The tools of a pen and ink artist

I thought it might be fun to share my go-to pens for pen and ink work and writing. I do have other fountain pens, but these are the pens I keep beside my desk, ready to use at any time. The inks are my favorite drawing inks — Noodler’s Black and Diamine Sepia. Although the Diamine is not waterproof, it is such a perfect sepia color (and I am VERY picky about my brown inks) that I tend to use it more than any other brown ink in my collection.

Pens from left to right — Zebra Disposable Brush Pen, Pilot Custom 74 with medium nib (blue demonstrator), Noodler's Konrad Flex Pen (red), Namiki Falcon SF (black), Noodler's Konrad Ebonite Flex Pen with a Goulet #6 medium two-tone steel nib (mottled brown), Noodler’s Nib Creaper Flex (black), Noodler’s Nib Creaper Flex (clear demonstrator), Pilot Pocket Brush Pen – Hard (blue), Micron pen.

Inks – Noodler’s Black, Diamine Sepia

Pen case - Saki P-661 Roll Pen Case with Traditional Japanese Fabric - Dark Red (from Jet Pens)

The Konrad Flex Pen and “Rome Burning” Ink – A Preliminary Review

Noodler's "Rome Burning" ink and Konrad Flex pen

As mentioned in my last blog entry, I recently won a brand new ink and pen as prizes in the Noodler’s Ink 2011-2012 International Art Contest.

As I unwrapped the package and looked over my prizes I thought, “hmmm, I wonder how the pen will write?” The ink was less of a question for me. “Rome Burning” is a brown ink with a couple of tricks to it. I LOVE the theme behind the ink – as Noodler’s CEO Nathan Tardiff describes it – “ ‘Rome Burning’ has a bulletproof patrician core color of Caesar’s purple with the colors of the inferno that wash away from it with excess liquidity.” So it’s a brassy-brown with a golden-yellow halo (similar to the halos seen in “Swan in English Roses” which is red, or in “Blue Nose Bear” which is blue) which when washed turns into a bulletproof purple color. Very cool! Since the purple part of the ink is bulletproof it would be superior to use as a writing ink for secure documents like checks. (I currently use Noodler’s Bulletproof Black or Kung Te-Cheng for check writing.) But as I always evaluate my inks for drawing first and writing second, “Rome Burring” doesn’t really do it for me.

Golden Browns are not my favorite browns to draw with, I much prefer reddish-browns like Diamime Sepia (see The Search for the Perfect Brown.)  The fact that the initial color washes out to another color is interesting but not as valuable for my uses. Despite that, “Rome Burning” is a welcome addition to my ink collection and will most likely be relegated to the category of writing (and not drawing) inks. No shame there.

Meanwhile, what about the Konrad Flex pen? The one I received as prize is the “Red Mesa” color which is a lovely red tortoise-shell.

First impressions –

The Konrad is a lovely feeling pen. The weight and balance are very good. It also looks very professional and sharp. It certainly looks like it costs more than its $20-$24.00 price. The Konrad has a lovely feature of a safety cap that screws on the back of the pen which prevents you from accidently twisting the barrel and letting out ink when you don’t intend to. When filling the pen you remove that little screw-on cap and can then twist the barrel to fill the pen. The filling mechanism is a slide piston fill converter that works very easily. 

Writing (ahem, Drawing…) -

This is a very smooth writing pen. One of the things I loved about the Ahab was the nib, which has a wonderful feel to it. It’s springy and well-constructed and makes a line with what I think of as “character.” The Konrad nib has a similar feel to it, but with the added bonus of being packaged in a medium-sized body. One of the things I like least about the Ahab is the size, which is really too big and heavy for my hands, especially posted. The Konrad is still a bit heavy for me posted but when unposted is a bit short.

