Prismacolor Premier Double Ended Art Markers Set of 24 Case Spotlight

One of the earliest mysteries that puzzled me about the color illustrations adorning concept art books and comicbook covers was how smooth and uniform their areas of color looked compared to the streaky appearance of my own clumsily colored marker drawings. I did not realize that was due in part to the actual printing process, and that illustrators often rely on solvent-based professional tools rather than washable watersoluble kids’ markers. Alcohol-based dye ink markers feel quite juicy with a smooth laydown and nice blendability that allows for pretty fast sketching strokes and smooth color gradients without the strong smell of xylene-based markers (still good ventilation is always a good idea). While alcohol-based Copic markers (that usually retail for $5-$8 each) might now reign supreme as the top choice among manga artists and creative types, you can still get pretty good performance from the Prismacolor Premier Double Ended Art Markers for a fraction of the cost. Found this set of 24 markers with hard carrying case that converts to an easel with a 75% off msrp discount at Office Depot during their ongoing semi-annual sale (as a rule of thumb, getting a professional double ended marker for under $1.50 each is an awesome deal). 

The broad chisel nib can cover large areas quickly and yields 3 different line widths by simply turning the marker. The fine nib is well suited for working in details in tight areas. The Prismacolor label on the barrel features a triangular design to help identify each end of the marker and speed up your work flow.  The broad base of the acute triangle is on the broad nib side and the vertex angle indicates which end has the fine point nib. Both caps feature a colored sticker for quick identification. Yet sometimes the color from the sticker labels might significantly differ from the actual color ink inside, so making your own color chart on the intended support paper can help avoid accidental aggravation when the colors do not match what we expected. The set of 24 markers would make for a nice travel sketching/coloring set or perhaps even serve as a nice extra accessory for a caricature drawing event. They could certainly handle the large flat areas of color on a letter to ledger size cartoon portrait (8.5” X 11” – 11” X 17”). While it contains a nice balance of primary and secondary colors, it might be a good idea to complement it with a few grey scale markers (available in Cool Gray, Warm Gray, and French Gray sets) and some skin tone markers. Recommended as a good value coloring tool and as a nice introductory choice for intermediate to advanced users.  Might also be a good idea to pick up the 12 markers Manga set that is also on sale to expand your color selection by nine colors (the sets have 3 colors in common, so you would end up with an spare Apple Green PM-167, Sienna Brown PM-65, and True Blue PM-35).  For all their convenience and speed, do remember that in order to have subtler color gradients and richer color textures you will need an ever increasing number of different tone markers within each color family.  Look out for sales and promotions to build up your marker collection and research sources for open stock markers to refill your sets.

Caran D'Ache Technograph 6077.250 2 mm HB Box of 12 drawing leads spotlight

E-bay find: this must an earlier packaging version of the current Caran D'Ache Technograph lead box of 12 (part number 6077.250). Essentially the same red plastic tray with sliding cover that can hold the drawing leads in two layers in 6 separate grooves with simpler logo and gold identification sticker label. The brand logo was rather plain before its re-design and the lid was opaque, but the leads inside perform to the same superior standard that I have come to expect from this Swiss manufacturer. The leads are strong and sharpen easily. They glide smoothly on the paper without any hard bit impurities that might ruin the drawing experience, and their marks are fairly smudge resistant compared to similar graphite grades of other brands. Thus hardly any graphite particles come loose when I brush my drawing hand or finger over a line or section of shading.  Being left handed, I really appreciate clean-handling drawing tools. While generally hard to find even online, they are a reliable choice for those that demand the best to refill their Fixpencil 22 leadholders.  Locally, you can find them in the drafting supplies drawers of Askew Taylor.

Couple of new Art Materials: Sketchbook Central Artist Trading Card stock and Utrecht Design Marker

While I often cut my own 2.5" X 3.5" ATCs out of 110 lb card stock and watercolor paper for class projects and to make promo cards, I have picked up a few commercial packs for their convenience and to try different paper stocks.

Recent addition to my supply of Artist Trading Cards: Sketchbook Central's 100 lb Super Smooth ATCs pack of 25. Their surface readily accepts graphite and ink and performs quite well for rendering fine detail. When short on prep time, I use them in class for drawing the cut out characters of pop-up cards. Fine tip pens work well with them.

Since many caricature artists use Utrecht Design Markers for live drawing on ledger size (11" x 17") paper, we have added them to the pool of art supplies used in my cartoon sketching classes. The chisel nib can yield strokes of uniform thickness by simply turning the nib. Its brush nib is quite firm and can produce a nice variety of line thicknesses by adjusting the pressure. Found I had to reign in my drawing hand a bit, for its stroke turned grey when I moved too fast. Already started practicing on an oversize marker pad to explore its expressive range and find the optimal sketching speed to get the denser black marks. Good value choice for a double ended marker. Made in England.

