{"id":45995,"date":"2025-09-30T06:51:59","date_gmt":"2025-09-30T10:51:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/?p=45995"},"modified":"2025-11-27T08:50:55","modified_gmt":"2025-11-27T13:50:55","slug":"dixon-ticonderoga-ucreate-a-decent-little-sketchbook","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/09\/30\/dixon-ticonderoga-ucreate-a-decent-little-sketchbook\/","title":{"rendered":"Dixon Ticonderoga UCreate — a Decent Little Sketchbook!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

The Teenage Beast<\/em> prior to entering his more monstrous manifestation.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\"I’ve used UCreate<\/em> sketchbooks manufactured by Dixon Ticonderoga<\/em> a couple of times before in recent years, and I have just finished off my third. They are affordably priced and are readily available at Target<\/em> and Walmart<\/em>. The quality of the paper is consistent, and, best of all, they take ink very nicely. I would certainly have grabbed another one if it weren’t for Tina discovering the Pen+Gear Create a Cover Sketch Diary<\/em><\/a> from Walmart which I wrote about last week. Once I burn through Tina’s new find, I will probably buy another one, but if for some reason they vanish from the shelves, I will make out just fine with another Ticonderoga UCreate<\/em>.
\n<\/p>\n

As I wrote above, the Ticonderoga<\/em> sketchbook took ink very well. It doesn’t bleed or show through to the next page. This sketchbook combined with my beloved Sailor Fude De Mannen<\/em> fountain pens has afforded me the opportunity to draw more finished and thus more satisfying works rather than the tentative pencil doodles I have been scratching in sketchbooks for years. The pen and ink drawings are more deliberate and more finished.<\/p>\n

It’s nice to have access to tools that I can count on. My search for the perfect, cheap sketchbook has been more miss than hit. For instance, the pair of Fuxi sketchbooks<\/a> were terrible, and proved the adage “you get what you pay for.”<\/em> I think now with the Ticonderoga<\/em> and the Pen+Gear<\/em> sketchbooks, I have found the niche where quality and affordability meet. Of course, I will rely on the better known name brands of art materials such as Canson<\/em> and Fabriano<\/em> in order to do more finished works, but these sketchbooks from the big box retailers have turned out to be great for experimentation and fun.<\/p>\n

Below is a gallery of some of the pen and ink works I have produced in this little sketchbook. You can click on the icons for a larger view and swipe through the images or use the arrow keys if you’re using a keyboard.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"A <\/a>
A recent Atomic Warrior <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Don't <\/a>
Don’t judge me! <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Karen <\/a>
Karen wants to see the manager <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Super <\/a>
Super Dweeby Larry Hughes <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Working <\/a>
Working up Larry Hughes <\/div> <\/div>
\"Larry <\/a>
Larry rebuffed. Are you serious? <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Larry's <\/a>
Larry’s bad choice <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Larry <\/a>
Larry meets the Punk Rock Girl <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Personal <\/a>
Personal space <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The Teenage Beast prior to entering his more monstrous manifestations <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Maybe <\/a>
Maybe he’s not such a nice guy <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Punk <\/a>
Punk Rock Girl at the show <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Waiting <\/a>
Waiting for the show <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Brian <\/a>
Brian Bubonic sings “Blood from the nose” <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Teenage <\/a>
Teenage Tiger looking for a feast <\/div> <\/div>
\"Punk <\/a>
Punk Rock Girl’s sister Flo <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"What's <\/a>
What’s a tramp like you doing in a place like this? <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Punky <\/a>
Punky chick cornered <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Like <\/a>
Like a cornered rat <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Vortex <\/a>
Vortex of the damned <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Ink <\/a>
Ink and wash test <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Comin <\/a>
Comin through <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Wrong <\/a>
Wrong way mosh pit <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Brian <\/a>
Brian Bubonic sings “Skylab is falling” <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Teenage <\/a>
Teenage Beast in flames <\/div> <\/div>
\"Teenage <\/a>
Teenage Beast in flames, again <\/div> <\/div>
\"Is <\/a>
Is it hot in here or is it just me? <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Shaggy <\/a>
Shaggy has had too much of this spook nonsense <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Change-o!\" <\/a>
Change-o! <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Towards <\/a>
Towards the Beast’s final form <\/div> <\/div>
\"Jock <\/a>
Jock guy in the woods <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Race <\/a>
Race with the Devil <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"Clawed <\/a>
Clawed and exhausted <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>
\"No <\/a>
No tears for the damned <\/div> <\/div>
\"The <\/a>
The pit! <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

