#crayola fine line

[pink-crayon-princess]

Kiddos, I have to put you on to these markers. I will never be coloring with anything else.

The consistency is like paint, except it flows like ink. Super satisfying!!!

There is ZERO bleeding even through cheap paper

The colors POP off the page (look at the white!! These pics aren’t edited at all)

Brush tip and fine tip

You can draw over dark colors with light colors

The ink is super forgiving, even light colors. I notice it disappears a little bit if you accidentally draw on the lines

It dries down instantly

Here’s a look at a page that I thought was a lost cause because of the crayola markers I used on the other side, before and after:

And yes, that silver is metallic!! My pictures don’t do any of this justice.

Best part - they’re only like $8 for a 24 count and they offer replacements and stuff if you have any issues.

https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fa.co%2Fd%2F9sYPJlR&t=MGVkZTgxMTQ4MGExNmJiYjc4YTkzMzExM2I0MjNiOTY4NDEyOGVlYywwZjcwZGI2MjJhMDM0YTA0YzI4YzYwN2VlMWU4MjQ1NWU0NTgxZGRj&ts=1736193762

Go forth and color!!

dni if nsfw

[beekindac]

Nothing special, just something blue and hopefully soothing to look at. I hope your week is treating you well and that you have a chance to bask in the sunspots.

For those that have asked for materials used, I am so sorry I didn't include that so much before. I started this blog to track my progress, get better at posting things (without feeling like I wanted to vomit), and hopefully provide something to make people smile. It honestly didn't occur to me anyone would care. 😶I have NO idea if I can add that to older posts, but I'll check with my trusty tumblr experts (my kids).

Otherwise, I use mostly Winsor and Newton Pro Watercolors, with a couple of Daniel Smith colors thrown in due to price mostly (Sap greens, Phthalo Blue, and Sepia). I use Arches or Baohong(Meeden) Paper, and my brushes I use most are the Aqua Elite from Princeton (Mostly because I save my WN Series 7 brushes I got for my birthday for commissions), and also I LOVE LOVE LOVE the 000 round from Christy Rice's collection.

Gouache is also Winsor and Newton Pro and I use their Student brushes (the bright blue ones) - these are actually the BEST starter brushes I have encountered. I wish I had found these when I first started. otherwise I use my older SNAP brushes from Princeton, sine you need a bit hardier a brush to stand up to the gouache.

***********************************************************************

Also - a note to anyone starting out in watercolor - quality makes a HUGE difference. While I would say work with crayola if that's what you have, just get to know it's limitations compared to the continuum of paints and you'll be fine (I.e. a lot of student paint can't be mixed well to get other colors). Chances are, if you can't get it to do a thing, it's because of a material you are using. Good paper can handle a lot more water, scrubbing, layers, pigment. good brushes don't drop all their water at once, they hold better lines, and more pigment. -- All things others better than I have said before, but it's SO true it bears repeating.

[littlehousebigsociety]

I was reading a book on darning. Apparently the way I darn socks isn't an "official" technique 😂 although it shares some aspects with English darning. Whatever. I hated most of the techniques in the book 🤣 but it still indirectly inspired me to try combining sashiko with square darning.

This pair of pants tore a small hole in the knee ages ago. I've had them in my mending pile while I waited for inspiration to strike. Basically I ran random stitching vertical and horizontal, not trying for regular length of stitches or distance between lines, except in the very center where I picked up extra lines and then wove them from the opposite direction in a square darn.

Supplies: Olympus 100% cotton sashiko thread in navy (103), and a small metal mixing bowl for a darning "mushroom"

Work in progress, below. While the vertical lines were easy to keep straight by following the lines in the denim, horizontal proved impossible without drawing guidelines (in brown). (Not widely approved of, I'm sure, but kids super-washable Crayola fine tip markers are great for this imo. 👍 So far they've always washed out for me.)

The hole, from the reverse, because I always forget to take "before" photos:

My only regret is that I didn't put an additional piece of denim behind the hole as reinforcement. That may or may not backfire on me. However, so far I'm very please with the outcome. I washed them, everything held up, and the patch is comfortable when wearing.

[floral-ashes]

Do you remember this?

That footnote was actually me! And I’ve now published a book called Gender/Fucking: The Pleasures and Politics of Living in a Gendered Body that also walks the fine line between serious insight and shitposting.

Choice quotes include:

“Lacan can eat a cactus dick.”

“Besides, we all know I pursued vaginoplasty because women’s clothing has no pockets. It was either that or learning sewing.”

