Sakura pens

Hello October and Inktober!

Angela Porter4 Comments

The first day of a new month, and the first day of Inktober to boot!

This year I’m definitely going to the Inktober Tangle 2021 prompt list of Zentangle patterns. I’m going to try to combine the official Inktober 2021 prompt list with them.

Today, I’ve managed that. ‘Crystals’ is the prompt from the Inktober list. The tangle pattern for today is ‘Lunar Flux’ by Debbie New CZT.

I dug out a piece of paper coloured with Distress Inks from my stash of such paper. It’s a rather grungy kind of green, which appealed to me first thing this morning.

0.1 and 0.3 Unipin pens were used to draw the design. Next, a variety of green and white chalk pastels were used to add colour, shadow and highlight to the design. Finally, embellishments were added with white Sakura Soufflé, yellow/gold Sakura Stardust, and clear Sakura Glaze pens.

There were a number of times through the process where I wondered what on Earth I was doing and was going to give up. The first was when I started to dislike the coloured paper. The next was when I thought the pen work wasn’t looking too good, I didn’t have the space to add a third stem of lunar flux (I like groups of odd numbers). Finally, adding colour with the pastels felt like I was making a bad job worse.

I’m glad I didn’t give up. I’m actually quite pleased with the finished drawing. There’s some volume to the elements, and a sense of layers too. The highlights and shadows really helped to lift the colours and the design.

It’s been a lovely, if a tad frustrating at times, way to spend a couple of hours this morning.

Yesterday evening, I spent some time playing around with the basic idea of Lunar Flux and came up with a sketchbook page full of variations. I’ll show this in tomorrow’s Sketchbook Saturday vlog.

For now, I’m going to get a fresh mug of mocha, and spend sometime drawing, making use of Lunar Flux. I’m still not feeling quite right after my upset tummy Wednesday and yesterday. I had a horrible night’s sleep, with two vivid nightmares that had me wrenching myself awake from them. I have no idea what caused them, but the unease and fear they provoked in me is lingering today, along with a sense of exhaustion too. So, self-care time is very much needed today for sure.

Sketchtember 2021 | Day 19

Angela PorterLeave a comment

A page full of whimsical, wonky butterflies. Partly coloured with Ecoline Brush Pens. Embellishments with a variety of Uniball and Sakura gel pens.

I have a sheet of whimsical flutterbys drawn on a piece of marker paper that I’ve started to colour with alcohol ink pens.

A lovely way to spend a quiet Sunday at home. Mind you, every day for me is a quiet day at home, which suits me rather well.

Sketchbook Experiments and Arty Vlog

Angela PorterLeave a comment

Saturday is becoming sketchbook Saturday with a vlog on YouTube!

As well as showing the most recent page(s) in my sketchbook and talking about the media/techniques/inspiration, I spend some time working on the current, higgledy-piggledy page.

I’ve become intrigued with using the humble biro / ballpoint pen in art, especially as they are waterproof. There’s some amazing portraits and other work out there by seriously talented artists.

However, I’m working out how they may work for me, especially in my sketchbook when out and about (when that finally happens!).

As well as talking about the various techniques and inspiration for the art on this page, I also talk about how I want to include more writing in my sketchbooks. I’m intrigued with using creative writing record my experiences, feelings, thoughts and the presence of place alongside any sketches done when visiting somewhere.

I’m also thinking that if I take photographs of what interests me, then sketches and further work could be done later. This is going to be important when I’m not by myself and don’t have the luxury of spending as much time as I’d like.

I’d like to create a story that is in words and pictures, recording my whole experience. Perhaps, I may want to share this with others, so that they can get a glimpse into my mind and emotions.

I’m not too bothered about creating a work of fiction, but to capture all those abstract feelings and observations and communicate them with others…

Actually, it would be about sharing them with myself by becoming more aware of them and giving an outlet for those abstract thoughts and impressions I rarely verbalise as I’m unaware of them unless I’m asked to verbalise them.

Something else I’d like to do is to revisit typographic art with all of this in mind. Finding a way to incorporate words and imagery that expresses who I am, rather than taking quotes from other people.

I do love words, always have. During this past year, I’ve had so few opportunities to speak out loud, that I’m finding it hard to dredge up the right word at times. Previously this was so easy for me. So, it would be good to give my vocabulary a good work out as well as add new words to it!

