A Few Links for Pen People

Need distraction from the outside world? Let me help with a few pen links. 

• Crónicas Estilográficas: More Custom 74
• The Gentleman Stationer: Favorite Pens from 2020
• The Well-Appointed Desk: 2020 Cheers and Tears
• The Well-Appointed Desk: Ink Line Review: Ink Institute Cat Daily Line
• Nick Stewart: My Top 12 Inks of 2020 and Project Review
• The Pen Addict: Diamine Marine Ink Review (Long one of my favorite inks.)
• JournalReviewr.com
• iPenstore.com: Lamy Studio in Glacier Blue (There is a Lamy Studio F on my desk at all times.)
• Pen Chalet and Montegrappa put skulls at your fingertips

Still relevant eight years later.

Sunday Reads: New Products, Ink And Paper

The ink samples were irresistible so I only ordered ten…

• Winsor & Newton reveals how they make handmade brushes
• Pen Chalet: New products on the horizon
• Bureau Direct: Blackstone Ink Swatches (For those who like sheen.)
• J Herbin Cleaning Solution Guide
• BBC: Why paper is the real ‘killer app’ (h/t Kate Matsudaira)
• Anderson Pens: Ink samples galore (Over 800 of them!)

My Gear For The New Year

Ink, pen and paper:

Sketching Kit:

Watercolor Supplies:

Accessories:

Want to purchase any of these items? Here ya go!

Ink, pen and paper: Pilot BBk,  Noodler’s Black, Diamine Mediterranean Blue, J. Herbin Cafe des Iles, Sailor Tokiwa-matsu, Stipula Calamo Sapphron, Stillman & Birn  Zeta Sketchbook, Tomoe River Paper from Paper for Fountainpens, Quo Vadis Plan & Note journal, Pilot Metropolitan, Platinum #3776 Century M, TWSBI Diamond 580 1.1, Staples Arc, Traveler’s Notebook 013

Sketching Kit: Staedtler Mars Lumograph pencils, Pentel Hi-Polymer Eraser, Prismacolor Kneaded Eraser, Lowe-Cornell tortillions, Stillman & Birn Epsilon Sketchbook, Faber-Castell Sharpener

Watercolor Kit: Martin Mijello Airtight Watercolor 18-Well Blue Palette, travel box, Stillman & Birn Beta Sketchbook, Arches 300 gsm watercolor paper, Schut Aquarelbloc 300gsm watercolor paper, Monaco Travel Case, Traveler’s Notebook 012

Brushes: Silver Brush Black Velvet Script #4, Round #8, 3/4″ Flat, Escoda Versatil Rigger #10, Isabey Petit Gris #0, SAA Gold Round #10

Tube paints for a watercolor mixing triad: Daniel Smith Cobalt Blue, Winsor & Newton Aureolin, Winsor & Newton Permanent Rose.

Watercolor Metal Travel Box with colors especially good for mixing: American Journey Aureolin, American Journey Quinacridone Burnt Orange, Winsor & Newton Winsor Red, Winsor & Newton Permanent Rose, Daniel Smith Cobalt Blue, American Journey Phthalo Blue, Daniel Smith Phthalo Green (BS)

Accessories: Coccoina glue stick, American Crafts washi tape, Bigelow Earl Grey Green Tea, Numi Chocolate Pu-erh Tea, Sadaf Special Blend Tea with Earl Grey.

 

World Watercolor Month And Supplies To Get You Started

Yesterday was the first day of the very first World Watercolor Month. It might not be on your calendar, but don’t let that stop the celebration. Angela Fehr sent an invitation to participate and I’m game. Check out Doodlewash for inspiration and use the #worldwatercolormonth hashtag when you post your watercolor sketches.

If you are new to watercolor painting, Angela has a YouTube channel that can help you get started. Her style is to let the paint do the talking without using pen or pencil to draw a scene first. It’s very loose and exciting to see the colors mix together on the paper.