“I would merely end up disallowed from myself. Drafting memos on tax law instead of writing sex jokes in the footnotes of peer-reviewed papers. Solemnly deliberating the minutiae of doctrine instead of showing colleagues my tits. Respectability is a slippery slope.”

“So I’m sitting there, crayola jizz on my titties…”

“I have not succeeded in my craft despite horniness but because of it.”

[that-foul-legacy-lover]

*holds out crayola 24 pack* I'll let you use my crayons if you write a lil something about foul legacy with a doll/puppet/automaton reader :)

like, foul legacy watching you pop your limbs off and getting scared untill you assure him that it's a perfectly normal part of your self maintenance, or foul legacy getting confused when you dont give off heat but loving you anyway? abdksjk foul legacy listen to the gears in your chest turning like it's your heartbeat

woah,,,,, i'll put this right up on my fridge :)

you don't SMELL organic, that's the first thing he noticed- you smell like chalk and ice and very cold sparks instead of flesh and blood, the thin lines and ball joints of connectivity jut visible beneath the fabric of your clothes. but he doesn't ask anything of it- after all, who's he to judge? he's a massive moth-like Abyss monster! so Foul Legacy ask nothing and questions nothing, since you love and give him love the same way as a human might. until, one day, you decide that it's high time you give yourself a little fixing up and do some maintenance. your shoulder's been bugging you for a week or two, so you roll up your sleeves and promptly pop your arm out of its socket, leaning over to take a look at the joint. there's a small spark of multicolored energy at the separation, but it dissolves into shiny wisps in the morning light

there's a shriek of horror, and Foul Legacy tackles you and grasps your detached arm in his claw with a panicked screech

you hastily reassure him that you're fine- see, everything's fine! this is normal! but Legacy chitters and whines as he frets until you grab his hand and gently bring his claws up to rest on your shoulder, right where the socket is. he whimpers at first, the sound slowly dying as his throat as he investigates your body, the joints and puppet strings gliding under his fingertips with a curious chirp. finally Legacy concedes, but he insists on holding you in his lap to watch you, making sure nothing bad happens. halfway through the maintenance he dips his head down and presses it against your chest, listening to your internal mechanisms. the energy hums and flows, reacting and exploding and doing everything over again to keep you running, and Legacy treasures it like how someone listens to their beloved's heart after a long day

it means you're alive, after all. alive and with him for him to love and you to love back. and he won't ever let someone string you up like a marionette, ever

[mcromwell]

question: whats the difference between wax, oil and soft pastels? (different materials of course, but how do they feel on paper?)

Hi Anon! I love pastels, let's dig in.

Wax pastels feel like a soft Crayola crayon. In hotter temps, they feel like spreading a stick of butter across a pan. In colder temps, well, like frozen butter. Mmm. They're water soluble sometimes, and I think those are softer, and the non-water soluble ones are denser and feel more like how any other crayon feels, but with better pigment loads. Good Crayon. Artist-Grade Crayon. Accepts a certain amount of scratching, but not as much as oils.

Oil pastels are very soft and sticky. They're sometimes so soft you can smoosh them between your fingers. They feel extremely smooth going across paper and very textured surfaces will eat them alive. They're basically really really gummy oil paints, so you can treat them as such with thinning chemicals and whatever. (Sorry, I am not an oils person, lol) You can scratch them away for fine lines, too. They don't dry out quickly (or perhaps at all), especially if you layered them on thick, so a special type of fixative is needed for oil pastels.

Soft pastels are like chalk. (There is confusion in my mind on whether to use "chalk pastel" over "soft pastel", but I think the differentiation lies in that soft pastels actually don't have actual chalk in them. From what I can find out, "chalk pastels" are just dyed chalk and not artist-grade. This is tangential, lmao, my bad.) Soft pastels are powdery, crumbly, very breakable. I often Hulk smash them in my hands as I color. It is heartbreaking to drop them on the floor. They taste extremely bad; do not eat dry cereal while you are working on a soft pastel piece. They're bad to breathe and technically require a particle mask* if you're using them a lot. They feel like chalk on paper! There are also PanPastels, which are pigments in a little pan and you apply it with sponges, similar to makeup. I haven't used those, but I want to. I'm pretty sure soft pastels come in pencil form, too. I'm rambling. Anyway these can't be scratched off, but can be erased, more or less. So you can dig some white values back out with an electric eraser.

If I made any mistakes, someone correct me. But that's what I know about pastels. Thanks for the opportunity to infodump.

