OK, we can’t get the whites of the paper back when we are working in pen and ink (unless we resort to the X-acto blade, or ProWhite gouache), but it’s still a useful endeavor to keep pushing with the lines.
I find that working with a dried out pen pushes me to be a little more fussy. You have more leeway initially, because you have less ink. Until of course then you don’t.
Working this way is a good time to fiddle with ideas for a visual vocabulary for plaid fabric, or to build up dark areas in the planes of the face.
When you do get a new pen, it has prepared you for making exactly the line you want to make.
So enjoy these fussy pages!
When we finish we can begin to see where we need to put the the brakes on, and that’s always a good thing too.
