Sunday, April 3, 2011
Taking Inventory: Traditional Tools
Paper
Printer Paper
I don't go too fancy with the type of paper I use. I use regular printer paper. After my dad started complaining about how rapidly the paper was disappearing from the printer at home, I went out and bought my own pack. This is a pack 500 sheets I bought a little over a year ago. Just about gone.
Smooth Bristol
Although printer paper works fine, I like using Smooth Bristol once and awhile as well. I love the texture of it, and when I draw on it, the lines look very clean and crisp. Also, it's great for ink work. I plan on using it more often in the future.
Pens, Pencils, and Erasers
Pencils
I'm definitely a mechanical pencil girl. I don't like having to stop drawing just to sharpen a pencil, and I can't stand dull pencils--they must be sharp all the time.
Erasers
It's been hard for me to find a cheap eraser that erases well and doesn't ruin the paper. But I happened to run across an awesome mechanical eraser. The type of eraser in it wasn't too soft, but not too hard either. It was similar to erasers that come in high quality mechanical pencils, but the eraser itself was much longer.
Having a large eraser on hand is great for erasing pencil lines from pages after inking. Also, having a gentle eraser is especially important for erasing inked pages, because if the eraser is too hard, it'll remove some of the ink too. Then the lines will come out too dull when the pages are scanned.
In the picture below, my mechanical eraser is the yellow stick thing. Sadly, I've run out of refills for it, and I haven't been able to find any more.
Pens
Pen sets are simple. I use the sketch pen set from Prismacolor and the brush pen set from Faber-Castell. And I keep it all in handy carrying case so I can easily find everything and take it with me.
Organization
I try my best to keep other supplies organized, so I have a little organizer case to hold my mechanical pencils, erasers, and other things that I've tried but rarely use (such as India Ink...)
Surfaces
Clipboard. My best friend. I use it for drawing in bed when I first wake up in the morning to drawing in the car. Yes, I can actually draw while in motion. Blaine doesn't mind me taking his picture, but Ian looks disturbed. Sorry.
Rulers
The Grid
As far as drawing backgrounds go, this transparent grid has been a lifesaver. I have a very hard time drawing straight lines with regular rulers, but with the grid, I get perfect lines with it every time without accidentally drawing them crooked or something strange.
Circle Template
This is a tool created for drafters. A long time ago I used this for creating perfectly round speech bubbles. Now I use the edges of it for short straight lines. The grid is better for long straight lines.
Other Accessories
There are variety of notepads and folders I use to write my story scripts in, plan pages, and to store older pages that I've done. I also keep plenty of music and candy nearby. I like keeping everything colorful because color motivates me.
I have two binders that contain all the pages of Mascara and Couture. The pages of Mascara in these binders are pages that are in the process of being edited. They're not the pages you see when I post it. Often the dialog is different, and sometimes even the artwork isn't the same. I write what I want to fix on the pages with a red ink pen, and then I get on my computer and start fixing it.
And that's it for the traditional art tools I use. So next will be all of the digital stuff. ^_^
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I think it's interesting how many colors and patterns are in your photos. You must live in a bright, energetic environment.
ReplyDeleteI started a drafting course in high school, but I changed electives when I got bored of it. I kept all of the drafting tools I got for it, though, and have used them for art occasionally. I used to use that ink-and-erase trick a lot. It works pretty well. I tend to be impatient about my art, so I would sometimes try to erase before the ink had properly dried and then it would smear. (Aaargh!) Now I usually just do digital inking. (I say that as if I still do art, which is rarely true. -_-;)
Looking through your Mascara binder would be like getting a peak at the original typewritten script for Star Wars: A New Hope - awesome! ^_^
Ahh, keeping it inexpensive yet effective ~ pretty neat. :D I agree with the mechanical pencil and eraser choice! I find that white erasers seem to work better than other types. When I work, I keep a rectangular, big eraser and a tube-like eraser handy, since I don't know what size my flaws (?) will be. :)
ReplyDeleteFaber-Castell stuff is nice! I tried some of their tools out somewhere, and the result came out pretty awesome. Never got around to buying them myself though-I'm sure it's pretty good if you use it.
Wow, how can you draw while a car is moving? :O That is reallllyyyy hard to do, I'm amazed you can pull it off. Ahh, I wish I could be as organized as you. Two of my sketchbooks are nowhere to be found. D: Ooh, and I spy a Utada Hikaru CD in that picture! :>
Great work habits; it sounds pretty professional. Looking forward to learning about those digital tools!
@Hiddenwings--Thanks and yes, that is a Utada CD :) She's my favorite female Japanese artist. Love her music.
ReplyDelete@Catalyst-When you mentioned the ink smearing, I wondered for a moment why I haven't had that problem (used to happen to me a bit in the past) But then I realized that usually a couple of days go by before I erase what I've done. That smeared ink is heart breaking...
And I do have a colorful room. When my little cousins come over, they run to my room because it's bright and playful. But I do want to update it some--make it a tad bit more appropriate for my age.
And my binder is classified. But one day, you may get to steal a peak...^^
I've really enjoyed reading through this post as I strive also to keep material cost down in my own creative works (I mostly work with fabric) as well as surrounding myself with color. I feel color has a way of sparking creativity and it just makes me feel good.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with Hidden Wings that drawing in a moving car is a talent. I find as I get older I can't even read while riding as much as I used to - thats ok though as there are always plenty of things to observe out the window and take inspiration from. Thanks for the personal peek into your world - I enjoy your blog (as well as your awesome work).
I’ve recently started a blog, the information you provide on this site has helped me tremendously. Thank you for all of your time & work.
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