Opposite Seasons

California Redwood National Park notebook by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

My seasons are spent completely opposite.  Winter is when I am mostly outside gathering ideas and I spend almost all of my summer days inside, working.  Along with another set of Simple365 b&w photos of my everyday life, today I am sharing a few in-process photos of  this book I made as my husband’s birthday present.  Included is the photo of the redwoods that inspired it.  I have another Outside the Lines art supply review of my favorite brush pen for you today as well.

 

 

Simple 365 – Set 14

 

Here is another set of  Simple365 photos from a year of everyday black and white photos.  We had rolled into the first few days of October by this time.  Naturally, I started taking October-themed photos.

 

Please Click on the image thumbnails to see the photos.

 

 

 

I created a page with all the previously shared photos from Simple365.  That way I can relive my journey through the year via black and white photos, like in an old photo album.

 

 

 

 

We made one special trip to Los Angeles to bring our kitties home.   The haze of the California desert at Hwy 395!

 

 

 

 

Tavish, the orange one, Pemberley in the middle, and Merwyn at the front – the merry band of the Ink Torrents Atelier staff! 

 

 

 

Prussian Blue Forest Watercolor Monochromatic Painting by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

The colored photo of the winter forest painting that appears in b&w in the Simple365 set.    As I mentioned in the previous post, I enjoy working on monochromatic watercolor paintings. 

 

 

 

Tiny Hand Bound book by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

On the last post, I shared process photos of tiny little books and travel inspired paintings.   If you missed that post, you can read it here.

I am really happy to share that the last post and other recent posts were featured on these link-ups. 

 

The Really Crafty

Weekend Traffic Jam

Crazy Little Lovebirds

Monday Morning Blog Club

 

Thank you so much ladies!! 

 

 

Outside the Lines – Art Supple Review

Kuretake No 8 Fountain Brush Pen

 

 

Kuretake No 8 Fountain Brush Pen drawing and review by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

Brush pens are mostly used for calligraphy, but I use them  for drawing too.  The variable line width that can be created with a brush pen makes it very versatile.   On my search for a brush pen that is refillable, I came across the Kuretake N0. 8 fountain brush pen.

 

 

 

Kuretake No 8 Fountain Brush Pen drawing and review by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

To get a feel for the pen, I filled it with permanent fountain pen ink and scribbled a few coffee cups with it.  The coffee-addict me approves.

 

 

 

Kuretake No 8 Fountain Brush Pen drawing and review by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

This pen uses cartridges.  I like using my own ink.  Kuretake does not make a fountain pen converter, but a Platinum Fountain Pen Converter can be used with this pen.  It’s the middle piece in this photo; it holds ink for fountain pens and can be filled with any ink of your choice.

Since the pen does not have the capillary action of a fountain pen, I fill the converter by dipping it into an ink bottle directly.  Since I use permanent, non-water-soluble ink, I always fill the pen half way.  Permanent ink left in a pen can clog it up pretty badly.  By filling it halfway, I can use up the ink before that happens.  Every now and then, I clean up the pen thoroughly with water between uses.

 

 

 

Kuretake No 8 Fountain Brush Pen drawing and review by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

Once the converter is filled and attached to the pen, I push the ink to the brush tip by turning the screw of the converter gently until I see ink tinting the brush tip.  Once that happens, I prime the tip by drawing lines until I get a set of smooth lines starting from thin to thick.  Then I know it is ready for use.

 

 

 

Kuretake No 8 Fountain Brush Pen drawing and review by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

I created lines of varying thickness for the trees and then used the same pen for shading.  Once I finished drawing the picture, I used watercolor for the background.  I kept it super simple by using just two colors.  

I really love this pen.  It is one of my staples for not only drawing in journals, but for writing too!  If you do calligraphy, I highly recommend it for that as well.

 

 

Girl and her cat at the forest - Kuretake No 8 Fountain Brush Pen drawing and review by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

 

Here is a very quick painting I did of the Girl and Her Cat standing at the edge of a forest.  It’s a misty day and they love playing in the forest with leaves and butterflies on such days.

 

 

A Book from the Time in the Forest

 

California Redwood National Park photo by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

 

We love visiting the redwood trees in the north of California during the winter months.  This is a very narrow and twisty road at Redwood National Park.  We drive up there during the early evening hours and stay until the darkness completely envelopes us.   The looming darkness makes these towering trees look even taller.  Perfect for story time!  Sometimes we listen to audiobooks; sometimes we read sitting in the car. 

 

 

 

California Redwood National Park notebook by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

 

For a book for my husband’s birthday present, and I drew this tiny, tiny picture with our car on that road.

 

 

 

 

 

After that I started working on the book itself.   Book cloths are paper lined so the glue does not seep into the cloth.   I made the book cloth for this book myself using cotton quilting fabric that I had at hand.   I left an inset in the cover for the picture.  I also added little matching black and silver bands at each end of the book aligned with the spine.  Finally I affixed the picture on the cover inside the inset.

