Presents from Dee

Miz Dee, my intrepid sketching partner, got me some cool goodies for my birthday.

First, there's a Strathmore Visual Journal with 90 lb. Mixed Media paper. I think I might use it for the Every Day in May drawing challenge.

Second, gardening gloves with a pansy design because Miz Dee gets all a-twitter when Hubby makes me work in the yard. She says it's good for me. Sigh.

Third, an "artsy" card and bookmark by Marjolein Bastin. The bookmark says, "Nature paints with color... Friends paint with kindness and caring." The card came in an envelope sealed with a matching sticker of a paint tube mooshing out paint. Too cute!

Books, I Have a Few

(bang, bang, bang!)

"This meeting of the Notebook and Sketchbook Hoarders Anonymous meeting will now come to order. Tonight Speck will tell her story...."

(smattering of handclaps)

Hi, my name is Speck.

Hi Speck!

My story starts back in June of 2008. I wanted a sketchbook so I made my own out of stapled-together copy paper. By October of that year I was secretly craving more; bigger, better. That's when I bought my first little 4" x 6" hardbound sketchbook.

My sickness wasn't so bad back then. I filled the first little sketchbook and bought just *one* more to replace it. Then I filled the second one and replaced it with *two.*

It grew slowly after that, picking up an extra book here and there, even getting ones for gifts. Then I acquired a couple of marbled composition books for free, and a notebook for my purse.

Then suddenly this summer...I...

...I developed an obsession for lined writing journals...

(pause; downward cast eyes)


...I don't know what happened really....(lower lip quivers)


Something went...


...something went just *horribly* wrong!!!!!



*sobs*




OK, back to reality...

It isn't as bad as it looks, but I was appalled at the amount of books I have acquired (57). I didn't realize there were this many until I collected them from all their little hidey-holes and put them in a pile. Granted, some of those little itty bitty ones don't really qualify as "books", do they????

Eight of the sketchbooks (3 med, 5 small) are filled and retired as well as a medium sized writing journal.

Six of the sketchbooks have just one or two sketches in them. The two square ones are almost filled.

I'm not quite sure how to classify that stack of five Black-n-Reds in the upper right. They were bought as sketchbooks, but they have lined pages. One is about 1/3 filled with pencil sketches. I may end up writing in the others. Hey, at $5.00 each, I just picked up an armload. I'll figure out what to do with them later.

Six books are newly acquired writing journals. Who could resist a Beatles' Abbey Road or Yellow Submarine journal??? Yes, that's a little twee for someone my age, but I didn't care. They were only $4.00.

These are my current working books:

-Illustrated journal
-Writing journal
-Planner
-Pen Inventory
-Commonplace book
-Note jotter when watching TV (a ripper)
-Note jotter for desk (also a ripper)
-Note jotter for purse (another ripper)
-Mini sketchbook for purse
-Square green sketchbook for purse

Do I need an intervention, or am I merely well organized? You won't find any loose scraps of paper on my desk or in my purse. There is no artwork laying about in teetering piles.

(evil grin)

I may need a new book to keep an inventory of all my other books! Yes, yes, that's the ticket!

Pens - I Haz Sum

Thursday night at the Penaholics Anonymous meeting....

"Hi, my name is Speck."

"Hi Speck"

"I don't really have a pen addiction. I just have a *few* pens really.....


(Click to embiggen. The image links to Flickr where you can then click on the little magnifying glass and then click "view all sizes." The original (2112 x 2816) will allow you to get a hairy eyeball on the branding on the pens.)

Pen Obsession

Journaling:

Bought another pen tonight to add to my overwhelming arsenal of writing instruments. This one is a Pilot G-2 Gel Rollerball Ultra-Fine 0.38mm. It is actually for guerilla sketching instead of writing. It's a little scratchy bit it will do.

My writing pen obsession is becoming an addiction. I need them all! Every one I tell you! They will be mine!!!!!! Bwahahahaha!

...And a new pen case to hold them all.

Strathmore Visual Journals

Squee! Look what Miz Dee bought for me!

There is a 90 lb. watercolor paper, a 140 lb. watercolor paper, and a Mixed Media journal. The Mixed Media paper is amazingly smooth and I can't wait to try it out.

Miz Dee is the greatest sketch partner in the whole world!

Dreams

Journaling:

Yesterday Hubby and I drove down to Lake D'Arbonne State Park in Louisiana where Mr. Hotdog and Cindy Lou were camping. It started pouring rain as we crossed the state line and was still pouring when we arrived.