*I don't do this. If the particulates don't kill me, the microplastics will.

[lordvonbunnyv]

Expanding on my last post, here’s what all of the engines would do if given art supplies (modified for them to handle, I.e tapped to the end of a long chopstick for them to hold in their mouth)

Thomas: does a coloring book page of himself in blue, does not stay in the lines at all because lines are overrated.

Edward: takes his time to make his drawing look as nice as he could. Draws a flowery field with sheep

Henry: “okay, this is a postmodern contemporary abstract take of my forest inspired by pollock done in wax crayola crayons and… to be honest, I can’t draw at all.”

Gordon: gets frustrated, rips up the page and accidentally swallows the crayon.

James: rage quits and spits his crayon out and then runs over it.

Percy: is too busy trying to sniff the markers and crayons than actually doing any art.

Toby: has Henrietta pose with Percy while he tries to draw them.

Duck: draws the Great Western Way ™ which is try and draw a map of his line before realizing how hard that is and settling with drawing an ocean with boats.

Donald: draws dilly in pink because he thinks that’s dilly’s favorite color.

Douglas: an albino polar bear lost in a snowstorm, aka left the page blank.

Oliver: tries to draw toad, found it too hard so he scribbled it all in black and called it “toad during a blackout”

Emily: draws flowers but they came out looking like blood splatter.

Marion: has a paint brush taped to her shovel and paints rocks.

Cranky: drops buckets of paint onto a cloth

Skarloey: tries to draw the welsh dragon but with train parts, came out looking like a red blob.

Rheneas: tries to do a self portrait.

Sir Handel: is not having any of it because he thinks his art looks terrible.

Peter Sam: eats the black crayon “this coal tastes funny”

Duncan: starts out fine, messes up, rages and makes a huge mess of his drawing

Rusty: is having the time of his life.

[marblegroves]

Just saw your sketchbook post and I am amazed at how clean it all looks O_O /pos

So I was wondering, what materials do you use for your traditional drawings (all the stuff from sketch to final piece)?

BOY AM I GLAD YOU ASKED THIS *ahem*

Behold 😌

For the sketchbook pages, I mainly stuck to these materials though ^^ these guys are my…

PRIMARY MATERIALS

The green mechanical pencil on the picture on the left has 0.7mm colored lead in it! I alternate between blue and pink colored leads depending on what fits the overall color of the piece better.

Once I finish up the sketch, I line it with the black pilot ballpoint pen! I really like the control and feel of ballpoint pens for traditional lineart, because it gives a sort of variety in pressure I can’t seem to achieve with normal fineliners. I like to switch up the colors of the lineart too sometimes, hence the pink and red ballpens.

Then once the linearts done, I color them in with the stabilo highlighters, as pictured on the right! These guys are my FAVORITES. Sometimes when I’m just freely sketching I use the grey or peach mini stabilos. Although, they do tend to be a bit runny, ‘cause they’re meant for quick highlights and not multiple strokes over an area ^^; so you do have to be careful and quick when coloring with them to get an even coat of color!

Sometimes, though, when there are other colors or textures I want in a drawing, I use my…

SECONDARY MATERIALS

Pictured above are all my alcohol based markers! The four on the left are neon sharpies for when I need that extra eyestrainy kick. The three promarkers with the pointy cap were from when I was a freshman in uni and wanted to collect a full set of alcohol markers, but these were the only colors they had in stock and the college supply store ✌️ I’ve since given up on that dream because they were really expensive ;; they’re really good for sunny grassy scenes though! The last dark blue marker was from a set of other blue markers, but the others have since dried out… I use it when I really wanna darken up a page, like for night scenes!

This is my prismacolor set! I like to pair these with the markers, going in after the initial layer of color to give a bit of variety or shine. Some examples of when I use them would be for adding blush or giving hair a glossy sheen 👍

These ones are my “fuck it” materials lmao

I use these when I really just wanna scribble something down wildly. I had these since I was in gradeschool and its quite frankly a miracle they still work? Oh, and the red and yellow twistable crayolas are missing because I vaguely remember giving them to some childhood friends for some reason 🤔

My fineliners and gellyrolls! Haven’t used these much recently tbh. I’d used them for class before, but I never really likes how flat the thickness tends to be :/ the brush tips and chisel tips are cool though. I used them for that one yellow bdubs doodle to try and see if my opinion of them has changed ^^ it hasn’t. Moving on…

Lastly, we have the special materials! The ones that don’t really go into any sets, or have nice applications. In order from left to right:

Wink of Stella - A brush pen that applies glitter through some sort of black magic. No idea how she works but I love her

Red Marvy Art Director 1400 - A red fine tip marker. Can’t go wrong with a bright red marker 👍

Golden Posca - My only posca marker. Figured if I should get one it might as well be something special.

