Weeks have passed and I’m guilty of not updating this series that I started on this blog but here’s the latest update on my calligraphy journey.

Art Nook

For this post, I’ll be showing you my current art nook. It’s nothing grand but it’s something already.

Current art nook

As you can see, my brushes / brush pens are in two cups stacked in the corner. Then my pencils and eraser, my watercolors, scribble kits and the papers that I have been hoarding since I started with the craft.

Young as I was, I was intrigued with the craft itself yet I never had the guts to practice it because I know that my writing was ugly and I will be forever teased that it will always be ugly just because I was a leftie since I was born in this world. Little as I know, there are very talented lefties out there that are debunking the myth that lefties and calligraphy never mesh. One of those is Teacher Aileen whom I personally met last Type Kita event (Pass on the Passion). It was an honor since she had been inspiring me to continue practicing. Other artists are from other countries who are open in communicating with “fans” or beginners like me.

Also, I have been following Abbey Sy who blogs over here. I also met her last Type Kita and was somehow fangirling. I got to ask her about what watercolors should be bought and she gave me pieces of advice in practicing the craft. She told me to use Prang because it has more solid colors and that it’s easier to use.

My watercolor stash

So before she told me about using Prang, my mom bought me Simbalion 36 watercolor cakes and Prang. But before that, I bought myself Best Buy watercolors as well just to experiment. At first, using Prang is quite hard. It is very much difficult than using Simbalion since it’s already moist. Another friend of mine told me to use more water with Prang and another to just continue practicing and using it. Your foundation will be more equipped when you use Prang from the start. Of course, there are other brands of watercolors that you may use but for my current skills, Prang and Simbalion are good.

Things I learned with my short practice with Prang:

• Mix colors on a palette; not directly with the color.
• Have a bottle / jar / cup to put your water to rinse off the color.
• More water on your first time since the cakes are semi-moist.

Hobby Knife

Not only that my mom bought me watercolor but also this hobby knife. I told her that I could get opportunities if I tried to explore more the craft. A friend of mine asked if I could make customized cards for his special someone that would express messages that were only meant for her eyes. Of course, since they are very private, they will remain anonymous up to the end of this post.

I’ll be telling you what I learned when I used this:

• Don’t apply pressure yet on your first attempt on cutting.
• Of course, remember to have a cutting mat or something to neutralize the sharpness of the knife to avoid damaging your pieces of furniture. Since I do not possess a cutting mat yet, I made use of an illustration board.
• Frequent light strokes with light pressure will surely do the job well!
• Different blades mean different types of material or thickness of material. I am seriously guessing but it looks like that.
• Be careful because it is very sharp!

Snapchat: mariaisquixotic

Snapchat: mariaisquixotic

With this piece, I scribbled using:

• Tachikawa G nib
• Straight holder
• Walnut Ink

With the watercoloring:

• Prang
• Brush from Prang
• Water
• Palette for mixing

MQ

• Simbalion watercolor
• Brush pens with Craft Doodle PH
• On a Yupo Watercolor Pad