Instead of staring at each other in their tiny camper we decided to drive around and tour the state park. After getting lost looking for the spillway we decided to go shopping in Monroe. (Yes I realize that isn't a logical cause and effect but I understand what it means.)

I had admired Cindy Lou's new purse she had bought there last week on sale and decided to get one too. It was large enough to drop my journal in without being too huge. My old purse was too tiny for that. Now I can have a 5" x 8" sketchbook with me at all times instead of the tiny 3" x 4". I'll still carry it too in the front pocket.

Had to go by the big box craft store to see if they had the new Strathmore Visual Journals. Alas, no. Only the store in Dallas got them. But I couldn't leave an art supply store empty-handed now, could I? I had to buy *something.*

I've been daydreaming about painting with oils lately, but I needed supplies. I picked up a palette knife and some odorless paint thinner. Couldn't find either one locally.

These two items represent dreams more than reality since I don't even own any oil paints or a canvas on which to paint. But sometimes it's good to have things that represent your dreams so you don't forget and lose your way.

Hats Off to Women

Journaling:

This is the blank journal with the nice paper I got at Goodwill for 50 cents. It's dedicated to the nine women on the front who battled cancer. Interspersed in the blank pages are single pages with each woman's story.

The artist who watercolored the portraits on the cover lives in Little Rock. Proceeds from the sale of the journal go to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation...or they did in 2002 when this was originally published.

More Art Supplies

Journaling:

Hubby took one of my sketches to work still attached in my watercolor pad. The sketch was a gift but the pad wasn't. It never made it home. A good excuse to buy more. (Strathmore Windpower watercolor pads, 9 x 12 and 6 x 9, 40% off.)

Needed some disposable palette pads for use with acrylic paints. On sale for $1.00 each. A bargain!

A new set of Staedtler Pigment Liner pens. My current set is running dry. I love how these pens glide across the page. They are so much better than PITTs or Pigma Microns!

Pigmented ink stamp pads. All I have are little tiny stamp pads about the size of a quarter and two of them four have dried up.

Oval stamp. I'm thinking about using this on any sketch that is an EDM challenge. I'll write EDM #XX in the oval so they can be easily identified.

Also got three more photo keeper boxes, not to keep photos but my ever-growing collection of art supplies.

A DAY IN WHICH I ADD TO MY ART SUPPLY HOARD. I love those kinda days!

Off to find some supper. Poppy asked me what I wanted to eat and I replied, "Something different." Oh boy, did I get different.

Strathmore Visual Journals

Just stumbled upon this new product from Strathmore. From their current promotions website:

New Strathmore® Visual Journals are engineered to meet the intense demands of the artist's creative process. They provide greater freedom of expression, offering a full range of paper types and weights requested by artists themselves. The wire binding allows the journal to lie flat and open up 360 degrees. Journals are available in three sizes, in Drawing, Mixed Media, Smooth and Vellum Bristol, and two weights of Watercolor.

The colorful paper cover is removable leaving the solid brown textured cover.

Specs for all books:

- Spiral wire-bound on the long side
- Non-perforated pages
- Acid free

Sizes & wholesale prices
- Small, 3.5" x 5", $5.00
- Medium, 5.5" x 8", $8.00
- Large, 9" x 12", $14.00

Types

Drawing 100 lb (163 g/m2)
Heavy-weight drawing paper is excellent for pencil, colored pencil and charcoal. Also good for pastel, marker, pen and ink, light mixed media and collage techniques.
Medium surface, 84 pages/42 sheets

Mixed Media 90 lb (190 g/m2)
Medium-weight paper is great for wet and dry media including watercolor, acrylic, pen and ink, pencil, crayon, charcoal, marker and collage.
Vellum surface, 68 pages/34 sheets

Bristol – Vellum 100 lb (260 g/m2)
Vellum finish is great for any dry media including pencil, charcoal and pastel. Also good for pen and ink, marker and collage.
Vellum surface, 48 pages/24 sheets

Bristol – Smooth 100 lb (260 g/m2)
Smooth surface is excellent for traditional and specialty pen and ink techniques, marker and collage.
Smooth surface, 56 pages/28 sheets

Watercolor 90 lb (190 g/m2)
Medium-weight paper is great for watercolor, acrylic and collage. Also good for pen and ink, pencil and marker.
Cold press surface, 68 pages/34 sheets

Watercolor 140 lb (300 g/m2)
Heavy-weight paper is excellent for watercolor and collage. Also good for acrylic, pen and ink, pencil and marker.
Cold press surface, 44 pages/22 sheets

I'm not a "visual journal" kinda girl slathering gesso and collaging things into my daily journal, but several aspects of these books caught my eye.