The first three drawings are a miscellany, and the rest all have to do with The Teenage Beast story. I placed the Beast drawings in the order in which they occur in the story. It sort of helps me as a story board would. I am still in the process of doing a hand-written outline and the drawings expand upon what I have written. I’m also working out what the characters look like and having a lot of fun. Inking is weirdly relaxing.<\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Dixon Ticonderoga UCreate Sketchbook, 6-inch by 9-inch<\/span>
\nMarch 9, 2025 — September 27, 2025<\/span><\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u00a92025 Joe Williams<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’ve used UCreate sketchbooks manufactured by Dixon Ticonderoga a couple of times before in recent years, and I have just finished off my third. They are affordably priced and are readily available at Target and Walmart. The quality of the … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":45992,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4953,7,49,16],"tags":[6048,6049,6045,158,6019,6046,6051,6053,17,8,6044,6054,6052,76,43,3661,5,6047,6011,5907,3663,25,6013,6050,6043,480,6017],"class_list":["post-45995","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-doodle-tuesday","category-illustration","category-it-came-from-the-sketchbook","category-sketch","tag-6x9-sketchbook","tag-8-5x11-sketchbook","tag-affordable-sketchbooks","tag-analog","tag-artist-tools","tag-big-box-art-supplies","tag-budget-sketching","tag-canson-sketchbook","tag-cartoon","tag-cartoons","tag-dixon-ticonderoga","tag-fabriano-sketchbook","tag-fountain-pen-sketching","tag-horror","tag-humor","tag-illustration","tag-joe-williams","tag-pen-and-ink-drawings","tag-pengear-sketch-diary","tag-sailor-fude-de-mannen","tag-sketch","tag-sketchbook","tag-sketchbook-review","tag-target-art-supplies","tag-ucreate-sketchbook","tag-usa","tag-walmart-art-supplies"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Punky-Larry-Hughes-e1759166265768.jpg?fit=640%2C900&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1ed1x-bXR","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":46109,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/10\/14\/pengear-sketchbooks-not-all-are-winners\/","url_meta":{"origin":45995,"position":0},"title":"Pen+Gear Sketchbooks: Not All Are Winners","author":"Joe","date":"October 14, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019ve been working on notions of what the final scenes of my Teenage Beast story will be like, sketching ideas in my Pen+Gear Sketch Diary. As I have written before, that sketchbook is a gem as far as price and quality. The paper handles ink nicely, soaking it up without\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/detail-Underlit-from-the-Pit.jpg?fit=900%2C481&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/detail-Underlit-from-the-Pit.jpg?fit=900%2C481&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/detail-Underlit-from-the-Pit.jpg?fit=900%2C481&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/detail-Underlit-from-the-Pit.jpg?fit=900%2C481&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":41357,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2023\/09\/05\/killing-off-the-birthday-sketchbook\/","url_meta":{"origin":45995,"position":1},"title":"Killing Off the Birthday Sketchbook","author":"Joe","date":"September 5, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"I finished up the Ticonderoga UCreate tablet that I received as a birthday gift this past fall. I've used these sketchbooks before, and the price and size are right, but they just aren't as special as the mysterious Sketchbooks from Heaven. I kept the sketchbook at hand, but what I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "It Came From the Sketchbook"","block_context":{"text":"It Came From the Sketchbook","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Atomic-Warrior-08-31-2023.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Atomic-Warrior-08-31-2023.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Atomic-Warrior-08-31-2023.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":45103,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/05\/13\/tiptoe-through-the-sketchbooks\/","url_meta":{"origin":45995,"position":2},"title":"Tiptoe through the Sketchbooks","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"May 13, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Having finished up the Canson XL Mixed Media Sketchbook, I am working here and there in a few different sketchbooks. The subject is still The Teenage Beast. As far as discount sketchbooks, the Ucreate sketchbook from Ticonderoga is a pretty decent pad of paper. I like how it takes inks.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/detail-Coming-Through-Part-Two.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/detail-Coming-Through-Part-Two.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/detail-Coming-Through-Part-Two.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":45889,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/09\/09\/when-does-the-band-go-on\/","url_meta":{"origin":45995,"position":3},"title":"When does the band go on?","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"September 9, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is another sketch from my developing Teenage Beast story. The crowd awaits the arrival of Brian Bubonic and the Plague. I drew this with sky blue mechanical pencil leads and Sailor Fude De Mannen fountain pens in a small UCreate sketchbook by Ticonderoga. It takes ink surprisingly well and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Awaiting-Brian-Bubonic.jpg?fit=640%2C448&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Awaiting-Brian-Bubonic.jpg?fit=640%2C448&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Awaiting-Brian-Bubonic.jpg?fit=640%2C448&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44824,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/04\/01\/a-doodle-tuesday-miscellany\/","url_meta":{"origin":45995,"position":4},"title":"A Doodle Tuesday Miscellany","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"April 1, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"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\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Doodle Tuesday"","block_context":{"text":"Doodle Tuesday","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/it-came-from-the-sketchbook\/doodle-tuesday\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Canson-XL-mixed.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Canson-XL-mixed.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Canson-XL-mixed.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":45915,"url":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/2025\/09\/18\/the-cheapskate-strikes-back\/","url_meta":{"origin":45995,"position":5},"title":"The Cheapskate Strikes Back!","author":"Joe_Williams","date":"September 18, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I was in an art supply store recently to pick up some gift items for a friend, and I thought I would pick up a smallish, mixed media, sketchbook for myself. I was thinking a 7-inch by 10-inch sketchbook would suit me well. It fits in my bag nicely and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Curious Clutter"","block_context":{"text":"Curious Clutter","link":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/category\/curious-clutter\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/PenGear-sketchbook-insert.jpg?fit=640%2C529&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/PenGear-sketchbook-insert.jpg?fit=640%2C529&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/PenGear-sketchbook-insert.jpg?fit=640%2C529&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45995","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45995"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45995\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45995"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45995"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/willceau.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45995"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}