Konrad pen tests

My biggest problem with the Konrad is the width of the nib. I much prefer a fine/medium width nib for drawing. My Konrad is most definitely a medium width nib. Although I prefer a medium nib for writing I find it a bit thick for drawing. Interestingly, the Ahab has a good nib width for me for drawing, as it runs thinner than my Konrad’s nib. I say “my Konrad” as I have no certainty yet that all the Konrads have exactly the same width nib. It’s quite possible that there is some variation in the nib width between pens. If there is, there could be a fine/medium width Konrad nib out there that I would find just perfect.

The nib flexes wonderfully and will produce a fine line with a very light touch. Perhaps that was my problem with the line width, I was applying too much baseline pressure. I suppose time and more experimentation will tell.

Summing up –

So what do I think of the new Konrad Flex pen? Overall, I like it. It’s a lovely, smooth writing pen with a wonderful nib. It seems quite well-made and is very attractive. It’s a good starter even after a few days off. The line, though a bit thick for my tastes, might be made thinner with a lighter touch.

Will I use it for drawing? Absolutely! (Although I think I’ll switch back to another ink…maybe good-old Bulletproof black.) Am I happy to have it? Yes! Would I recommend it to other artists? Yes!

I am a complete pen snob when it comes to drawing pens. As a pen & ink artist, I have to be. So I am very picky about my pens. But I would certainly recommend this pen to both artists and writers. I think it might be the best flex pen that Noodler’s has yet produced. If you’re looking for only one affordable flex pen then I would recommend this one, especially if you’re a gal with medium/small-sized hands like me. It seems perfectly made for us!

Cheers everyone and I hope you enjoyed these reviews. :-)

Delay in Horse Life leads to doodling

"It's been a long week!"

For the past week I having been working hard to finish up some commissioned illustrations. Of course, this required me to put all non-paid art on temporary hold. Hence the lack of appearance of Horse Life this week. It will be back, and soon, but not for a few more days.

Last night, in a late night stupor of being awake but not able to do any more “official” artwork,” I started doodling notes for future Horse Life comics. Truly, it’s a case of too much information! I have anecdotes that could keep me busy for years! *chuckle* I am also working on finding my stride as far as the characterizations for the comic. Studying established and popular cartoonists like Norman Thelwell and Charles M. Schulz, (creator of “Peanuts”) is both enlightening and helpful. As I sketch, I learn and process. Eventually, I will find my own stride, just as they did.

In that spirit, here are three of my pony sketches from last night when everything seemed “up in the air!.” ;-)

"Reaching new heights"

"The Star Player"

"Putting on Airs"

Noodling around today (no pun intended)

I am really enjoying my new Diamine Sepia ink. I love the color and I especially love using it in my Peewee Banditapple Carnet notebook. Somehow, because it's such a little notebook (3.5" x 5.5"), it encourages me to freely sketch unimportant and yet fun things. Here's what I came up with today. Silly, but fun! ;-)

Not all Noodler’s Flex Pens…

..are created alike, apparently. I have recently discovered this fact. I was aware that the original feeds for the Noodler’s Flex Pens were all handmade, which is why the originals came out in such small batches. The newest pens have machined feeds and so are available in much larger batches.

The two Flex Pens from my original purchase remain the best of the six I now own. I assume that both of these pens have the handmade feeds. The ones I have bought since have all been spotty in their quality. Two have them have been good, one iffy, and one not good at all. In a recent post I complained about getting my flex pen in the "Arizona" color to work well with my new Diamine Sepia ink. This pen has never performed well for me, it’s too hard to flex and the ink just doesn’t flow quite “right” through it.

Yesterday, when I saw a black Noodler’s Flex Pen at the University Bookstore in Seattle, I tried it out, hoping that it had a good feed. It felt quite good and I bought it immediately. Although many people were very excited when these new black versions which came out recently, I hadn’t really thought about getting a black Flex Pen. Frankly, I prefer the colors (see this post). But the feel of the pen is the more important thing, as it’s the smoothness of the line that makes ink work really enjoyable for me. It’s hard to find these pens in physical stores to try out. They are most easy to find online, but then you can't try them before you buy. I felt lucky to get my chance to try one out yesterday.