1.) The pages aren't micro-perfed for easy tear-out. THANK THE SWEET BABY JESUS AND THANK YOU STRATHMORE! Micro-perfed pages are just stupid. If I want to remove a page from the binding I can work an X-acto knife and scissors just fine thankyouverymuch.

2.) BOUND watercolor paper not in a casebound journal, in portrait format, and at a reasonable price, with plenty of pages that are not micro-perf.

3.) BOUND vellum and Bristol papers. I searched and searched and could only find this in single sheets or tape bound pads.

So, added to my art supply wish list is a medium Bristol-Smooth and a large 90lb Watercolor. Woot!

Hopefully Michaels, Hobby Lobby or Dick Blick will carry these. If not, they're just another pipe dream for me.

Oh, and Strathmore, if you find this post, update your website. I couldn't find a direct link to these journals. NOT. GOOD. BUSINESS.

Polka-Dotted Art Case

Squeeee! Momma went shoppin'! I couldn't resist the polka-dotted and hot pink knitting needle case for only $3.99. What a bargain!

It works great as an art pen & pencil case.



It has two big, deep pockets for papers and photos. My favorite calligraphy markers actually fit in them! At 8" long they don't fit in most spaces designed for storing pens.

The slots are generous enough to hold the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen and Niji waterbrush. Both are so fat they don't fit in any loops or slots designed for pencils.

Granted it's a little excessive for *just* pens and pencils, but my little folding travel watercolor palette nestles in the top part where there are no pencil slots.

Squee!

Now I don't have to go fishing around in an open pencil box to find the correct Implement of Destruction because each one has its own designated slot. Most Excellent!

Shiny Things...

Journaling:

Shiny Things...

...that I wantwantwant
but don't needneedneed.

Not sure this yarn keeper thingy is practical, but I really liked the colors and design of the top fabric.

This knitting needle case caught my eye simply because it was black and white polka-dotted with hot pink trim. Another instance where I could have used the paint color "Opera."

I want a big ol' floppy mop brush that will hold lots of paint. Don't need one because I don't paint on a large scale. Still wantwantwant.

Paint. What can I say? One can never have too much paint. I want a tube of every color made. Lately I've been lusting after some Daniel Smith Quin Magenta.

I keep trying to convince myself those needle cases would be good for art pen storage.

Blicked Again

A box from Dick Blick arrived on the doorstep today. Yay! It's official, I now have more art supplies than a hobbyist doodler is allowed.

Hubby is muttering "hoarder" under his breath from across the room.

Booty for today:

-Set of Reeves Gouache, 24 x 12ml tubes (the guy on the racing bicycle is on the front of the box.)

-Set of Staedtler Calligraph Duo calligraphy markers in black, blue, red, green and purple. They have waterproof ink so I can watercolor over them.

-A masquepen for laying down tiny lines of masking fluid for watercolor work. I tried dipping toothpicks and sewing needles in my jar of masking fluid then painting with them. That just didn't work. Sometimes ya gotta break down and buy the right tool.

-Winsor & Newton watercolors, 14ml tubes, Titanium White and Permanent Alizarin Crimson. I simply needed those.

-A brown Pigma Brush pen and a brown Pigma Micron 05 for the gridded journal. I already had a Pigma Micron 005 in brown. I love the color of these pens against the creamy pages and brown grids.

-Gray Blending Stumps, 12 assorted, for working with different drawing pencils. I found I needed more than one because when I switched pencils the stump still had residue from the last pencil and it cross-contaminated my drawing. Ugh.

I feel like a kid at Christmas. I have so many new toys I don't know which one to play with first!

More Art Supplies I Didn't Need

Journaling:

Hit yet another crap aisle at yet another Wal-Mart to buy more art supplies I didn't really need.

Found two Cachet Earthbound Recycled Sketchbooks with wonderfully toned kraft paper. I had looked for sketchbooks with toned paper on-line but couldn't find any. Whooda thunk I'd find them at Wal-Mart? Also found a top wire-bound Canson sketchbook marked way down for clearance that I couldn't pass up.

Then I went back to the art supply section to see what I couldn't live without. Found an introductory set of acrylics. I've had a hankering lately to paint with acrylics but didn't want to spend a whole lot. After 3-4 paintings my acrylic itch will probably be satisfied. Had to get some suitable acrylic paper too of course.

