QoR - a new watercolour paint

Yesterday I updated my website The Best Watercolour Paint for Artists and included a new section about a new artists' watercolour paint which becomes available in the USA next month.

branding on the new dedicated QoR website

QoR WaterColor paint is produced by Golden who are well known for their acrylic paints.

The new section devoted to this paint includes links to:

• the new dedicated website
• other information about the new paint made available by Golden
• reviews and comments on the new paint by artists (eg Cathy Johnson) who have been provided with samples

Initial indications are that Golden's experience in acrylics is maybe also obvious in the formulation of this new paint. It'll be interesting to see what those painting traditional watercolours think of it.

RECOMMENDATION: I suggest people try one of the six colour trial pack of colours in the first instance to see whether they like how this new paint behaves.

Please report your experience of this new paint after you get your hands on it wherever is best for you. You can include a comment on this post if you like.

I expect that the website will undoubtedly expand and there will more information about availability in terms of distribution to art stories and online retailers in different countries in the near future.  My experience of such things is that roll-out might be somewhat slow with a focus on the USA only in the short-term. I'll update my website as and when new information becomes available. I won't be including sites which merely repeat a press release.

The Best Sketching Chair - An Update

This is an UPDATE about the availability of the Phillips Folding Chair which I use for plein air work.  I've written previously about it

• on Making a Mark - In praise of my sketching chairs
• on Making A Mark Reviews - in a more detailed Product Review: Phillips De Luxe Folding Chair which also provided additional tips about travelling with a folding chair

I cannot recommend this chair highly enough for people who want a very good quality chair which will be robust, reliable and longlasting.

• plus highlighted the chair on my Pastels and Pencils website in the Sketching Chair - Phillips Folding Chair part of the section on Art Materials & Other Resources for Artists.

My Phillips Folding Chair on a trip to sketch Walden Pond in Massachusetts in 2006

A Reader's Query

This morning I got an email from a reader of Making A Mark which asked as follows

I've followed and loved your blog for quite a while. Now I have the opportunity to do a 10-day workshop pastel near Avignon in Oct. 2013 and am looking for a portable, comfy travel chair with back support. On your "what I pack when I travel" post you mentioned such a chair. Please can you share the brand? I'm in the U.S. but perhaps could find it over here.

I took a look at the two links I'd previously provided to supplier in the references above and found that neither now led to a live website - partly because both suppliers have updated their websites!

Here then is an update which goes along the lines of first the bad news and then the good news.

I'm setting out the situation as per the different suppliers I know have had it in stock in the past

Green & Stone

This is how Green & Stone list the chair on their Portable chairs and stools page

Phillips Folding Chair

This product is currently unavailable Lightweight metal frame with strong canvas seat and back. Two heights

Lo Luxe Chair | Weight 1.48kg

Seat height : 40cm

62.30

De Luxe chair | Weight 1.6kg

Seat height : 45cm

63.25

That means they do NOT have a folding chair with back support in stock.  They do however have three stools by Phillips available.  I'd certainly recommend Phillips as a good quality brand if you can get on with only having a stool.

Heaton Cooper

Since I last wrote about this chair Heaton Cooper have introduced a super duper new website for art materials and supplies.  This has a Seat Easels, Chairs and Stools page.  This does not have my Phillips Folding Chair - in its original incarnation - either.

Phillips Bag Chair - available at Heaton Cooper

However what it does have is the Phillips Bag Chair - listed as costing £54.50. The product description indicates the following:

• Tubular aluminium frame, compact and easily portable with a shoulder strap.
• Spacious integral bag with zipped side pocket.
• Seat height 18 inch (46 cms), In green Cordura fabric

Which means it keeps the tubular aluminium frame and the green cordura fabric (which is very strong).  The seat height is slightly higher (presumably to accommodate the bag).

I can't find any other supplier online for this product - so if you're after a very reliable sketching chair with a back, then I suggest you give this product a review. The Heaton Cooper Website also allows you to Send To A Friend | Add to Wish List if you want to bookmark this for future reference.

If you balk at the price, I'd just comment I have taken mine on several long haul international trips involving all sorts of carriers and apart from arriving a day late (to my door) on both American trips, it has had absolutely no mishaps.

and finally......

You too can ask me a question and I'll answer it to the best of my ability - or refer you to a person who can!

