New Art Supplies...A day in my Drawing Journal - Learning ASL

I had a very good day today!  Yay! It's about time, right?


We went needed to go to the grocery store (woo-hoo, trip out of the house!), and decided to drop by the art supply store.  I had a coupon, just itching to be used!  I've had my eyes on a set of Inktense, by Derwent.
Here's a link to their website that can explain exactly what they are better than I can. http://www.pencils.co.uk/product.aspx?mid=718


The best that I can describe it as is...they took the vibrancy and intensity of ink, and made a pencil out of it.  When you use it dry, it just looks like a colored pencil, but then when you wet it....it comes alive with color!


So far, I have a love hate relationship with them.  I must play with them more and more to be sure exactly how I feel.  Are they worth the price? (lucky I had the coupon!)  Can I learn to control it?  Should I learn to control it????  (Oh that just sounded way too much like something Dr. Who would ask. - yes, big fan here.  Guess you figured that out from a previous post though, huh?)


Here is a drawing I was working on and started to wet it.  The wrist has been brushed over with a wet paint brush...the rest is still the original drawing:

I'm not sure the photo came out well enough to tell, but there is a drastic difference in how the pencils look before and after being wet.

You may ask, why the number 3?  Actually, that is the letter W in American Sign Language (ASL).
I've always been interested in ASL, and since my hearing has diminished so much in the past couple of years I thought it would be a good idea to learn it....at least enough for Stuart and I to converse.  I've been taking a free "course" (I use that word losely, it's not structured)  on-line, and I've checked out a few videos from the library (the trouble with the videos...well, I can't hear them!)  We also bought a set of flash cards today to see if that will help build our vocabulary.

But...on to the drawings....

This version has been completely wet.  Looks much more like a wash with ink than a pencil drawing.

Here I just wanted to show the pencils I used.
Oh, I also got a new small sketch pad, the paper is 90lb!
This is the greatest, thickest paper I've ever seen in a small sketch pad.
I feel like I'm drawing on Bristol Board.

Showing how I used the drawing in my journal.

OK, I've been doing this for a little while now.  I'm very happy that I'm sticking to it, and if I can do it through this very rough spell I've been going through, I should be able to keep it up.

I must say, every day when I start a little project (often not the project I thought I was going to do), I'm surprised at how I get lost in it.  How much less I feel the pain when I'm doing it, and what a sense of accomplishment I feel after doing it.

(I haven't drawn a hand in years.  This made me feel good.)

How ever you deal with what life is throwing at you - I hope it's working...each and every day.

If you want - join me...Make Art, Have Fun, Feel Better.

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