Faber Castell Blue Highlighter - I use this alongside the stabilos. It has a really nice deep blue color ^^

And well! That should be everything! ^^ Thanks for giving me an avenue to gush about my materials lmao 🥰

[ckret2]

Bill's handwriting in Journal 3 Blacklight Edition™ is one of my favorite things. He writes like: ↗️↘️↗️↘️, aaand it looks chaotic at first but you can see a pattern in there.

I wonder if you have any headcanon of how his dimention's writing was is like?

Yes, and I've actually written a post about handwriting in his dimension already! It's right here. 

I've already made references to his home dimension's writing system in fic, although it hasn't been described in depth because the scenes are from Bill's POV and he doesn't consider his own writing system noteworthy enough to merit a description. It'll actually get described properly in fic when we can see it from a human's POV. I think all the references to his writing system so far come in chapters 23 & 24:

Mabel had spilled out her crayons in front of Bill plenty of times; sometimes she even let him use them. It had taken some careful timing and preparation, but a few days ago he'd grabbed the unloved grey and greenish-yellow crayons—the sharpest in her collection—during a moment she'd left him unsupervised.

This is why he had to grab two crayons. Gray and greenish-yellow were chosen because in my own childhood crayon boxes, those were always the least loved crayons (for most fine detail work, why bother using gray if you already have the black crayon out; and I just thought crayola's yellow-green didn't look very nice and had few applications where green didn't fit better); and also because, out of the unloved crayons, they're most similar to Bill's preferred black and yellow/gold. (Naturally, black and yellow crayons are staples of the crayon box, and thus too risky to take.)

After a moment of thought, he wrote, "Don't remember if I was a human or a shape. My organs were doing things a shape's shouldn't." (He wrote "human" as 人; there was no translation for the word in the language Bill wrote in. The two angled strokes stood out in Bill's rows of Morse-like dots and dashes.)

I went through every translation of "human" on wiktionary and out of them all, Chinese 人 is the most visually similar to Bill's language—just two lines—and thus the least disruptive to insert in the middle of a sentence. I imagine when he has to insert an untranslatable foreign word in the middle of his writing, he just flips through every language he knows and picks the one that's least visually disruptive.

[thickness-protection-program]

Alright okay, specific pencil recommendation shit: beginner tier and budget mostly. I'm still teaching myself to draw and use color better and rn I stick to coloring books I snag from a grocery store with cheapass paper but really cool things to color, I like a soft and buttery sorta feel, and bright colors, and so far the Prismacolors are doing me fine but like, I DO eventually get more than the set of 36 I nabbed already. OH and I also eventually wanna do mixed media with watercolors too

Ok for a beginner on a budget again I recommend arteza (either the standard or expert sets bc they work basically the same) and brutfuner. You can get 120 brutfuners for less than 30$. Tthe square barrels might be a tad uncomfortable and hard to sharpen but they are surprisingly really smooth for a cheap pencil. Um there's another brand called arrtx that I've heard are very similar to prismas but I haven't yet gotten my hands on a pack. But I plan on it! Oh! And since you like softer pencils I won't recommend standard crayola then (even though I always recommend Crayola) but I recommend the Crayola Signature line. After using both there is definitely a difference

As for your coloring books I don't like to use most of them from general stores bc the pages are usually either really thin or really smooth, both of which makes it hard to use pencils. If you can find a way to make the pages rougher or find one with a little more tooth on the page that could make a world of difference for your colors.

And finally prismacolor does make watercolor pencils if you wanna experiment with those sometime. They're not my cup of tea personally but you might like them better and if so that's fantastic

[mold-ridden-heart]

Vex’s Art School!!

_____________________

Welcome star child to my art school! AKA where I give out free art tips!!

A special follower of mine wanted me to give them some art tips, so let’s get into it! :D

I’ve been drawing for as long as I can remember, when I was only a toddler I made an ‘organ book’ filled with pictures of organs and what their name was, so I’ve been doing this a while.

When I was at 7 I had a box for crayola markers and a bunch of copier paper making made up animals and sub-human species, making stacks and stacks of drawings that I’d proudly show my mom and dad.

