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When Your Pen Leaks Make It a Feature
Here’s a sketch from 2018 when I was doing some experiments to find my favorite toned paper for mixed media. I was testing a bunch of different chipboards. They soak up watercolor and gouache but you can use acrylic markers on them. Most I found were too expensive (when you locate them and pay postage) […]
Notes to Yourself in Your Journal
I find the practice of making even brief notes during or at the end of a sketching session help me focus where I want to go next. If something turns out too elongated I try again, often with a different pen or tool, as I did here. And I might even make a small diagram […]
Different Watercolor Papers Take Paint Differently
Different watercolor papers take paint differently. The higher the quality of the paper the better the fibers and sizing used to make it will interact with your paints (which need also to be quality artist paints). If you’re having an issue, like the one I was on this spread (read my handwritten comments), and on […]
The Property Brothers Make Change Seem Easy (with Hard Work)
I’m probably the only person on the planet who sees “Property Brothers” as a show about change, adaptation, and living in the present moment. (As I write this I’m also including “Property Brothers: Buying and Selling,” as I watched them all simultaneously; and I have since started watching the new, “Property Brothers: Forever Home.”) While […]
In Context: Whacky Sketching Mistakes
Sometimes the hand zigs when you want it to zag and something odd, like a dictator’s stare, seems like an intentional message from our subconscious.
In Context: Looking at the Arteza Watercolor Book Part 9
Doing a Tape Test in the Arteza Watercolor Book I use Nichiban Artist’s tape 99.9 percent of the time when I want to tape something. It works well on my favorite papers—it’s one of the reasons those papers are my favorite papers, I’ve found a tape that works with them. But many watercolorists like to […]
In Context: Looking at the Arteza Watercolor Book Part 8
Again I didn’t write anything on this journal page, so it’s a bit weird for “In Context” but it’s one more in my series of mini review comments on the Arteza Watercolor Book. What I enjoyed on this spread was the manner in which I could get some delicate wash techniques. I was using a […]
In Context: Looking at the Arteza Watercolor Book Part 7
This is me using up left over watercolor paint and working opaquely (for the most part) in the Arteza Watercolor Book. This paper is fine for working opaquely with either watercolor or gouache. I find the paper is a bit draggy when working opaquely, especially with my watercolor flats. I find myself wishing I’d chosen […]
In Context: Looking at the Arteza Watercolor Book Part 5
On this page of my Arteza Watercolor Book I was testing fountain pens—using my Sailor Fude Fountain pen with Platinum Carbon Black ink. The pen moves well on the slightly textured paper. The ink settles quickly and doesn’t bleed when you add your washes. (I go in pretty quickly with my washes so I […]
In Context: Looking at the Arteza Watercolor Book Part 4
Since there is no writing on this page in my Arteza Watercolor Book—direct brush painting with watercolor. I used a 5/8 inch flat wash brush and also a size 10 watercolor round for some of this. I should have worked a little harder to make enough wash for the background to not […]