Pigment Pens...What Does it All Mean?

I've used many, many pens along my art filled journey and I do have my favourites (mostly all of them) but it can be very confusing when you are first discovering pen and ink drawing. . . what pen will work best?  I'll tell you what I've learned so far. . .

When doing line work you want a pigment ink over a dye based ink, it is waterproof when dry so if you decide you want to add watercolour or coloured marker later it won't smear or smudge.

Pigment means:  "a dry insoluble substance, usually pulverized, which when suspended in a liquid vehicle becomes a paint, ink, etc." according to Dictionary.com

Does that help?  No?  OK, let's go a little further.

Currently I am using 4 different pigment pens:  Pigma Micron by Sakura, Staedtler Pigment Fineliner, Copic MultilinerSP, and Faber-Castell Pitt pen.  A side note:  I also use Prismacolor illustration markers but not for line work as the ink is water resistant not waterproof.

Sakura Pigma Micron states that pigment ink stays on top of the paper where dye based ink penetrates into the paper.  It is much more stable due to the fact that pigment molecules are 100 times bigger and chemically more complex therefore less susceptible to UV rays, chemical degradation, pollution from contact with oils and other chemicals on papers, etc.

The Staedtler pigment fineliner is one of my new favourites, the description says: Pigment ink, indelible (in accordance with ISO 14145-2), lightfast, waterproof

Copic states that their MultilinerSP is, like the others, waterproof, archival and photocopy safe though these pens have an aluminum body, replaceable nibs and ink.

The Faber-Castell Pitt pens are little more unique, they are India Ink. . . also waterproof when dry, archival and ph neutral.

Wikipedia describes it this way: Basic India ink is composed of a variety of fine soot known as lampblack, combined with water to form a liquid. A binding agent such as gelatin or, more commonly, shellac may be added to make the ink more durable once dried. India ink is occasionally sold in solid form (most commonly, a stick), which must be moistened before use.

All of these pens are excellent in my opinion and I use them regularly depending on how I feel that particular day.  You must try them all to find a favourite as some react differently with the type of paper you are using. . . and it's a known fact, you can never have too many pens.

I hope this has been useful and please don't hesitate to e-mail or message me if you have any further questions, I will do my best to help.

Happy pen hunting.

Gratitude Journal - Now What Do I Do?

So now you have your journal, you're wondering 'where do you start'. . . that's always the hard part, a blank page staring at you but here, there is no wrong way to do this, it's all about playing and having fun.  You'll see, it will be so easy by the time you're finished, you'll laugh.

I start with the blank Gratitude page, get familiar. . . and the best way to do this is doodle.  Get out whatever pen you love the most and put down some patterns.  I love my Copic multiliner 01size but the Sakura Micron pen 01 or 02 is just as fantastic, I switch back and forth between these two.

Then choose some colour, I use my Verithin coloured pencils 'cause that's what I have.  Copic markers work not bad but will bleed through to the other side so you actually can use the colour for both sides.  (If you're using markers try them out on a single sheet first to see what they do.)

Stick on some tissue tape, glue on some words, stamp on a date. . . whatever your little heart desires.

Now get in there and have fun!  That's an order!

Message me and let me know how you're getting along. . . I would love to hear.

Talk to you soon,

Sheila

Journaling Your Gratitude - Thank You, Thank You, Thank You

These are a few pages from my Gratitude Journal.

We have been hearing a great deal about Gratitude over the last 10 years or so and I agree, it is very important and brings an abundance of positive into our lives. . . that is how I began my journal journey.

A few months ago a dear friend of mine, Michelle Casey at Collage Your World, wrote about the importance of Gratitude and it hit me (well more like slapped me), wake up, this is something you need in your life and it has changed my attitude ten fold.

I kept it simple, for me it has to be do-able, I write five short sentences each day listing things I am grateful for.  I keep my book (I call it a book as it houses many other lists for my life) handy. . . where I drink my first coffee by the front window and reflect.

I'm a list keeper, it helps keep it all in perspective as my mind tends to jump everywhere all the time.

I started with this 3-ring binder format as I wanted to be able to take my papers out to doodle, colour and stick but the binder isn't always the most user friendly.

After doing a great deal of research I have found a better system . . . the Levenger or Arc system.  With these rings you can fold your paper right to the back and work on your page or even better these pages are removable and reposition-able. . . I like that a lot.

I find beautiful papers to make unique dividers and I have created insert pages just for your daily Gratitude.

I will be talking about pens, paper, new inserts in future posts so pop back to check or even better join the e-mail list

I have a real passion for paper . . . really nice paper and pens, drawing and fountain. . . I'll let you know what I find.

Talk to you soon,

S.

In the Studio - Many Pens

Hello my Artsy friends, so nice that you could pop by.  

We had a lovely sunny weekend after getting a large dump of snow on Friday.  Thank goodness for wonderful neighbours. . . Dave was heading up the road, noticed that our lane way was full of snow and swung in a did a few passes to open it up for us.  Country folk are the best.

It's been a bit of a quiet week, not sure why but I welcome it just the same - time for reflection and rest.  We all need to take these moments and accept them as gifts - they are offered to us because we need them.

I showed you the word I chose for 2013 in my last post but I continued to work on this piece after I photographed it for you.

I had an art teacher tell me once 'Don't overwork a piece, know when it's enough' - that's a tough one.  There are times when I will return again and again tweaking here, adding a little more there. . . It's always a good idea to step away for a while when you are near completion - let it rest for a while then see if it still needs additional work.

That's what I did with my 'Balance'.  Pens and colour can add some wonderful detail if you are so inclined. . . it gives it flourish.

Drawing should be fun, this was tonnes-o-fun.

Have a wonderful week folks.

Sheila