The Clock That Ate My Brain

Actually, it just took a lot longer than I thought it would to color. It's a 9-inch diameter face and you can see why it needs a new face. I mean, nothing against Hannah Montana, but it needs to be arted up. So, as I was coloring I learned a lot.

WARNING! Extremely boring pen discussion ahead! Only read if you're into coloring and obsessed with pens like I am. Don't say I didn't warn you.

I decided that after this clock, I needed to have a full set of Staedtler triplus fineliner color pens, made in Germany. Because I liked that one the best of the three pens I was using, and out of anything I've tried so far. I'm using three different types of pens here, just because I liked their colors, and I'm finding that the red Staedtler gives the richest color, shows up really smoothly when you're coloring large blocks, and doesn't smear the black ink of the Prismacolor pens that I used to outline the design. Triplus just means the pen barrel is triangular-shaped, which does make it comfortable to hold. I don't know what kind of magic ink they use in these pens, but they have this "dry-safe" feature that means you can be a dope and lose the cap for days and the pen won't dry out. I don't remember how much I paid for the individual red pen. Probably less than $2. I just bought the full set of 20 for $26. I might have gotten it cheaper online, but instead I supported my local art store that I love, Wet Paint.

The purple pen is a Le Pen Marvy from Japan, and I only got it because I liked the shade so much. Most purples are too too dark or too pastel-ish for what I was looking for (actually this shade is called Amethyst. Whatever. Thank God it's not Lavender.). It doesn't smear, but I don't like how it shows the lines when you color large blocks. I think it's better for writing letters and such. Just not coloring so much. It does have a really solid point, which is nice. Also cheap, less than $2 each.

And finally, the yellow (I like using only 3 colors in one piece, at least if it's abstract), a ZIG Millenium, which I was the most disappointed with, as it smeared the black outlines really easily, so I had to color really carefully near the lines, which was difficult in some detailed areas. I guess because it's pigment ink it's going to smear everything. Annoying. Well, it's meant for scrapbooking, not coloring, I guess. And spendy, about $3 each.

A note about the black outliners I used: I've used the Pigma Microns, and they're okay, but I find I like the Prismacolor Premier Fine Line Markers (sizes 08 and 01) better because they are smoother. I can draw a long flowing wavy line across the page and the tip doesn't catch like the Microns sometimes do. And I don't have to go over it, the ink flows perfectly smoothly out of it.

So, anyway, that's what I learnt. I hope some of you got some useful info here, I know I am always baffled when I try to choose pens for a project. It's like choosing a breakfast cereal. You just stand in the aisle and gape. Oh! One more thing, as I was looking for links for the pens in this post, I found a fun-looking pen blog, called, of all things, Good Pens! Check it out.