UPDATE: Coloured Pencils - Resources for Artists

I've recently been giving Coloured Pencils - Resources for Artists a major overhaul.  This post is by way of:

• a major update on what's changed and 
• a request for information about reviews which you've done (or seen) and which might be suitable for inclusion in this leading resource about coloured pencil art.

While I independently search for and include links to websites providing good quality information, I also welcome hearing from people who think they've got a link to a site which might be suitable for inclusion in this resource.  See bold sentences below for the type of information I'm looking for.

The major changes I've been making are listed below.  Click the COLOURED LINK IN CAPITALS to get to visit that section of the site.

ARTIST GRADE COLOURED PENCILS - BRAND INFORMATION

This is now organised so that brands and news/reviews relating to each individual brand are grouped together.  (see also Updating Coloured Pencils which comments on websites of manufacturers)

If you've done a review of a individual brand of coloured pencils please let me know.  My preference given the new layout is one brand per review.

If you've done a lightfastness test of your coloured pencils and this is not listed please let me know.

COLOURED PENCIL ART SOCIETIES & EXHIBITIONS

This includes coloured pencil art societies across the world.  It also makes some of the links on the national society websites a bit more visible eg in relation to past exhibitions

If you have a coloured pencil art society - or local group - which is not listed please let me know.

HOW TO DRAW - USING COLOURED PENCILS

I've reorganised all the tips and techniques into more sensible sections and in doing so have identified some gaps in information which I'm trying to fill.  At the same time I'm always keen to be able to include links to high quality information about instruction.

This is the new list of sections:

• Online Art Instruction
• Coloured Pencil workshops
• Coloured Pencils - how to use different papers and supports
• Coloured Pencils - Dry Blending and Burnishing
• Coloured Pencils - Blending using water and other solvents
• Coloured Pencils - How to use heat with wax pencils
• Coloured Pencils - Making a mark
• Coloured Pencils - How to remove or erase
• Coloured Pencils - Wax Bloom
• Coloured Pencils - General Tips and Techniques
• Coloured Pencils - Lessons, Projects and Themes

Please let me know if you've written a blog post or website article  or created a pdf free to download file which relate to any of these aspects - and which you would like to be considered for inclusion.

The last major part of the site relates to different subject areas

• PORTRAITS AND DRAWING PEOPLE IN COLOURED PENCILS
• BOTANICAL AND FLORAL ART IN COLOURED PENCILS
• DRAWING ANIMALS AND WILDLIFE IN COLOURED PENCILS
• STILL LIFE ART IN COLOURED PENCILS
• LANDSCAPES IN COLOURED PENCILS

In each of these I identify the websites and blogs of leading artists in each field together with relevant books, workshops and online tutorials

If you have a tutorial which might be suitable for one of these sections please let me know.

and finally......

I'd very much like to thank the very many people who have given this site a "thumbs up" on Squidoo and/or linked to it on Facebook - BEFORE the facelift!  I'm very gratified to find so many people appreciate this site.  I hope you also like the new and improved version.

Daniel Smith's Watercolor 66 Try-It Color Sheet

Sometimes a manufacturer comes up with a new idea for how artists can try out their products which just make you nod your head and say "Yes!"

This is one of those - and it comes to you courtesy of DANIEL SMITH.  This Try-It Sheet contains 66 paint-able "dots" of pure DANIEL SMITH Watercolor.

DANIEL SMITH Extra Fine Watercolor 66 Try-It Color Sheet

I particularly like the fact that each colour is listed with information about:

• its ASTM Lightfastness rating 
• whether it is staining or non-staining
• information about the extent to which it granulates
• whether it is transparent, semi transparent/opaque or opaque

You can either use the sheet as a reference for when you are choosing which watercolour paints you want to use from the DANIEL SMITH watercolor palette.  Or you can just wet the dot with a brush and try out the paint.  Or both!

I've no idea how long this Try-It Sheet has been around, but I think Daniel Smith has just ramped up the "information for watercolour artists" stakes - in a very good way.

Thanks to Billie Crain on Facebook for drawing this to my attention.

