This week on Art Supply Posse, Heather and I discuss surviving bullying, being brave, making art, Sketchbook Skool and a backlog of follow-up. And we still didn’t get to it all!
This week’s artwork was created by my lovely co-host, Heather Rivard using her new Schmincke watercolors. Pop over to the web site to listen to the whole episode, get the iTunes subscription link and leave feedback about the episode. Thanks!
Pens:
Ink:
Pencils:
Notebooks & Paper:
Planners & Organizers:
Other Interesting Things:
While researching other artist’s recommended drawing tools, I found several who recommended Prismacolor Col-Erase and since I tend to favor the Prismacolor Premiers but had never used the Col-Erase, I thought I’d see what the appeal was.
Most artists mention a preference for the Col-Erase, not because they actually erase very well but because they do not smudge so the lines they put down stay where they put them and the lines are light enough that if they ink over them, when they photocopy or scan their artwork, the original pencil marks don’t usually show up if they use a light color like light blue or non-photo blue.
Generally speaking, I found the pencils to be very smooth to use while they also maintained a point quite well in use. Some colors were harder and required a little but more pressure to show up than others. For example, the Carmine Red was much softer than the Vermillion. Why? I don’t know. But for laying some underlying sketches, these pencils didn’t smudge like a graphite pencil does.
With a standard white plastic eraser like a Staedtler Mars Plastic eraser, I was able to erase some of the marks but not all of them. The eraser included on each pencil is a pink rubber eraser which worked abysmally. Its purpose was clearly to look classic only.
The pencil marks made by Col-Erase are also water soluble so if you plan to use the pencils in combination with watercolors, the marks will move but depending on the colors you choose, it could enhance your artwork rather than muddy it like graphite might.
The Col-Erase pencil marks did not smudge as much as graphite. Certain colors were more prone to smudging like the black, dark blue and brown but the lighter colors did not smudge without serious effort or a burnishing tool.
These little drawing were done along the margin of the page after I did the eraser tests so the heads are no bigger than small coins so the sharp points of the Col-Erase pencils do allow for fine details and quick doodling.
Did I mention that the 24-color box I purchased was acquired on Amazon for $10.96? Cheap. Hard to resist at that price. Its actually cheaper to purchase the whole box than to buy these open stock. Most art supply stores sell these individually for about $1 or more per pencil. Even Dick Blick sells the 24-pencil set for $11.50.
If you’ve never tried the Prismacolor Col-Erase pencils, the price point is low enough that a box of 24 is well within most pen-and-pencil addicts’ range. Their good point retention and loyalty by the comics illustrations and animation industry should be reason enough to peak your curiosity.
I can’t think of anything more patriotic than red & blue pencils. And boy, have I amassed a collection! I just love these things. Some red/blue pencils were originally designed to be “copying pencils” in that they could be wet to transfer writing to a copy like a mimeograph. Others were for copy editing, colors denoting specific changes. I’m sure there are other arcane uses for them that have been lost to the annals of time. I like them as a way to carry two colored pencils in one stick, for portability.
All the red/blue pencils I tested out were purchased in the past year or so meaning that these are not all that hard to find. The prices range from about $1 to about $3 with the average price for a red/blue pencil being around $1. The Caran d’Ache BiColor 999 was the most expensive, as was to be expected at about $2.80 but worth every penny.
I tested each of the pencils by doing a little test scribble, an erased scribble and a wet scribble to see if the pencil was water soluble for both the blue and red leads.
The Artesco Bi-Color pencil was notable for being a rounded triangular shape which was comfortable in the hand. It was slightly water soluble but not too bad. Sadly, I don’t remember where I found this particular pencil. If someone else knows where to find purchasing information about this model, please let me know.
There were only three of the pencils that were very water resistant: The Tombow 8900 VP ($6.84 for a dozen), the Charles Leonard, and the Pedigree Empire. All three are smooth round barrel pencils. The Charles Leonard ($4.99 per dozen) was the scratchiest of all the red/blue pencils that I tried. The Pedigree Empire was a decent performer overall but was another pencil that I’m having trouble tracking down where I purchased it. If you want a non-water soluble red/blue pencil I would recommend the Tombow 8900 VP. The color is smooth, rich and dark. The finish on the pencil is fabulous too. Being able to purchase the Tomow 8900 VP via Amazon for under $7 per dozen is totally worth it. Grab a box and share the love with friends, family and kids in your neighborhood.
The Mistubishi Colour Pencil 2637 ($1 each) is also a beautiful Japanese pencil. I got what is known as the 70:30 which is 70% red and 30% blue. Why? Maybe its used mostly as a correction pencil so the red color is used most often and the blue is the STET part?… if you ever worked in newspaper, you’ll know STET is the shorthand for “nevermind, don’t make that change” in a Latin abbreviation I can no longer remember. All you copy editors out there leave a comment if you remember what it means. I’m just guessing here… Anyone know?
The Mitsubishi is also available in a standard 50:50 split ($1 each).