Time Travel Highlight: Eagle "Chemi-Sealed" Turquoise Drawing Pencil and Staedtler Mars Lumograph 100 pencil

For artists, finding and using vintage pencils can be a bit like time traveling. Since wooden pencils hold up well to the test of time, we get to experience the performance of professional drawing pencils enjoyed by draftsmen and artists in the not so distant past before everything went digital. Recently won this auction lot of Eagle "Chemi-Sealed" Turquoise Drawing Pencil sliding-sleeve boxes and a box of Staedtler Mars Lumograph 100 pencils. While I already had a vintage Eagle Turquoise 3375 leadhoder and Turquoise drawing leads from this time period, this is my first time trying their wooden pencil version and examining their Art Deco packaging up close.

Each dozen of pencils was enclosed by an internal folded blue cardboard sleeve that featured a ruler and protractor pattern on the inside and a decimal conversion chart on the back. In their value chart, you can appreciate the gradual increase in darkness when going from the hardest to the softest pencil (9H, 6H, F, 2B, 4B, and 6B) and the difference in darkness between F pencils from two different ranges. The Mars Lumograph lead does seem a tad lighter than the Eagle version. Since you can often find auctions for whole boxes of F vintage pencils without any competing bids, I would guess that they are not particularly popular or that fewer users know of this lead hardness grade that is supposed to have the darkness of an HB lead with the hardness of an H lead. For sketches that rely more on their linear quality rather than tone, you might find than F pencils hold their sharp point longer and smudge less than your everyday No. 2 pencil.

Tombow Mono Professional Drawing Pencil Set of 12 spotlight

I have noticed lately in class, that many students have no idea that there are different hardness grades of pencils besides the common No. 2 or HB pencils. Thus we ordered complete sets of Tombow Mono Professional Drawing Pencils to serve as teaching aids and expand the tonal range of the sketching pencils in our classroom art supplies at the Art Center. Each box contains 12 drawing pencils that cover the values from 4H (hardest and lightest) to 6B (softest and darkest). Since they come unsharpened, I used a crank sharpener to produce standard long points on the nine harder pencils (4H through 2B). For the wider softer leads (3B through 6B), I used a hand held sharpener to yield shorter taper points and reduce chance of tip breakage. While you can certainly sharpen all of them to a long tapered point, I find that wasteful since the long thin tips of softer leads (4B through 6B) tend to break off into smudgeable dust with my heavy drawing hand. I have read that a premium version of these pencils, the Tombow Mono 100, was commonly used in classic animation studios. Since my sketching style is pretty linear, I often relied on just a 2B or 4B pencil which I ordered by the dozen. I hate finding scratchy bits in my pencil cores, so I was thrilled when I first discovered Tombow pencils. From the start, I enjoyed their smoothness on the paper and relative smudge resistance compared to other brands. Naturally you can get a variety of values from a single pencil by simply varying your drawing pressure. The point of having so many different pencil grades is that you can effortlessly change the lightness and darkness of your marks in a value drawing by simply switching pencils. I had the chance to talk a bit about art supplies with Scott Hampton at the Durham Library Comics Fest. His favorite pencil turned out to be a Eberhard Faber 3H grade. If you are going to cover a pencil sketch with ink or paint, you really only need a faint guideline of where to apply the next medium. Any extra detail or texture that you might be tempted to render with a softer pencil would just get lost, or worse the softer lead could interfere with the adhesion of the ink or paint to the paper. Comics pencillers often use harder leads. Thus, this Tombow set would be a great choice for a serious beginner as an introduction to the expressive potential of fine drawing pencils.

Faber Castell Albrecht Durer Watercolor Pencils 250th Anniversary Box Set of 25

Recently picked up this nice commemorative box of watercolor pencils.  I have enjoyed their bright colors, smooth lay down, and their ability to quickly dissolve into watercolor washes for a long time. They are a quick and easy way of adding color to an inked sketch. With the addition of waterbrush, they work as a versatile sketching and coloring kit. This particular set with its elegant silver metal lid and dark wooden base with magnetic studs makes for a sharp-looking desktop accessory or a good introductory palette for a new user. Faber Castell actually celebrated its 250th Anniversary back in 2011, so if you shop around you are likely to find a good deal on this nice set of 25 watercolor pencils.  I have noticed several sites now list it well below its manufacturer suggested retail price.  Recommended.