UPDATE

DANIEL SMITH sent me a message to (1) thank me for this blog post and (2) tell me that they have posted two useful videos relating to this product on YouTube - so here they are:

• DANIEL SMITH 66 Try-It Color Sheet - Tip for using as a Reference
• how to use DANIEL SMITH 66 Try-It Color Sheet of Extra Fine Watercolors

Product Review: Derwent Pocket Pencil Wrap

I've been testing the Derwent Pocket Pencil Wrap and have to say I'm very impressed. It's rapidly becoming a favourite bit of kit for a minimalist approach to sketching. As you can see from the photo it's become very well used very quickly! The solution to the marks on the canvas - which bother me not one jot - is to turn the pencil the other way round as shown in the packaging. I just prefer to have my pencil points up top!

I'm an inveterate buyer of pencil cases and pencil wraps - I'm always trying to find 'the perfect one'! I also had Derwent's bigger pencil wraps for more pencils so was familiar with the product and was keen to try this new version out - as a potential solution to the 'what do I take when I only want a few pencils and a small sketchbook in a pocket?' question

The pocket pencil wrap was launched in March and you can find my review below.

RECOMMENDED Product: Derwent Pocket Pencil Wrap

Summary: a canvas wrap which holds up to 12 pencils and pens. Suitable for slipping in a pocket with a small sketchbook

Technical Details: made of a very sturdy grade of canvas leather look edges folds in two and fastens with a velcro fastening capacity for 12 Derwent pencils or alternates

Who should buy this? artists who sketch artists who like putting all their sketching kit inside their jacket and trouser pockets - like David Hockney - will love it!

Who should not buy this? artists who never take their pencils outside their home artists attending a coloured pencil workshop (only because you'll likely want to take more than 12 pencils and there are bigger pencil wraps!)

Highlights: thick canvas wrap helps protect pencils flap over pencils helps keep them safe and stops them falling out. You don't need to worry which way you put it in a pocket compact size makes it very easy to take pencils out; very easy to slip inside a jacket or trouser pocket or small bag velcro fastening works well so long as you don't overfill the pencil wrap

Think Again? pencils mark canvas if points are uppermost - it doesn't bother me at all. If it is likely to bother you then the simple solution is to invert the pencils also of interest to people who want to take any sort of drawing implement out of their studio - it doesn't have to be a pencil! it does NOT come with pencils

Manufacturer / Distributor: Cumberland Pencil Company / Derwent

Suppliers: supplied to me by Derwent as an item to review; available from Derwent retailers. Online Retailers include: Heaton Cooper; Artifolk

Art Equipment - Resources for Artists

This site is for visual artists. It provides links to: items of art equipment and tools recommended ways of putting together toolkits and recommendations for equipment for working in the studio or plein air

A new colour tip for Caran d'Ache Luminance 6901

Caran d'Ache has made a change to their Luminance 6901 range of coloured pencils which means it's very likely that I'm going to start investing in more colours.

This new brand of lightfast coloured pencil has previously irritated because there were two ways of identifying the colour of the pencil - neither of which worked too well

• the pencil was introduced with a colour chip painted on the very end of the pencil - it's too small and you can't see it at all when the pencil is lying down
• the colour name and number is written round the end of the barrel in light lettering on a wood background which doesn't give great definition and consequently is very difficult to read

Basically these are two design flaws which are pretty big in terms of the functionality of choosing which pencil to use next!

I really love the pencils and their pigment rich coverage with lightfastness guaranteed - but they were frustrating to use. In practical terms I was always having to inspect a Luminance pencil prior to using it - and that just became irritating.

However I guess a lot of people must have complained or fed back to Caran d'Ache saying that they weren't too ecstatic about the arrangements for identifying colours, because the company has now changed the pencils!

The Luminance pencils now have a new colour cap on the end. It's not as big as the colour on the Lyra Rembrandt pencil but it's a start in the right direction. I'd personally have liked to see it a tad bigger but this is a LOT better than the previous arrangements for colour identification. The change will make it much easier to see what colour the pencil is when you go to pick it up.
just

Now if we could persuade Caran d'Ache to name the pencils along the barrel of the pencil I'd have a pretty big smile on my face!

Coloured Pencils - Resources for Artists

Find out about coloured pencils. This leading resource has information for everybody from experienced artists to beginners wanting to learn all they can. Topics include

• tips and techniques for working with coloured pencils,
• information about coloured pencil brands and associated products (CHECK OUT the poll - find out which make of artist grade coloured pencils is the favourite.)
• coloured pencil societies,
• coloured pencil artists and
• forums where you can discuss coloured pencil matters with artists working in coloured pencils