It’s going to be a work in progress for sure. I doubt I can do this, or that it will be interesting to others, or that it will be any good at all. However, if I don’t take the first tentative steps on this strand of my life’s tapestry, then I may never discover if it is something I can do, nor will I discover where it will lead me.

All that it will take are basic supplies, and to create a new ‘habit’ of writing throughout the day, whether I’m at home, or elsewhere, and drawing things that are of interest/importance to me at the time.

A bit of a challenge, but do-able I think.

Starting an art journal

Angela Porter2 Comments

For a long, long while I’ve wanted to keep an art journal. However, I’ve been puzzled and confused and not sure what to do with it.

Yesterday, I decided the only way to find out how to do it or what to do with it was to just do it, and to use it as a way to experiment with media/techniques I don’t usually use (certainly when I’m doing the black and white line art for the various publishers I’ve done/doing work for).

It’s actually quite fun. I’ve found a way to make use of the sheets of Gelli printed patterns which aren’t much use for anything else as I’m playing with the Gelli plate(s). I’m using Tim Holtz’s Distress inks with sponges and home-made stamps/texture plates too.

It’s also a way for me to combine words and art, something I’ve never really been happy with.

AngelaPorter_Artwyrd_Journal Page 1

AngelaPorter_Artwyrd_Journal Page 2

A different kind of mandala from me

Angela PorterLeave a comment

August Mandala 9 © Angela Porter 2013

This one is a little different for me.  The colours are rather subdued for a start.  It shows the influence of my love of Romanesque architectural details, geometric patterns, natural patterns, doodly patterns, and, dare I say it, zentangles, though I do have to say the use of repeated patterns and doodly patterns has been around for thousands and thousands of years not just through the cleverly packaged and marketed brand of Zentangle!  I’ve used patterns like this in my art for a very long time, drawing on my own observations as well as those of others…

Anyway, this mandala has been created using Unipin pens, coloured pencils, a Pentel white hybrid gel pen, and gold and silver Sakura pens.  Yes, there are some very subtle metallic highlights on this one that don’t really show up in the scan.

Harvest Angels

Angela PorterLeave a comment

Harvest Angels © Angela Porter 2012

12cm x 12cm.  Derwent Metallic pencils, Sakura glaze pen and Cosmic Shimmer metallic/iridescent watercolour paints.

Just finished … kept me busy for a couple of hours…again, I’m not good at photography, this time the colours are washed out … sigh…one day I may crack it!

Energy Flow1

Angela PorterLeave a comment

Energy Flow 1 © Angela Porter 2012

16cm x 8cm.  Sakura Glaze pen in black, Derwent colorsoft pencils, Derwent metallics pencils and Cosmic Shimmer iridescent/metallic watercolour paints on black card.

I started this one before my return to work a fortnight ago.  I noticed as I was completing it this weekend that it’s a little disjointed in places which may symbolise how I was feeling about the return to work.  The photograph really doesn’t show the colours properly, nor the shimmer and shine of the metallics.  However, you do get an idea of what it looks like.

Returning to work.

I made it back to work for the start of the Summer Term.  My voice, however, is still not right.  Work have referred me to occupational health and for speech therapy.  Also, there’s a microphone/speaker system on order for my room so that I won’t have to raise my voice.   My doctor has referred me to ENT to have my voice checked out.

The worst thing of all, is I still can’t sing.  I love to sing, have always sung with one choir or another since I started secondary school.  I join in the singing at any gathering where there is some.  This bout of laryngitis has affected that part of my voice, and I really, really do hope it will return properly and fully.

Not the car, again!

The handbrake broke on the car a couple of days ago.  As I’m writing this, I’m waiting for my nephew, who’s a whizz with cars, to come and see what needs to be done.

This is on top of a water leak from the toilet cistern a couple of weeks ago that came through the downstairs ceiling.

The ‘earphone’ on my mobile has stopped working too.

I hope that’s the triad of breaking done with!

Spiral Dreams

Angela PorterLeave a comment

Spiral Dreams 10Apr2012 © Angela Porter 2012

3″x9″ in size.  Technical drawing pens, Inktense and Graphitint pencils with water washes, metallic gold watercolour paint, and white Sakura Souffle pen on brown paper.

Spirals and swirls make an appearance again … this time symbolising the rather spiral paths I’m finding I’m travelling as I work to unravel and heal the wounds of the heart from the past.  The colours are rather warm, earthy, and that is a good thing I think.