Finding an Hour Here & There

I was trying to use up the ink in my TWSBI Swipes. I hate to admit, I had these pens inked up since August when I taught my pen & ink wash workshops. Four months later and my inks were still flowing in my pens. I knew it was time for some pen cleaning, but I wanted to create one more sketch with the remaining inks.

I’m not sure why, but I was thinking about avocados the other day. I used Prairie Green and Heart of Gold to create my avocado sketch.

I added a few layers of inky colors and decided to stop and let my sketch rest for a bit. I took this picture and noticed something going on with my green Swipe.

I had to show the bits of shimmering particles in my sketch. It was amazing to see how much shimmer was still flowing out onto my paper.

I noticed my Swipe had developed a long crack starting at the top of its cap. Strange place for a crack. I expected it to develop near the thread area where the cap screws into the body.

While I enjoy using my TWSBIs, I won’t be purchasing anymore Swipes. I’ll stick to my dependable TWSBI GO for my pen & ink sketches.

Before I end this post, I wanted to share that I added a new art medium to my artsy adventure. I’ve been painting with gouache. Maybe I should say attempted to paint with gouache. I picked up a few tubes (primary colors) and enjoyed the process of mixing the colors. I’ve been learning how to use these paints to create my artwork. Personally, I feel there’s a big learning curve. I’m practicing and learning new painting techniques before I can develop my own painting style. This is a work in progress.

Inks: Robert Oster Heart of Gold. KWZ/Galen Leather Exclusive Prairie Green

Pens: TWSBI Swipe with Stub 1.1 nib

Journal: Stillman & Birn Beta Hardcover Wirebound 6″x8″ (270gsm)