How to travel with pen-and-ink supplies
ellie roberts
And, since I mostly do landscapes, I started carrying these things with me.
But I just can't seem to find a good way to carry around the ink. Everything
I try ends up with ink all over the place. I've been taking ink out of my
large container and putting it into smaller ink bottles (the Pelikan ones with
the rubber thingy on the top). But it seems they always leak! Luckily, I've
always put the ink bottle into a zip-lock plastic bag. So nothing's ever been
really ruined, but I end up with ink all over the place when I takethe ink
bottle out of the plastic bag.
I also have an India ink fountain pen, but I find that it dries out much
faster than the "real" ink pens, so, while it's usable, it's annoying -- seems
if I want to draw a line more than an inch or so long, I'll end up with parts
of it that are just not there, since the ink flows into the point erratically.
So, the answer is to carry a bottle of ink, but how?? Anyone have any ideas?
-ellie
Andy Pearlman
>I've just recently started doing work in pen, and ink wash, using India ink.
>And, since I mostly do landscapes, I started carrying these things with me.
>But I just can't seem to find a good way to carry around the ink. Everything
>I try ends up with ink all over the place. I've been taking ink out of my
>large container and putting it into smaller ink bottles (the Pelikan ones with
>the rubber thingy on the top). But it seems they always leak! Luckily, I've
>always put the ink bottle into a zip-lock plastic bag. So nothing's ever been
>if I want to draw a line more than an inch or so long, I'll end up with parts
>of it that are just not there, since the ink flows into the point erratically.
>
>So, the answer is to carry a bottle of ink, but how?? Anyone have any ideas?
Nope. Do what people did in the 1700's. Carry a supply of ink that is in an
airtight container and a small open air container. When ready to draw, just
open the airtight container(Snapple Bottle?), pour into the small open
container(tiny clay jug? small plate you never want to eat off of again?).
Draw.
(those eyedropper were intended to solve the need to carry around two things,
but because they never work...)
Andy Pearlman
--
Andy Pearlman
apea...@panix.com
"wow, daylight..."
sl...@cc.usu.edu
> -ellie
I ended up carrying a dry sum-i ink stick, an empty cup and the stone
that I can grind the ink on. Since I usually bring water in a canteen
I use that for the liquid content, or just the nearby creek or something,
depending on where I've hiked to. If I were worried about archival
issues I would use distilled water.
Usually I can find a stick and sharpen it to draw with, since those
pens are always clogging (icky-bad).
Greg Scheckler [SL...@cc.usu.edu]
Charles Eicher
1. Try sumi inksticks.. it can be tedious to rub the stick on the stone,
but you never have more ink than you need, and it travels dry. And sumi is
capable of a huge variety of tone.
2. try getting those teeny squeeze type ink dispensers used for
rapidograph pens. The lids seem to stay on quite well.
3. you might also try watercolor pencils.. they are capable of some nice
effects.. its not totally like ink drawing though..
-----------------------
Charles Eicher
cei...@ins.infonet.net
-----------------------
ellie roberts
question: when this dries, is it waterproof? I ask because I often use
watercolor washes over my ink drawings -- which is why I now stick to India
ink, because it's the only waterproof ink I've found. Course, I think I'll
try the sumi ink even if it isnt waterproof, for other, just-ink drawings.
The technical-pen bottle might work well, too. I think I have one of those
hanging around somewhere. I agree that the idea is to fill some small
container from a larger one, but it's the small leak-proof container that I
have trouble finding.
Also, I've never tried taking a bottle of ink on an airplane, because I'm
afraid it would ooze out of the bottle. (You hear lots of disaster stories
about fountain pens leaking all over the luggage....) I usually just buy some
ink when I get to wherever I'm going. But this can be a pain, and a waste of
time. Am I being needlessly wary?
-ellie
Dr. John J. Heikkila
roberts) wrote:
> I've just recently started doing work in pen, and ink wash, using India ink.
> And, since I mostly do landscapes, I started carrying these things with me.
> But I just can't seem to find a good way to carry around the ink. Everything
> I try ends up with ink all over the place. ........etc....
> So, the answer is to carry a bottle of ink, but how?? Anyone have any ideas?
>
> -ellie
I don't know if this is suitable for your needs but you may want
to try Pigma pens. The ink is permanent and you can obtain
them in a number of sizes with respect to the tip. They do come in
different colors but apparently only the black is permanent. Also they
do not leak since they resemble felt tip pens. An artist
I know took a number of Pigma pens and a portable watercolor set
with him to Italy. His renditions of castles and old structures were
terrific. I have also used them on occasion.
-John
Charles Eicher
> Thanks for the suggestons, everyone. I like the sumi-ink idea, but I have a
> question: when this dries, is it waterproof?
I've used sumi with overwashes, i don't think I'd rate it as totally
waterproof, but it is pretty impervious to washing away.. I think it has
some sort of pine-tar in it.. not soluble in water.. you'll smell it when
you rub the stick..
> The technical-pen bottle might work well, too.
if only for the simple reason there's less to spill..
RayBX
>So, the answer is to carry a bottle of ink, but how?? Anyone have any
ideas?
>-ellie
The best solution I found was to buy a little bottle of Rapidograph
"Ultradraw" ink. It's got a screw on top that has not let me down yet and
I can refill it from a larger bottle. I use the bottle with Pelican ink
(cause that's my favorite) but the Ultradraw had good opacity and a nice
matte finish as well.
---Raymond
TobyKCRETE
writes:
my favorite is a tool called a brush/pen. dan smith art supplies in
seattle sells it (they have 800 phone #). This is a marvelous pen w a
brush tip..used for drawing and for calligraphy. It comes w black ink
cartridges.
this will solve all your problems & good luck. I've done wonderful work
with this tool, over the years. they sell a box of 10 cartridges. the
black is quite good. all the best tobyk...@aol.com
ellie roberts
>From: tobyk...@aol.com (TobyKCRETE)
>Subject: Re: How to travel with pen-and-ink supplies
>Date: 7 Sep 1994 16:16:13 -0400
I've noticed this in their catalog, and was wondering if it might not be just
what I want/need. ONe question: is the ink waterproof after it dries? I
often like to do watercolor washes over ink drawings, so waterproof is, of
course, a must in these cases.
Thanks!
-ellie