On a whim I also got a set of oil pastels. I'm not a big fan of pastels because of the dusty mess, but I thought the oil base in these might diminish that. They are still messy but in a gooey way.

Wow! They really lay down some intense color! They can be smudged around with my finger to make a satiny finish. These may be messy but boy will they be fun to play with!

Spring Cleaning

Journaling:

Was seized with a fit of spring cleaning today. My stuff was stuck hither and yon (albeit neatly) all around my workspace. To find a particular sketchbook I had to look in five or six places. Argggh!

I cleaned out this little triangular shelf that was decorated with nautical stuff. I needed the utility space more than cutesy nicey-nice.

Collected all my arty creative books, sketchbooks, journals and art toys and fit them in the shelf. It's a little short for the tall books to stand up and the triangular space was a pain, but it all fit...for now.

I may have to put the completed journals on the top shelf next to the ceiling. Hate to do that because I would need a step stool to get to them and I refer back to them quite a bit.

I also culled and disposed of three banker's boxes of old projects I haven't worked on in over three years. Had to have a little Come-to-Jesus meeting about what projects would get my time and attention. Those lost.

Paint Organization

Journaling:

Finally got around to doing something with the new tubes of paint purchased almost three weeks ago. They wouldn't fit in the little boxes with the other tubes so I had to find a new system. All my other art supplies are organized in clear plastic pencil boxes but the little paint tubes would get lost in a jumble if they were just tossed in. Needed some dividers.

Figured out some nifty little storage trays made of accordion-folded cereal boxes. (Held together with blue painter's tape. Yes, I'm cheap.)

Each section is 3/4" wide and 1/2" deep. It holds the little 5 ml Winsor & Newton tubes perfectly. Each tray holds five tubes and six trays will fit in the pencil box for a total of 30 small tubes. Hopefully I won't ever have more than that. The big tubes live in a different pencil box.

The new paints were Winsor & Newton to replace the same colors of "cheap" paints.

The W&N Sap Green and New Gamboge are brighter and richer than the old ones, but the W&N Cerulean Blue is a huge disappointment. It is a very dull step-sister of the Raphael paint. The Raphael Cerulean Blue in the palette is very dark, almost indistinguishable from the Ultramarine, Payne's Gray or Indigo. The W&N is very light and different. Maybe I should look for Cerulean Blue in a different brand.

Also got some French Ultramarine and Quin Gold. These too were a huge disappointment. The French Ultramarine looks no different than Ultramarine Green Shade (the stock dark blue). What's the point???

The Quin Gold I had was just a small squirt of Daniel Smith brand I got from a friend's tube. Fell in love with it. I wanted to stay with the same brand for all my paints so I got W&N's Quin Gold. It's not thrilling me the same as the Daniel Smith does.

To this point I've loved all my Winsor & Newton paint. I was not a Happy Camper to have three duds of five in this order. Dang!

Dis, Dat, and De Udder Ting

Jollydog asked if the new journals I bought at Wal-Mart would take watercolor. I didn't think they would because the paper was thin, but I did a test for her to satisfy my own curiosity.

This is a Black n' Red casebound notebook with ruled, 90 gsm white paper, purchased for $5.00 in the clearance aisle. It has a yearly date planner, 3-year calender, Table of Contents, Contact list section, World Time Zone map, as well as paper, envelope, measurement, speed and temperature conversion tables inside the front cover. Inside the back cover is a map of Los Angeles and the United States, and maps of the New York, Chicago, and Washington DC metro systems.

This paper is so slick the ink from the Staedtler Pigment Liner smudged a little at the first blob of paint. I should have let it dry for just a minute. Thirty more seconds of dry time and no smudging on the rest of the drawing.

I slathered a lot of water on this trying to build the layers of color without letting it dry between colors. In some places it picked up the paint like WC paper. (I'm not used to that.) The paper crinkled a little bit but it wasn't bad enough to deter me from using WC again. Neither the pen nor the paint bled to the reverse side.

I was very surprised at how well this paper held up. It gets a double woot...Woot! Woot! That opens a vast new territory of possibilities on how to use this journal.

Next was a Mead Genuine Bonded Leather Graph Paper Journal, Product #88185, brown, with padded, top-stitched cover and ribbon bookmark, purchased for $9.00 in the clearance aisle. I searched for this on-line hoping they also made a blank paper version, but was unable to find even a mention of it anywhere. Maybe this was made exclusively for Wal-Mart.