Another method is to draw a subject and use paint to fill in the color. It reminds me of a coloring book and works very well in a journal. Teoh is an urban sketcher who does it that way.

Want to give it a go? All that’s needed is paint, brush, a container for water, and of course water. Here are some products from Amazon.com to get you started.

• Winsor & Newton Cotman Water Color Pocket PLUS Set of 12 Half Pans – Student grade paint in a box with plenty of mixing space. Comes with a small brush.
• SCHMINCKE Half Pan Watercolor Pocket Set (74012097) – Artist grade paint in a sturdy metal box. Comes with a very good Da Vinci #5 travel brush.
• Daniel Smith 285610005 Extra Fine Essentials Introductory Watercolor, 6 Tubes, 5ml – Mix your own with this set of basics designed to produce clean, clear colors.
• Martin Mijello Airtight Watercolor 18-Well Blue Palette – A good container for the Daniel Smith tube paints.
• DaVinci Cosmotop Spin Watercolor Brush Round Size 8 – No single brush will do it all, but a size 8 is a versatile choice.
• Princeton Snap! Brush (Set of 3) – These are larger brushes, but the Snap line offers very good control. Use them at different angles for a variety of stroke widths.
• Arches Cold Press Watercolor Pad, 9″X12″– Arches is the brand most often mentioned as a favorite. Cold press refers to the production process and denotes a paper than has some texture.
• Stillman & Birn Zeta Series – Journals with smooth paper that handle watercolor as well as markers and fountain pens.
• Stillman & Birn Beta Series – Journals with cold press paper for mix media including watercolor.
• Winsor & Newton Cotman Water Color Travel Bag – The whole kit and caboodle in one place.

If you want to minimize your investment, Cotman is as good as it gets for student grade paint and it is much better than the stuff sold for kids. Student grade can have more fillers and be less lightfast than artist grade, but it’s good enough to get acquainted with watercolor painting. The box can be refilled with artist grade colors as needed.

Just as important as the paint is the quality of the paper. Crummy paper will yield unsatisfactory results even with top quality paint. Buy the best you can or you may never know how much fun painting can be.

For a newbie, a synthetic brush can offer more control than natural hair and provide a good transition from writing and drawing to painting with watercolor. If you are only investing in one brush, buy one with a good point for lines and details. You can always paint with the side of the brush when more coverage is needed.

So there you go. World Watercolor Month and the few tools needed to participate. Are you on board?

That’s A Wrap For 2013

Some items new for 2013 along with favorites from years past:

The List

• Writing ink – Noodler’s Purple Martin, Squeteague, Beaver, Black, Tiananmen and Black Swan in Australian Roses. Diamine Mediterranean Blue, Vermilion and Emerald. Iroshizuku syo-ro, Sailor Sky High and Stipula Verde Muschiato.
• Drawing ink – Noodler’s Lexington Gray and Kiowa Pecan
• Round nib fountain pen – Platinum #3776 Century Chartres Blue B
• Stock stub or italic exotic nib – Platinum #3776 music nib
• Stock flexible nib – Namiki Falcon SF
• Custom stub or italic – Levenger True Writer Masuyama stub
• Brush pen – Pilot “New Brush in Character”
• Writing paper – Tomoe River
• Doodle journal/notebook – Stillman & Birn Epsilon Sketchbook
• Most beautiful journal/notebook – Paperblanks Silver Filigree in Maya Blue
• Paper for lists at my desk – Anything from Rhodia
• Watercolor brush – Isabey 8234 Petit Gris Squirrel Quill Mop #0 and #2, Daniel Smith 44-08 Kolinksky Sable #3 and #5
• Watercolor tube paint – Winson & Newton Scarlet Lake, Cobalt Violet, Permanent Rose and DS Green Gold
• Watercolor pan paint – Jackson’s Genuine Carmine and French Ultramarine Blue
• Watercolor line – Tie between Daniel Smith and Winsor & Newton tube paints but currently exploring Jackson’s Pan Watercolors

