Art offers so many possibilities when it comes to making art. Due to my background in teaching I had drawn diagrams on boards in pen / marker for 13 years after chalkboards fell out of use (15 years practice). Back in the 1980s when I did my degree we drew diagrams and maps using Rotring Isograph mapping pens with which I had a bit of a love hate relationship (who else used them and knows what I mean?).
When drawing diagrams on worksheets etc I used to have a habit with trying to make things perfect, usually causing lots of frustration and thrown up pieces. So when I started sketching in 2015 I made some early decisions that I have stood by.
- Perfection was not going to be my aim and errors were allowed
- I would draw in pen as then I couldn’t rub out “errors”
Fineliners
The first pens I bought from London Graphic centre in Covent Garden area, an area of London I used to love exploring, were 2 Pilot fineliners. Over the 10 years of practice the make I have used the most are; Staedtler pigment liner which I have consistently bought in sets of 6 from Cass Art either in person or online since I discovered Cass on a holiday in Bristol and found out they had stores in London. I now also use a lot of Uni Pin fineliners which I find give a good quality line.
At one point I bought a range of different fineliners from different art retailers to try out and this shows in my fineliner tin in the shop that I offer for shop visitors to use as part of my free Art for Fun activity.
When I first started my drawing / sketching I was afraid of adding the complication of colour to my work and also I wanted to work in pen and I wasn’t aware of what was out there.
Markers
I discovered Winsor and Newton ProMarkers early on and that I could buy a set of 12 varied colours in a set from Cass Art (other art stockists as well obviously).
I started with starter set 1. Over time I bought additional sets and built up my collection, with the justification to myself that I was using them enough to spend more money on my art hobby.
Once I decided to go to a business and I had left teaching I invested in the whole colour range of what was 148 pens at the time.
Over time I have bought increasing amounts to use myself and also the ProMarkers are what I offer for people to use for Art for Fun. I also carry some packs of markers for sale in the shop too.
I use the ProMarkers for paper based art. I have used them previously on clothing and wooden boxes but have since found a better lasting solution.
I now also use Uni Posca markers in a variety of sizes for work on surfaces other than paper. This ranges from wooden boxes to pith helmets, clothing, canvases and aluminium primed panels for a community art project in Autumn 2023.
So there are my main materials for drawing. Happy to share experiences if any readers have questions.