Because I’ve been drawing for so long, my art style as developed in a way that is most comfortable for me to draw in. And I get it, I’ve been in the phase of ‘my art is terrible compared to everyone else’s!!’ But let me tell you how to get out of that instead of me telling you how I draw so you can copy it.

Art is something you create for yourself, things YOU like drawing and are most comfortable drawing! For some people this is realistic art, a 90s DC style, alternative art, Cartoon Network looking art, whatever it is it’s valid! As long as you’re not an NSFW artist forcing people to see it. (It’s fine to do NSFW just don’t push it onto people :D)

Here’s what I did to build my art style.

Whatever art I saw, I’d point out the parts of the art I liked the most and apply it to how I drew, and if something looked wrong I’d mess around with things until I liked it!

Like with the Mark fanart I did not to long ago, while drawing that I came across a lot of problems I didn’t like. I just messed around with the line art and eventually it looked right!

Try and make a Pinterest board of art you like and take mental notes on what makes your art style and the art’s different, try and apply the stuff you like to aspects of your art style you like.

This looks different for everyone, like realist artists could look at pictures of real people and see what their style is lacking compared to real people, alternative artists could go look at people’s art style that they like and take notes on that, or cartoon artists could go watch Cartoon Network and build their art style off of that.

If you like the way I draw, take mental notes on what makes my art style so good. Like I put swirls in my character’s hair, make ears sharp, lashes long and draw chins a certain way.

What you half to remember is that your style is completely unique, not two art styles are the exact same. Never. Your art style is different from mine, the next guy’s the guy after that.

Another good tip is to trace over people’s art you like and simplify it into shapes to get a feel of how they draw and how you can change your style to that. It’s why I draw face shapes like how I do!

You can watch as much art tutorials on YouTube as you want, but just make sure that your art style is the way that YOU like drawing. If it is the exact same as some else’s, it will cause problems with your art. You won’t grow, you won’t be able to draw most things, you will only rely on other people’s art to draw.

I’m not saying that you’re supposed to ONLY supposed to draw in a way that is unique to you, no no, just don’t directly copy someone else’s art.

Happy day, pookies! Hope you benefit! :D

P.S., for the love of GOD start with a sketch and don’t go straight into line art to be different, it’ll only cause problems for yourself.

[dont-worry-honey]

OK

WHICH ART MATERIALS DO YOU USE?!

LIKE, HOW DOES YOUR PEN.. PEN LIKE THAT. THE LINES ARE SO AKHSOWHSIWHISJW

AND YOUR COLORS ACTUALLY COLOR

Please. I need to know.

Hi!! So I’ll be very honest I don’t use anything fancy!

So here’s the list and a funny story along with them! (You’re getting the whole experience)

INKING:

STA Pigment Liner Pack. (I found one in the street and I liked it so I went to look for more online. Almost died for picking up something from the street counter: 1)

- Pros: Waterproof! (For a while) And since it’s a pack, they come with many different sizes

- Cons: after some time the ink does erase a little, and loses its waterproof….

Sharpie Permanent Marker Ultra Fine (I was in desperate need for new inking pen.)

-Pros: Doesn’t ERASE!! Very strong pigment. Water proof. Lasts!!

-Cons: smell…

COLORING:

Royal & Langnickel 18 watercolors: (I just wanted to have something to do in school since I never had much work to do)

Pros: Very Travel Friendly

Cons: idk!! I’m not a watercolor person !! It’s the first time for me!!

Aenart 36 Dual Pens: (I was gifted this from the school!! The embarrassing part was that I sleeping when it all happened. They stormed in the classroom with a camera in my face saying: “YOUR WISH HAS BEEN GRANTED.” I practically jumped out of my chair! Apparently my teacher bought it for me!<3)

Pros: MANY COLORS!! VERY PRETTY!! White marker is perfect for shading white!! (I know nothing about shading)

Cons: none I love them

Staedtler 10 Triplus fineliner: (no story)

Pros: very fine! Very pigmented!

Cons: I don’t remember… maybe don’t put them near watercolor if not dried or applying?

Crayola Color Pencils: (I do not have a full pack. The ones I have are from elementary. I’m currently in college.)

Pros: I like them :) very affordable

Cons: idk! Maybe a professional knows…

Imperial Color Pencils: (I only have ONE! It’s the red one. Almost died for picking up something from the street counter: 2)

Pros: The red one is very nice! Very pigmented!