The Images

Writing ink

Drawing ink – Noodler’s Lexington Gray and Kiowa Pecan

Round nib fountain pen – Platinum Century B

Stock stub or italic exotic nib – Platinum #3776 music nib

Stock flexible nib – Namiki Falcon SF on Rhodia paper

Custom stub or italic – Levenger True Writer Masuyama stub

Brush pen – Pilot “New Brush in Character” in a Stillman & Birn Epsilon Sketchbook

Most beautiful journal/notebook – Paperblanks Maya Blue Ultra Silver Filigree

Watercolor brush – Isabey 8234 Petit Gris Squirrel Quill Mop #0 and #2, Daniel Smith 44-08 Kolinksky Sable #3 and #5
Watercolor tube paint – WN Scarlet Lake, Cobalt Violet, Permanent Rose and DS Green Gold
Watercolor pan paint – Jackson’s Genuine Carmine, French Ultramarine Blue

So that’s what’s on my list. What made it to yours?

Note: Reviews of Tomoe River paper, Paperblanks journals and Jackson’s Watercolors are in the works.

Note: Three programs emerged as incredibly useful, Evernote, Janetter for Twitter and MalwareBytes. Spotify is my choice for music and OmmWriter for distraction-free writing.

Historical Note: In 1884 Lewis Waterman developed the fountain pen. He took 10 years to perfect his invention.

Using A Nightmare For Inspiration

Whether writing or painting, working a nightmare, or any dream for that matter, into a doodle journal can provide new subjects for exploration.

Use related words and make them big and bold. Use watercolor or markers to sketch anything that might represent the mood or emotion. Representational or abstract or anywhere in between will do. You might find inspiration for another project from your musings and drawings. Take advantage of fertile ground wherever you find it.

Winsor & Newton Scarlet Lake caught my fancy recently and I started with a rectangle of it painted with an Isabey Quill Mop #4. After that thoroughly dried, I added words with a Pilot “New Brush in Character” brush pen. Then I listed the tools used and added a squiggle border with more Scarlet Lake and a Simply Simmons #2 liner brush. The journal is a Stillman & Birn Epsilon Sketchbook that handled the watercolor wash nicely.

Design-wise the calligraphic border should have gone to the top of the color swatch and ended with a flourish. Exploring the pen’s handling of an uppercase F worked out well, but other letters turned out more unique. More on those at a future date.

Another Basic Watercolor Palette

Here is the latest iteration of my basic palette tucked in a Winsor & Newton metal box.

These are tube paints squirted into full sized pans from Daniel Smith. Indian Yellow and Scarlet Lake are from Winsor & Newton. Hansa Yellow Medium, Cobalt Blue, Ultramarine Turquoise, Green Gold, Sap Green, Perylene Green, and Shadow Violet are from Daniel Smith. Raw Sienna, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber, Alizarin Crimson, and Ultramarine Blue are American Journey colors from Cheap Joe’s.

The green paints seldom get used, but I like to have them handy. It may be more satisfying to mix yellow and blue to make a color that is harmonious with the basic triad (yellow, red, blue) of a painting. However, Daniel Smith Green Gold is so beautiful that I make an exception for it. Sometimes I like a green that pops off the paper and Sap Green does that well. Perylene Green is subtle, has a huge range and is useful for landscape subjects like trees, mountains, and greenery. Sometimes I just want to paint rather than fiddle with color. These three paints make that easy.

Ultramarine Turquoise is uncommon in a basic palette, but it is very good for mixing and can produce a lovely pale teal. So it earns a spot in most of my kits.

Shadow Violet is at the experimental stage. It might get swapped for Neutral Tint or Payne’s Gray or it might not. For now, I am undecided.

A few favorites did not make the cut. Daniel Smith Transparent Pyrrol Orange and Quinacridone Rose plus AJ Quinacridone Burnt Scarlet would have been included, but there is only so much room in a 14-pan palette. Maybe next time.