 

 

 

California Redwood National Park notebook by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

I wanted to make something for him with our shared times in mind.  The drawing and the book felt right.  I should mention that I finished the book way after his birthday.   He was surprised, and very happy too.  That made my day!  Since then, I get requests every now and then to make books for his notes and I am happy to oblige.

While I am looking forward to being outside again, I am using this time to work and spend time with the kitties in my atelier.  I hope your summer days are going well.

Until next time,
-Soma

 

I am linking up with the linky parties on my Links page.  Please pay a visit to some of them.

 

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The Little Things In Life

Celtic Hand Bound book by Soma Acharya, Ink Torrents Graphics, inktorrents.com

 

Hello Everyone!  My favorite time in the atelier is when I get to play with new ideas.   I keep the working pieces small and apply the learnings to larger pieces.  Truth be told, I love making little things.  They can be a little fiddly sometimes, but I love that.   Those tiny little things really uplift my spirit and keep me going more often than I care to count.  This book is a perfect example of that.  I also have another set of black and white photos of my everyday life, paint making and a few other small paintings to share with you today.

 

 

Simple 365 – Set 13

 

Here is another set of everyday Simple365 photos.   A few years ago,  I took one b&w photo of simple little things around me every day for a year.  I have been sharing those photos here every now and then. It seems I was particularly hands-on with different things during that time.

Please Click on the image thumbnails to see the photos.

 

 

I created a page with all the previously shared photos from Simple365.  I continue to add photos to that page as I share them here.  That way I can relive my journey through the year via black and white photos, like in an old photo album.

 

 

 

Making Lake Pigment by Soma Acharya InkTorrents Graphics @ InkTorrents.com

 

 

I started making ink from plant materials that year, and then moved on to making pigments from them.  Pigments need to be mixed with binding agents to make paints.  I am making watercolors with these.  Even though ready-made watercolor binder can be purchased, I started experimenting with making my own.

 

 

 

Coreopsis flowers hand made pigment and paint by Soma Acharya, Ink Torrents Graphics, inktorrents.com

 

 

I had a pretty good idea of what qualities I was looking for in the binder.   After a few tries and playing with the ratio of the materials, I was very satisfied with the paint I made.  This one is from the coreopsis flower.   I painted two 1″ x 4″ bookmarks to ensure the quality of the paint.  

I really love this golden yellow and orange paint I got from coreopsis flowers.  All those months of simmering petals on the stove, measuring, filtering, and making notes paid off in the end.

 

 

 

Coreopsis flowers hand made pigment and paint by Soma Acharya, Ink Torrents Graphics, inktorrents.com

 

 

Once I was happy with the paint after refining it while painting those two trees,  I painted this tiny painting for a friend.  It is a 1″ x 3″  piece inspired by the glacial lakes at the High Sierra mountains. 

Little paintings are always quick and fun to paint.  They are perfect when playing with new paint, or even an idea.  Monochromatic paintings are also wonderful for that.

 

 

 

Tiny Hand Bound book by Soma Acharya, Ink Torrents Graphics, inktorrents.com

 

 

The painting accompanied this tiny little 1″ x 3″  book and a pan of my coreopsis watercolor to their new home to a dear artist friend.  She loves flowers and the color blue.   So I made hers with blue cloth and added a little yellow flower on the cover.

 

 

 

Hand Bound book by Soma Acharya, Ink Torrents Graphics, inktorrents.com

 

 

Before I made the blue book for her, I made a book of the same dimensions for myself first.  Because of their size, these little books can be a little fiddly to make, and I didn’t want any surprises while making hers.  I sat with a stack of paper and folded them before sewing the book together.  I used drawing paper for this one.

 

 

 

Hand Bound book by Soma Acharya, Ink Torrents Graphics, inktorrents.com

 

 

It looks like a lot of tools for a 1″ x 3″ book cover, but I really did use all of them.  No matter the size of the book, sometimes I end up using the same set of tools.

 

 

 

Celtic Hand Bound book by Soma Acharya, Ink Torrents Graphics, inktorrents.com

 

 

I cut a little piece of washi tape to size, and added that in the inset that I had created in the above picture. 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the first painting in the book.   It was supposed to be a drawing, but the pen I used was too thick.  Not at all what I was expecting.   So I thought, even though this paper is not meant for water/wet media, why not try using watercolor with very little water by using a small brush.   Since wet paper can damage or tear easily, I was careful to let the paper dry before working on the next layer.  Much to my surprise, the paper held up.   It is not the painting I set out to paint, but it decided its own path along the way.   I am happy with that.

 

Currently I am working on an idea for a gift for another friend.  Tomorrow I will make a little sample piece for that.  I hope this inspires you to try out something new.  Keep it small.  Little things are less daunting and are packed with joy.

Until next time,
-Soma

 

I am linking up with the linky parties on my Events And Links page.  Please pay a visit to some of them.

 

 

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