Wow this paper kicked and screamed at the watercolor. It sucked up the paint, turned a nasty looking gray, and the surface came off with a few strokes of the brush. The paper crinkled badly and paint bled through to the reverse side. I might could live with the crinkle and bleed, but when the paper starts falling apart under the brush there's no hope. Copy paper performs better under watercolor than this stuff. Pen and ink only in this journal.

I was surprised at this performance too. Of the two journals I expected this one to take a light wash and the Black-n-Red to crinkle like a Ruffles potato chip. It was, in fact, just the opposite. Ya just never know until ya try.

It was luscious under the pen though. Gave me an adrenaline rush. Wanted to draw everything in sight and fill the pages. So I did, kinda, sorta.

I have a little game I play late at night when I'm brain dead but still want to draw. I go to Flickr's Most Recent Uploads and pick the photo three columns over and three rows down (3x3) and draw it.

I never know what I'm gonna get, but there are lots of drooling babies and wedding photos uploaded to Flickr. It's good to know the world is reproducing, or preparing to reproduce. The lighting on the subject is never good, composition is wonky, and more often than not the pic is out of focus. Camera phones are the bane of my drawing existence.

Guy at a Concert - Lighting was horrible, angle was worse. Messed up his eyes in a big way, but thought the foreshortening wasn't too bad. It was a challenging angle to draw.



Girl and her Mom on a Tram - Went quicky sketch caricature on this one. The big fat pen I was using doesn't do details well. I guess I should have changed to a smaller sized pen. I like the shape of the girl's face. Might recycle that into another drawing.



Self Portrait in Mirror - Once again the lighting and focus was terrible, but the subject was a very interesting composition. Broke out the drawing pencil to see if I could capture the delicate shading on the face. It looks a little wonky to me but an Asian face has a much different structure than a European face. The eyes appear wider and shallower and the nose bridge much flatter.


I need to learn to draw the Asian face if I keep playing 3x3 on Flickr. In the wee hours of midnight the majority of faces being uploaded are Asian.

Hubby at the Bank - Hubby and I were at the bank Wednesday waiting for the Customer Service lady to fill out a pile of paperwork. I suddenly noticed how awesome Hubby's face was bathed in the diffused sunlight. I snatched up a tiny 3x5 notebook and a ballpoint pen and started drawing.

He is almost recognizable. Woot!

---

And the journal page to document all this:

A Sudden Attack of Foliophilia

Journaling:

Had to get out of the house for a while and found myself wandering down the crap aisle at Wal-Mart. They had stacks of journals marked for clearance. Woot! Like I need another journal.

Found two of this [brown] leather one with creamy pages that were graph gridded. Have no idea what I'll do with them but the paper was too luscious to pass over. Maybe I'll do some sketching with a brown Pigma in it. The grids won't bother me as much as lines would.

Found the [three] Red-n-Blacks for $5.00 each. I couldn't pass up any journal book for $5. Don't know what I'll do with them either. The paper is super slick and I had lusted for it when they were full price.

I was testing all my pens on the grid paper and got to the set of Staedtler pigment liners. Ohhhh...they slid across the paper like greased lightning. What a dream to draw with! I had forgotten.

Need to break these out and draw them dry. They are Roz Stendahl's favorite "must-have" pen. They're available locally so that's a big plus.

Pencil Sketchbook

Journaling:

Spent the weekend daydreaming about a sketchbook just for pencil. Looked locally but no hardbound sketchbooks at all. Don't want a wirebound. Looked on-line but that was just confusing. I need to *touch* the paper, not read about it. I have writing journal with nice slick paper but it has lines and I don't want to contend with the lines. I even considered taking a stack of printer paper and having it bound but I don't like comb bindings.

Decided I would just make me one. It didn't need to have a bunch of pages because I figure I'm not going to do a lot of pencil drawings. I'm sure this is just a phase I'm going through because of drawing class. When it ends so will my fascination for All Things Pencil.

I really wanted an 8.5" x 11" or a 9" x 12", but I don't have the paper for that. I'd have to settle for 5.5" x 8.5". Dug out some dingy green paper I've not found a use for that came in a pack of scrapbooking paper. Used eleven sheets plus a piece of white cardstock for the cover. Mashed all that together in a single signature and sewed it together with minty dental floss. Covered it with the eggplant paper and added the kicky blocks as endpapers. Viola! A sketchbook.