Cons: idk… I don’t have the full pack…

U Brands Gel Pens 30 Count: ( I got this from a secret Santa! A YEAR LATE. A YEARR!! So when I received it I was very pleased. The year wait was worth it)

Pros: many colors!! Glitter!! Metallic too!!

Cons: does NOT dry fast. Need to wait for it to dry or it will smudge everywhere. The white gel pen doesn’t work well. Get a special one for that! (Someone told me here which one but I already forgot….)

PROCESS:

So ofc sketch first!!

Inking: I use the STA pen for face and face shape. Since I draw Fukase (mostly), I use it for his face markings too. (After erasing sketch, I advice to touch up anywhere you used the STA Pen) For the Sharpie Pen I use it for the the rest. Background, body, clothes, etc.

Coloring: First I go over it with my watercolors. I put them down before I put down the markers. For example, I use the watercolor first for Fukase’s hair. Then I use the Staedtler Pens to get that bright red! For clothes (or anything else) I use Aenart Markers. For the background, I put my crayola/ imperial color pencils on top. Depends on the feeling I want. Then I usually like to outline my drawings with the U Brands Gel Pens. When I tell you I put glitter on all my drawings, I put it on ALL my drawings!! I LOVE SHINY!!

Conclusion:

I really hope this was able to answer your question! I’m pretty sure most of the things on my list are affordable! I also hope my process was able to help explain how I make coloring… well coloring (English is not my first language I apologize. I suck at my first language too, though). I also hope you enjoyed the bonus stories (I didn’t want to make this whole thing boring). If you have any more questions I’ll be happy to answer them!! Also THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! I never thought someone would actually like how I color since I struggle big time with it,,, I’m self taught so I have no idea of the art basics of coloring.

Anyway, thank you so much again!!

- Honey

P.S. Due to legal reasons, not sponsored.

[doctorguilty]

Some random thoughts

One of the worst things art professors did to me in college was insist I wasn't allowed to have a lined notebook as a sketchbook for class. I had to use a proper sketchbook. Before that happened, I would fill lined notebooks passionately with art, but for whatever reason I'm my brain, I just can't do it with plain blank paper..

So I didn't do good on the class sketchbook assignments anyway because the quality of what I did was shit if I ever did it at all. And I really internalized the whole thing, because the way I felt belittled and mocked.. so i tried to stop using notebooks, I tried every kind of sketchbook I could find, big, small, thin paper, thick paper, textured, off white.. I just drew less and less for pleasure. It genuinely fucked me over. And for what?? I do less art, I'm less passionate about it, because notebook paper is too pedestrian? Yeah so worth the tens of thousands of dollars of student loan debt I'll have for the rest of my life. (I could talk at length about how I wish i had more agency and did everything different about college entirely but.. that's a whole other thing)

Over the years I've gone back to my notebooks and have done a good amount in them, though I still couldn't get over some of my reservations, like how i shouldn't waste my Good drawing materials on lined paper .. I'd stick to pencil, ballpoint pen, fine tipped inking pen/sharpie, thick sharpie, and cheap markers like Crayola and whatnot (and highlighters though I still LOVE coloring with my highlighters)

It's been a rough past several years, I've barely done any art both traditional and digital alike.. but I'm working on changing that. I busted out a notebook recently and have been doing some doodles and I decided not to hold back using the fancy stuff, like these really nice watercolor markers I think bog may have given to me cause he didn't see himself using them? Idk where else I would have gotten such nice markers. They're SO nice. I'm using them on the lined paper. If I use them up I'll get more. It's not the end of the world. (I'm really trying to live more of the "use the nice things now, don't wait for a special occasion that never comes" philosophy in general)

I'm going to like Michael's or whatever when I can and picking up some colors and things I want and don't have, cause they sell like lose stuff like that..

Anyway just some thoughts.. as I procrastinate going to sleep even though I gotta get up in ~4 hours to go to the doctor 🥲

[mouseratz]

on pens: my favorite writing pen is I think called signo? I use it for my journaling, it's got that smoother flowing ink of the ritzier style pens without being quite so wet.

the best lining pens that aren't art pens (microns do kind of knock it out of the park there, but you're not going to want to line every drawing with the fancy stuff) are those fine tip papermate marker-y ones like the blue one in the photo, or fine tip sharpie pens (like, the very skinny ones). in a pinch for thicker lines, regular fine tip/skinny Crayola markers will also get the job done- for lining, you want thicker and drier lines, honestly, which isn't what you usually want for writing. (Which is why the microns coming in very small sizes is such a boon.) however the nicest writing pens are still too wet-feeling to me and I'll smear them everywhere, so the g2's are a good middle ground I like.