The Harvest Thick 725 and the Pedigree Empire 603 are the only red/blue pencil still made in the USA by the Musgrave Co. though I think the Pedigree have since been discontinued. The Harvest Thick 725 ($0.50) and the Musgrave Hermitage Thin ($0.40) are still available. The Harvest Thick is a good, durable red/blue pencil at a very reasonable price. It does not react to water that much so it would be good for base drawings and its made in Tennessee so it doesn’t have far to travel for most US pencil enthusiasts.
Then there’s the Brevillier Urban Copying Pencil Nr. 1925 ($24 per dozen) which, when wet, gets that lovely aqua color in the blue that is common of indelible pencils. The red end does not seem to be water soluble however. The blue also erases pretty easily which is pretty nice if you wanted to use it for sketching. Overall, it is a unique pencil and worth squirreling a dozen away in your collection, if you are a pencil pack rat like I am.
And finally, the king daddy beaucoup of them all, the Caran d’Ache BiColor 999 ($2.80 each) which is the most water soluble, most luscious AND also most expensive of all of the red/blue pencils. I love it but because it literally melts like a watercolor pencil with water, I treat it more like a watercolor pencil than a regular colored pencil.
So, if I were to recommend three red/blue pencils to try, I’d tell you to get the Tombow 8900 VP, the Harvest Thick 725 and a Caran d’Ache BiColor 999. Even if you bought a dozen of the Tombow and one of the Harvest and the Caran d’Ache, you would still only be spending about $10 and you’d be a very happy, very patriotic camper. Don’t forget a good pencil sharpener. Because these pencils are a bit wider than your average #2, I’d recommend a sharpener with a wider opening or one specifically designed for colored pencils.
I plan to do reviews of many of the products I purchased at the local eye candy, shop-of-wonders, Maker Goods, but I thought I’d tantalize you with a photo first. Proprietor and woman-of-many-talents, Felicia Koloc hand marbelled the fabric and then beautifully stitched the pencil case pictured above. She also makes them in leather but they were a bit out of my price range. The selection of pencils and included NOS Col-Erase as well as a wide assortment of imported Japanese pencils. So much to choose from, it was hard not to buy them all.
I also picked up a Maruman Mnemosyne notebook and a clever A4/3 notebook which is designed to fit A4 paper folded in thirds and includes a pocket in the back to hold such items. It even included instructions on how to fold up your A4s to fit.
If you happen to pass through Kansas City on your travels, this is definitely a place you must visit! I’m going to make sure it’s on Tessa’s handy dandy stationery map right now.
In my mind, I spend every summer in hibiscus prints, on my surf board with a Mai Tai in one hand and flowers in my hair — even though I’m landlocked, pasty-pale and nowhere near a salty, tropical sea. This year is no different. So, hang ten with me no matter where you are or what the thermometer says!
I found a fabulous flexible nib hack over on Parka blogs and nothing says “let’s mess with a cheap pen” like a rainy day. Throw in a cool ink sample from Vanness Pen Shop and an urge to be a little tweaker and off I go.
This hack will work with either a Zebra G (Titanium pack of 10 for $33.50 from JetPens) or Nikko G nib (3 for $4 from JetPens), whichever you have available to you. Warning: you may or may not damage your pen, so proceed with caution. It is a fun hack and most Jinhao X750 pens can be purchased for $10 or less so its not a huge investment, no matter what happens. I purchased mine from Goulet Pens, the Shimmering Sands model for $9.90.
I followed the instructions in the Parka Blogs video as well as doing a little feed modification à la Leigh Reyes’s tutorial for modifying the Ranga to try to get the nib to lay down a little bit more flush with the feed by using an X-Acto to shave a bit off the feed.
So, for a grand total of $13.50 I had a wonky, but functional, flexible nib fountain pen. Its a little bit finicky and could probably use a little bit more work to make it consistent but it works. I occasionally have to dip it in water to keep it working but it writes much longer than a regular dip pen. I might just need to add more fins in the feed and since the feed is plastic it might not be as ink receptive as the Ranga’s ebonite feed.
Why did I do this hack when I had a perfectly lovely Ranga? I already owned a box of Zebra G nibs and Jinhao X750 and I was bored. The only reason I would recommend this hack over the Ranga is that it is considerably less expensive and it is considerably easier to acquire the Jinhao X750 in the US than a Ranga at this time. But if you have the means, the time or the patience to get a Ranga or a Desiderata instead, the overall experience is better. But for a quick-and-dirty option, this hack is definitely an option.
Now, let’s talk about the lovely KWZ Green Gold #2 ink. I picked this up while I was working the Vanness table at the Chicago Pen Show. Lisa said I would love it and she was totally right. Its a lovely green, golden color as decribed in the name. Pantina gold would be another way to describe it. It shades and colors nicely, ranging from a light golden wheat to a dark brown depending on the density of the color.
This is not a water resistant ink so its a good candidate for playing around since it will clean out of the pen and feed easily.
KWZ Green Gold 2 is definitely more yellow thank Bung Box 88 and Diamine Safari but its a deeper yellow gold than Pilot Iroshizuku Ina-Ho. A full of KWZ Green Gold 2 60ml bottle is $12 and a 4ml sample is $1.50. Pricewise, its much closer to the Safari than Bung Box or Pilot Iroshizuku.
DISCLAIMER: This item was sent to me free of charge by Vanness Pen Shop for the purpose of review. Please see the About page for more details.