It will be kinda odd to have faces on green paper but such is life. If I post any of the drawings on the Internet I'll scan them as grayscale and the background will be some shade of gray. I have enough of the green paper to make five more sketchbooks. I could call them The Green Paper Chronicles. That would be cool.

Afterthought: Realized after searching for and making a sketchbook with slick paper that drawing paper for pencil probably needs some tooth to keep the media on the page. Probably prevents it from smearing as much too. Oh well.

Art Supplies & Pencil Ponderings

Journaling:

Momma got Blicked! It's always a happy day when the postman delivers a box of art supplies.

Sharpened up the pencils to take them for a test drive. Discovered the Derwents were too big to fit in my electric pencil sharpener. Pfft! Bought the Derwents on a recommendation by Roz Stendahl. Wanted a pencil that would lay down a very black line and scan well. These are "pigmented" (with carbon maybe?), not graphite, so the shine doesn't confuse the scanner.

Got the Design Ebonys because they are the pencil Rick Tulka uses to do his Le Select Cafe drawings. I've long admired his clean black lines and hoped it would be the miracle pencil I was searching for.

Did a little test with the four blackest drawing pencils I now own using the Big White Marble from drawing class as the subject.

The Derwent was the winner hands down in the qualities I wanted. It has the blackest black of lines and a matte finish that plays well with the scanner. It is waxier and somewhat stickier to draw with over the graphites, and has a rougher, looser line. It also has a very soft lead and is a booger to keep sharp.

Don't think this would be a good pencil for fine detail work but would be great fun for guerilla sketching. Add a bit of water and it makes a dandy wash for shading and shadows. Woot! Great fun!

Had an epiphany doing this little test. *This* is the kind of sketch the drawing class teacher wanted us to do...general shapes with shading for contour, not the details of the cut glass. OH! Of course! These were easy - whipped them out in a few minutes. I should have done something similar in class. Doh! I have a new perspective going into Class #3.

Decided to put down the pencils and check up on the arty bloggers. First one I hit was Karen Blados who had posted a macro photo of a housefly. Ewwww! Had to draw.

(From photo by Karen Blados, used by permission)

This is just the head of course. Didn't have the gumption to draw the whole body or his sticky tongue lolling onto Miz Karen's sofa. Ewwww!

Now you know why I seldom leave comments on blogs. My ADD kicks in and I'm off on a new tangent. Never did leave a comment. Must go back and do that.

I used Rick Tulka's favored Sanford Design Ebony for the fly. There's no way on God's Green Earth Tulka managed the black lines I see on his drawings with just this pencil. Or maybe I should say there's no way on God's Green Earth that I can get the lines I see on his drawings with just this pencil. Frustration, disappointment. There must be something I'm missing. Must ponder on that.

While pondering I was staring at my happy little manikin sitting on my desk. He suddenly struck me as wonderful and needing to be drawn. Picked up the black Derwent.
Manny's been in this pose for quite some time. I don't remember why I posed him like this, but I remember it's supposed to be a vaudeville high kick with a cane and top hat. (Hear the music "If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere, It's up to you New York, New York!")

That thing curving around his upper arm is a paperclip for the cane. Never could figure out a top hat for him.

One more doodle and I'm off to bed....



Realized if I keep drawing with pencils I should be drawing in a sketchbook, not on loose pieces of copy paper. The sketchbooks I own are too rough for drawing in pencil (in my opinion) and I don't want pencil drawings smudging around in my daily journal anyway.

Must see Dick Blick about a sketchbook with slick paper.

Yay! More art supplies!

Pigma Brush Pen - Lion Statue

Journaling:

Taking the new Pigma Brush Pen and Niji Waterbrush (medium, 12 mm tip) out for a test drive today.

I like the Pigma brush pen much better than the PITT brush pens. It has a more flexible tip so it didn't feel like I was drawing with a Sharpie. The flexibility make it easier to achieve varying line widths and the pen itself felt good in my hand. This may become my go-to pen for daily drawing.

The Niji waterbrush took a little getting used to. It flowed out a lot of water without squeezing at all. I had to do a bit of dabbing so it wouldn't soak through the paper. This journal paper only takes light washes, not swimming pools of liquid. On the other hand, it made doing the wash a dream. I've always struggled with the paper drying out using a regular brush and cup o' water.

I think I like it enough to use it for daily drawing and painting in my journal. Won't have to worry about the cat drinking the brush water anymore or having to change it before it becomes a science experiment.