta art store I have ever seen them in. The Pentel Brish Pen which is supposed to be permant is at all three Atlanta art stores but cheapest at Sam Flaxs in Midtown.

Not being able to leave the drawings alone I colored all the pages in the Stillman and Birn Zeta but not the Strathmore 500 Mixed Media journal. All the pages were colored with Caran D’Ache watersoluble crayons which are such fun. Drawings were done with ink only…no pencil used.

These are the birds done with the Pentel pen on Strathmore 500. It did seem to do a great job on the sketches of Zoe down in the right corner.

First page in the Stillman and Birn Zeta still with Pentel brush pen.

Some of this was done with the Kuretake pen. The chickadee with the smear is the Pentel brush pen …even an hour later it was still NOT dry.

The doves stuck around for quite a while today. Like the gobbling finches and squirrels I am sure they were hungry. I have been going thru the bird seed this week – 10 lb so far.

Drawing Zoe was so much fun with the brush pens that I decided to draw a bigger pic of her. I used both pens on her fur. I think it was easier to make the fine lines with the Kuretake. Whichever you use it really takes a very light touch to get a fine line. I DONT have a light touch whether it’s pen or pencil. MORE practice required!!

Not as full as the other pages. I needed a nap after I did this one. It was beginning to pour and only the bravest animals were at the feeders by then.

Did the pen make a difference?? THe Kuretake was definitely faster drying and much more waterproof than the Pentel. I hate to tell you how many times I have had the Pentel bleed HOURS after I drew with it. Try the Kuretake pen, a disposable pen, if your Pentel brushes are giving you trouble. Maybe the bristles are a little stiffer?! As one of my first graders Dresean once told me That’s all I got Miz Hunt!!

Did the papers make a difference?? I really couldn’t tell that it was easier to draw with the brush markers on the S&B or the Strathmore 500. Maybe I need that Japanese journal Roz raves about on Roz all wound up?! HMMMM.

Thanks for looking!

Day 228 – A Bit of Fun

February 18, 2015February 18, 20154 Comments

Squirrels are the bane of bird feeders. Pesky things. Ours are so bold. They leap and attack it or they climb upside down on the chain to gorge at the suspended feeder. They even use the screens on the nearby porch as a get away.

One of them was posing on the deck outside the window. I caught him actually behaving. Later on when one of them was hanging off the feeder upside down I decided to turn it into a Wanted poster after all they are thieves aren’t they?! So naughty.

He was drawn with Tombow Markers. I have four or five of them and used the range of greys to shade and sculpt him. Then I wet him down to let the colors mix on the Strathmore 500 mixed Media Paper. I don’t know why I use the Tombows because according to Roz Stendahl they are not archival. The colors are fugitive. So sad because they are such fun to use and give such a neat effects when wet.

Since I don’t have a brown Tombow I used caran d’ache watercolor crayons for the browns and yellows.

I also used a big white Pitt matker to make him look more fluffy especially on his tail. Love that pen!!!

I used a scrap of old yellow ledger paper because I didn’t like the original layout. If you can’t fix it glue over it and try again. And then it becomes mixed media, right?!

Stay warm. Thanks for looking.

Day 227 More birds

February 18, 2015Leave a comment

I haven’t felt well since last week. I could be an ad for an allergy commercial and am on my third box of puffs. KeRChOO!!!

I have been sitting on the sofa watching HBO romantic comedies like Runaway Bride and watching the birds. Of course next thing I am sketching the ones that longer at the feeder.

The chickadee actually sat for a while. Usually they dart in and leave quickly. But this guy stayed for a while. Long enough to draw him. The cardinal sat on the rail for a while. I really like the way the cardinals turned out and the wrens.

I really love the cute little wrens. He actually sat on the deck for a while staring up at the feeder as if he was trying to decide if there was food up there.

This guy sat on the feeder for at least a half an hour. He was all fluffed up and just wallowed in the tray on the feeder.

I had quite a few problems. You can see in the next page it was plain so I added the old ledger paper to perk it up a little. But I still thought it was boring and added the blue background. Then I got into trouble because the word Goldfinch done with my usually reliable Carbon Platinum ink smeared. I fixed the name with a scrap of kilimanjaro watercolor paper. And called it quits.

I did have a yen to draw around it with a gold marker but no idea where mine is. So I am calling it quits.

I used Strathmore 500 Mixed Media paper Staedler pens Noodler Creaper Ahab caran d’aches neocolor ii

Day 217 – How to cover that Journal!

February 9, 2015February 9, 2015Leave a comment

I started with a plain Strathmore soft back mixed media Journal. I decided that if I was NOT sketching at home I had better add hard covers to it…and besides its not the prettiest book on the shelf!

Supplies I used…be sure your box cutter has a sharp blade. Makes life easier as does a metal ruler…cant cut it with the box cutter.

Supply list!

Archival paper for cover

Archival Cardboard

Green self healing mat

Parchment paper, freezer paper, waxed paper or deli wraps

PVA glue and or Modge Podge

Foam Brush

Pencil

Scissors

Metal Ruler

Sharp Box Cutter

Bone folder

Old credit card to smooth bubbles from paper

Binders clips or clothes pins to clamp edges

First I cut two heavy cardboard covers from the back of an old art tablet. Good to use archival NON acid paper so the wood pulp wont be able to eat up your sketches!

Trim all paper and cardboard with the box cutter and metal ruler to keep those edges straight!

I have a great box of marbled and other fancy papers from Paper Mojo...lots of beautiful scrap. Because its scrap none of the pieces are big enough to cover a journal entirely so I piece the covers out of coordinating papers.

Lets get started!!

Cut the paper used to cover the cardboard about 1/2″ larger than the cardboard cover. Use the bone folder to make nice folded edges.

Heres the front side of the cardboard with edges folded over. The paper is glued on! Smooth any bubbles out with either an old credit card or the bone floder.

The covers were glued onto the journal with the PVA glue.

Once the covers were glued on its time to flip over the folded edges.

Miter the corners just like wrapping a gift. CLIP diagonally across each corner to eliminate bulk. Then neatly fold in your corners. This will be covered with a piece of paper for the endpapers so the uneven paper does not show when you open the book.

I use binders clips with deli wraps inside to let the folded edges dry. You could also use parchment paper or freezer paper to do this step. Clothes pins instead of binders clips.

Time to cut the spine.

Time to cut a piece for the spine. The spine should be the width of the book including the covers and the length of the book. Clear as mud right?? The width of the spine to include the covers.

Here is a picture of the paper covering the spine. I put two hashmarks top and bottom on the center of the paper that is to cover the spine.

To make covering the spine even more of a challenge I had to center this boxy looking lattice on the spine. I folded it along each side of the spine using the bone folder to crease the paper. I then checked before I glued it down to be sure it was centered.

At the top and bottom of the spine cut a 45 degree angle and fold the paper on the spine down to cover the cardboard spine. Spines normally float free and should not be glued but my paper was thin so I decided to glue it down.

Glue the spine to the book and fold over the remaining edges. I didnt need to clamp it with the binders clips because the glue is so sticky it held. If it hadnt I would have held it in place with the clips till it dried.

Cut two pieces of archival paper to cover the insides so all your folded paper doesnt show. These are called the endpapers. Glue them down with the PVA glue.

Clamp with the binders clips and protect the book with deliwrap.

Let dry.

Glue a scrap of watercolor paper painted with pretty colors for your title!

Coat the book with Modge Podge to make it more durable.

Now go forth and draw!!

Thanks for looking!!