I gave my new Noodler's black Flex Pen a proper test run when I got home..

When I got it home I immediately filled it with Diamine Sepia ink and gave it a proper test run. Here is the result. I feel pretty good about this new pen. I think it’s going to be a good drawing pen for me (even though it doesn’t match the ink that’s in it!) Full steam ahead now for more drawings in Sepia ink!

Musings of the morning...

I think a Banditapple Carnet Peewee notebook in Manuka Honey and a Noodler's Flex pen in Carniolan Honey would make a perfecty matched set. Especially with Diamine Sepia ink in the pen. All would be in similar shades of honey-brown.

Banditapple Carnet Peewee Notebook (blank) with Manuka Honey cover.
(Photo from gouletpens.com)

Noodler's Flex pen in Carniolan Honey color.
(Photo from gouletpens.com)

Diamine Sepia fountain pen ink color sample.
(Photo from gouletpens.com)

Wouldn't that be harmonious?

 

I already have a Banditapple Carnet Peewee blank notebook with a black cover and I really like it. The paper seems pretty bulletproof for ink.

Here's a picture I did in my own Peewee with Diamine ink. The ink doesn't feather on the page at all and there's no bleed through to the pages behind. Pretty amazing for notebook costing $3.50!

"Angry Pony" - in Diamine Sepia ink with Pitt brush pen in Banditapple notebook.

The Search for the Perfect Brown

I've found my brown ink!

For a long time now I have been searching for a good brown ink to draw with. My color model is a brown used by artists of the past. (For example, Beatrix Potter used a brown ink in her illustrations quite frequently.) That brown color, which I have always thought of as Sepia, is a reddish-brown, sometimes leaning towards Golden-Brown. I know that I’m picky, but I have already tried a number of inks and have not yet been able to find the perfect one. Here’s a list of the inks that I have already tried - Noodler’s Golden Brown, Noodler’s Polar Brown, Noodler’s Whaleman’s Sepia, Noodler’s Cayenne. It sounds like a lot, doesn’t it? Fortunately, the nice folks at Goulet Pens sell ink samples so you can get in and get out really cheaply.

I realized that it was time for another round of ink tests and ordered some new samples from Brian and Rachel Goulet. My newest batch included - Diamine Dark Brown, Diamine Sepia, Diamine Ancient Copper, De Atramentis Ochre Yellow and Private Reserve Copper Burst. Online I could see that all the inks appeared to be in the right color family. I had a brand new Noodler’s Flex pen in the Arizona color primed and waiting for her new brown ink.

Brown ink comparisons on Bee paper

I tested all the new inks with a dip pen and although it was a close race between the Diamine Sepia and the Diamine Ancient Copper, the Sepia pulled it out to win! (So it WAS a Sepia ink all along!!) It was exactly the color I’d hoped for. What’s more, it paired perfectly with a Pitt #169 (Caput Mortem) Brush Pen. And so voila! A new pen and brush set ready for drawing! I’m very pleased!

Ink tests with Diamine Sepia in Noodler's Flex pen and Pitt brush #169 on Bee paper

Ironically, now that I have the perfect ink, I’m having some trouble with the Arizona flex pen. I have several Flex pens that I keep filled with various colors of ink. This one, as I have said, was ear-marked for the brown ink. Two of my newest flex pens come from a later manufacturing batch and just aren’t as good as my three earlier flex pens. They’re alright but the nib doesn’t sit as deeply into the pen and they just doesn’t write/draw as well for me. But it does an OK job as you can see in the drawing samples. Perhaps in the future I’ll find another individual Noodler’s Flex pen that writes a bit better to replace it. But in the meantime, I love my new ink color!

Sepia ink in Banditapple Carnet Notebook

The ink samples are shown in a Bee Pen Sketcher’s pad and in a Banditapple Carnet Peewee notebook. I have to take a moment to say the Banditapple Carnet notebook is very impressive in that the ink did not bleed through the page as I would have expected. It’s really a sweet little purse notebook for $3.50. You can find them at GouletPens.com.