A Doodle Tuesday Miscellany

Tiny Uni lead pointer for 2mm leads

I used to work in art supply stores, and what I sorely miss — probably the only thing I miss of that experience — is the art supplies. I still love them and it’s hard to pry me free from a decent art supply store. I can’t walk out of one without buying something.

Of late, I’ve really enjoyed the items I’ve picked up during my brick-and-mortar or online outings, but occasionally I run across a disappointment. Such is the case with the Mitsubishi Pencil Pocket Sharpener. It’s a lead pointer for 2mm mechanical pencil leads. It’s very tiny, and I was always afraid of losing it before it ever stopped working, but one day after about two years of what I would consider average use, it stopped working. It wasn’t gradual. One moment it was working great and the next, not at all.

I guess I wore the blade out. I took it apart to see if the blade is replaceable. It looks as if it is, but I can’t find replacement blades. I would probably have to buy another sharpener, but I don’t feel like paying the $7 to $10 that retailers are charging plus shipping.

I guess I’ll have to stick with the Staedtler Rotary Lead Pointer I bought over 40 years ago. The lead dust goes everywhere if you make the mistake of dropping it, but it still works.

Sailor Fude De Mannen Fountain Pen with 55º Nib

I am still enjoying my Sailor Fude De Mannen fountain pens. I am working on finishing up a 7-inch by 10-inch Canson XL Mixed Media sketchbook, but I have given up on the obsession of finishing one sketchbook before I start the next as I have broken out a few different sketchbooks in a few different sizes.

Canson XL Series Mixed Media Pad

Fabriano 1264 Mixed Media

UCreate from Ticonderoga

I broke out the Fabriano 1264 which I wrote about recently. I wanted to see how it handled ink, and so far, so good. The paper is similar to the Canson Mixed Media. It’s a little toothy and my impatient, scratchy pen strokes skip along the texture. I may have to vary my approach with this paper and/or try to become a little more patient!

The other sketchbook I broke out was the Ucreate Sketch which I have used before. This is an inexpensive sketchbook that is readily available at Target, and I think I picked this up just in case I needed something. I use it to work out figures that I will do on larger paper. As it turns out, the UCreate takes ink pretty well. It’s smoother than the mixed media pads and the pen glides across the surface easily.

I was happy with the way the cheap  UCreate pad handled the ink on the drawing above, but a slip of the pen made my clawed up heroine appear to be delighted with her dire situation. That was not my intent, but I was working out the positions of figures for a grander scene. It will probably feature the Teenage Beast and a Good Samaritan who has underestimated the situation he finds himself in.

Canson XL Mixed Medi

Fabriano 1264

Above is a more appropriately distressed heroine, but I loused up the figure that was in front of her so it’s “try, try again” with that one. The other drawing is a work in progress in the 9-inch by 12-inch Fabriano 1264 sketchbook and features our heroine’s mad dash through the woods as she is pursued by an unseen assailant.

Ultimately I will probably work these drawings up larger on a smooth Bristol Board that will provide the optimal surface for a pen and ink drawing. It’s a work in progress.