[roseartsandfics]

The Art of Love

I couldn't think of a good title, but it's all I got lol.

But here is a project I have done with two pencils, three art pens, one regular pen, of the the packed colored pencil and a Crayola paint brush, and drew some wavy lines, from big to small, with my equipment in a circle, and colored a heart in the middle ❤️

I did this days ago and thought it was a fun thing to do ^^

What y'all think?

Artwork ©SuperShadowSilver

No copyright infringement is intended

Used: regular basic pencil, mechanical pencil, artists' fine pens and brush, Pen Gear pen, 48 pack colored pencil and Crayola watercolor paint

[leapdayowo]

this^^^

If you want to improve your artwork, it’s going to take so much time! I’m sorry, there is no ‘get good in a week’ miracle. There is only lots of practice and experimenting and ‘messing up.’ If anyone wants some advice on what practice looks like, because telling someone to practice is vague and thus unhelpful, stick around I have a few pointers :) scroll all the way to the bottom for bullet points because I like to over explain

First off, almost always draw! Whenever, wherever, and with whatever is available to you. If you’re still in school, keep doing the doodles in your notes! Same can probably go for when you’re at work and things are slow. Keep a scrap piece of paper or sticky notes with you and a cheap pen or pencil and draw what’s around you, what piques your interest, even the cliche things

Here are some of my more recent doodles, but I have note books and scrap paper full of these doodles. Within the last year I’ve been very focused on the human form, so a lot of my doodles are break downs of different poses. I have no expectations for these pieces other than to keep myself entertained in class and play around with my art. So just mess around with low expectations!

Now, as a traditional artist I have a stack of sketchbooks that is getting close to being as tall as I am. Materials can get expensive or not easy to access depending on where you live. If you’re getting serious about your art and its quality, I do recommend finding nicer materials to work with (though this does depend on what effect you’re going for with your art). However, using expensive materials does not always mean better quality or automatically mean your art will be better, often the quality of the art comes from how well you know how to use the materials and your understanding of art (look up elements and principles of art). I myself still use crayola colored pencils and the same mechanical pencil from 5 years ago taped together. I have invested in some nicer paints such as Winsor and Newton watercolors and Canson sketchbooks work fine for me. Finding the right materials will come with time, trial and error, research, and maybe some self reflection. I HIGHLY recommend not investing right away with the more expensive materials unless you have 1) learned the basics of art and feel ready to take on a new medium 2) financially can afford to experiment with more expensive options. Even if you can afford the materials let me say this one last time, the price of the paint or paper does not automatically equate to better art, it’s how you use those materials that matter. Now, that being said, cheaper materials often have their limits, and if you begin to notice these limitations I congratulate you on realizing this and recommend upgrading your stuff :)

Also, if you use cheaper materials it’s less of a big deal if you ‘mess up’ because it wasn’t very costly (maybe 50¢ or so)

good art materials to start with (not an exclusive list):

-colored pencils or crayons

-regular pencils

-ball point pens

-charcoal

-recycled materials (more in line with collage work)

-markers or sharpies

Now where was I… Oh! Going off of the OPs post, ask yourself why your art isn’t good enough. Are you comparing to people who are at a different level of experience than you? Then that isn’t a fair comparison. Being online makes it very difficult not to compare, but how do you know the person you’re comparing yourself to hasn’t had professional teaching for years? Consistent critiques and guidance from peers or other experienced artist? Some people learn concepts faster than others, so if you learn at a slower pace acknowledge that and try gesture drawings or maybe a new art style entirely if you’re really feeling frustrated. Often the expectations we place on ourselves hold us back. Another thing to ask yourself is are you able to handle constructive feedback? I remember when I was about 10 years old I had an art teacher encourage me to put green in the ocean of my drawing of a sunset. I was offended she would consider such a thing! It felt like a personal offense and I refused to put green in the ocean because obviously water is blue! Well… a few years later I decided to follow her advice as I grew more frustrated with how flat and unexciting my art was, and what would you know? There was green in the ocean! There’s lots of colors in water! I still struggle with lighting and reflections, but that was a very important memory for me. I urge you to be more open minded than I was with feedback on your art as it can save you years of art block!

Now, if you are one of those people who created an art account on social media in the hopes of getting famous, I hope you do, but know that is likely not a realistic expectation for a few reasons. There a thousands, if not millions of people with that same idea as you and many of the people with a large following got lucky or had a lot of time to build up that following. Don’t expect to be lucky, and desperately trying to get follows tends to put people off. Are you making art because you even enjoy it at that point? It absolutely feels great to get recognition for your work I won’t deny that, but once you rely on validation from others you will never be satisfied and always need more validation. Try finding fulfillment from the art you are making without relying on others to give you that feeling. What others say about your work is icing on the cake. You have to protect that passion and love for creation fiercely, especially in a day and age where art is being commodified and devalued more and more by others who only care about monetary value. Alright, moving on from the self reflection aspect of making art, take your studies seriously! If you truly wish to improve your art, observe the world around you! Draw it! Draw it terribly or draw it so well you wish you had brought nicer paper than an old receipt! Draw people, buildings, animals, food, reflections in a puddle or the texture of a fuzzy jacket. You like that person’s hair? Draw it! That tree looks cool? Draw it! Draw the folds of fabric and shadows at sunrise. The other part of your studies will be looking at what other artists do that you like or don’t like. Look at a variety of time periods, styles, cultures, and mediums. If an artist is on social media, comment on their work and really try and figure out why you like this particular piece and tell them! Explains your vocabulary and ability to talk about art. This will be something that will eventually become second nature after years of practice. I can’t do anything or go anywhere without thinking ‘oh wow those windows reflect the sky really cool’ or ‘the colors of my meal today work really well.’ I’ve filled my camera roll with stuff that inspired me and drawing references. Also, you will find inspiration in the places you might least expect. I have gone down rabbit holes of online content in the pursuit of a drawing reference (I now know more than the average person about western historical dress construction as one example). Soak it all in! Also, being an artist will likely require you to learn about physics and definitely anatomy. Learn how to draw and paint realistically. Learn all the proper rules of art so that you can turn around and meticulously or explosively proceed to break every single rule in your art. And have fun with it! Play with art styles and mediums you wouldn’t usually associate your work with, you may be surprised what you learn!

Edit: one last thing to add is try learning how to work around or with your mistakes! If you draw with a permanent marker or pen, learn how to get creative with making your mistakes look intentional or as an opportunity to learn. Learn methods of covering those mistakes and starting over or make the mistake the shining focal point of the piece. It’s not the end of the world I promise! The more you learn to work with mistakes, the more you might realize starting a new painting or drawing is less daunting

And the last thing is, know that for thousands of years humans have been making art. No matter who, where, and when we have always been trying to create. What humanity has taken thousands of years to learn, you are trying to speed run in your life time. I don’t mean for that to be stressful, I say that so that you will remember truly how incredibly it is that we can make art. That we want to create. Be patient, let your passion and curiosity flourish, and practice :)

Now here are the cliff notes as promised:

-doodle with cheap materials at every opportunity you can get (try not to let the rest of your life suffer for this though)

-expensive materials ≠ automatically good art

-start with cheap materials, learn basics of art, then slowly upgrade your supplies (your wallet will thank me)

-ask yourself why you think your art is bad. Everyone is at different levels of experience and learn at different rates, comparing yourself negatively is unfair

-don’t expect to get famous online with your art in a matter of weeks. You either need to get lucky or take a while to build up a following. Also, be careful seeking validation only from others

-also online art connections need to be complimented with getting involved in person with the art community. Networking involves face to face communication

-study the world around you and draw it! Draw as much as you can! Learn as much as you can about anything and everything! Study artist of lots of varieties

-learn how to talk about art (you can practice by commenting about the things you like about online artists’ works. Be specific. Things you don’t like can be kept in a private journal unless an artist specifically asks for feedback. Learn how to critic without being mean about it)

-lastly, know that it’s incredibly that you are carrying on the human tradition, which is thousands of years old, of drawing! It’s amazing we seek to create :D

Also, I have kept all of my old art on my instagram account as a testament to the gradual growth I’ve gone through as an artist. I too had the absurdly long anime legs phase of art. We all have unique journeys of making art and sometimes it’s going to feel like you’re getting worse, try something completely new when this happens, but just keep creating or thinking about creating stuff :D I believe in you!

btw with art when people say 'youve got to do it scared' 'youve got to draw bad' 'youre not gonna know how to do it until you do it' it sounds like bullshit but its true. 90% of art is just getting over the fear that it's not going to be good enough to deserve to be made in the first place. but you're here. you're alive and, with no need to justify that, you're going to make art. it's just part of being alive. you'll spend so long worrying you aren't doing it good enough that you'll look back and realized you didn't live a single day of it.