ArtSnacks - February 2018

Happy Valentine's Day! It's a bit late, but I'm finally here with my unboxing and review of the February 2018 monthly ArtSnacks box!  For anyone who doesn't know, ArtSnacks offers monthly blind boxes on several different subscription plans.  These boxes always contain at least four (and often five or six or more) full-size, premium art supplies.  This is the last box of my third year being subscribed to the service and I'm still not bored of it!  Let's see what came in my box this month.

I love when ArtSnacks themes the boxes for the holidays!

I was really happy with my January box and the February box didn't disappoint either.  Everything, again, was totally up my alley!  Drawing and watercolor supplies--my favorites!  Here's what was on the menu:

• Sennelier French Artists' Watercolor [lemon yellow, titanium white]
• Raphaël Mini Precision Brush, Flat Size 2
• Faber-Castell Goldfaber Sketching Pencil 2H
• Sakura Pigma Micron PN
• BONUS: Fabriano Artistico Watercolor Paper Sample

Outside of the actual art supplies, my box also came with a little serving-size bag of Sweethearts and a Valentine's Day-themed ArtSnacks logo sticker.  I still love that every box comes with these fun bonus items!

Test of both watercolor tubes and the brush.

Sennelier French Artists' Watercolor

Watercolor is one of my favorite media so I'm always happy to receive more in my ArtSnacks boxes.  I was a bit disappointed to receive white this time, though.  I so rarely use white since I work on white paper (and the sample paper that came in this box was white, as well!).  White is good for mixing pastel shades and greys, so it's not a useless color, but I always unbox thinking first about how I can use all the supplies together for my ArtSnacks Challenge (a piece made using all of that month's supplies and nothing else).  It was not easy to imagine using every item from this box effectively in the same piece.  You can see, in the testing image above, how the white paint is virtually invisible on the white paper of my sketchbook.  It shows up well on the yellow paint, though, which was what made it possible to complete my ArtSnacks Challenge successfully this month.  As for the yellow paint, there's nothing much for me to say about it.  It seems like a quality watercolor paint, plenty of pigment and no weird smell like some other brands.

Raphaël Mini Precision Brush

This brush is one of the shortest-handled brushes I have ever seen!  I was skeptical at first glance, thinking it might be uncomfortable to use, but once I tried it out, it didn't really feel any different than other short-handled brushes.  I could see someone with really large hands having trouble, but then again, such a person might have trouble with any short, thin handle.  When I used this brush for my ArtSnacks Challenge, I found it worked really well, holding a lot of color, spreading it evenly, and it didn't lose its shape or any bristles.  Based on the menu, it seems like all boxes contained the flat size 2 brush.

A little side story about paint brushes:  Recently, I finished painting the interior of my house but we were in a rush to move out (I was painting it because I sold it) and the painting supplies all got packed before I was done.  We went out and bought a couple of those cheap painting kits--the kind with a roller brush, paint pan, foam brushes, etc.--and most of the supplies were fine except the 2.5" brush that was included.  It was SO cheap, so awful, I was barely able to paint anything.  I threw it away as soon as I was done painting because it was already falling apart after only a couple hours of on-and-off use.  I've never worked with such a cheap, useless brush, not for interior or fine art applications.  I'm bringing this all up because it really made me appreciate how good even the worst of my large collection of artist brushes are.  It especially made me think about the fact that I've never gotten a bad brush from an ArtSnacks box.  I almost feel spoiled.  It's so great to paint with quality supplies!

Pencil Test. The hard graphite doesn't show well in the photo.

Faber-Castell Goldfaber Sketching Pencil

Thanks to ArtSnacks, I will probably never need to buy another artist pencil again.  I have so many now!  But I'm never unhappy to receive another one :3  I've been particularly keen on harder pencils recently, since they are great for doing underdrawings which will eventually be erased (the harder the pencil, the easier to erase cleanly) so this 2H was quite welcome.  I don't have anything in particular to say about it, it's a hard graphite core encased in wood, easy to hold and does its job.  Can't really ask for more.

Micron PN test. Like most Microns, the ink is black.

Sakura Pigma Micron PN

Now this item REALLY intrigued me.  I'm a longtime user of the Sakura Pigma line and until I received this pen, I thought I had already seen (and owned) every pen under the Pigma banner.  I can't describe how excited I was to see something new from a familiar brand!  The blue-green color for the "PIGMA" and "PN" printed on the body was so visually striking since I am very used to my other pens that have purple or red text, instead.  I had no idea what "PN" could possibly stand for.  This was the most excited I'd felt by an ArtSnacks item in quite a while!  Instead of the thrill of an utterly new tool, it felt like the shock of a plot twist!

I finally turned to the menu to learn just what was up with this marvel.  It turns out, "PN" stands for "plastic nib".  I totally would not have guessed that, lol.  The nib allows for a bit more range in line weight than the Microns I'm used to but it's otherwise the same as the rest of the line.  The ink is water/alcohol proof when dry, which is the nicest thing about these pens and the reason I've used them for so long.

My ArtSnacks challenge!

I actually completed my ArtSnacks challenge for this month before writing this post, which is somewhat unusual, but not bad since I can include it here instead of making an additional post.  The reason I got it done so soon was my Twitch livestreaming schedule.  Every second Monday is ArtSnacks challenge day, so regardless of whether my unboxing post has been completed, I have to get my challenge piece done.  Not only that, but it's done live on the Internet for anyone to watch!  I started livestreaming in January but this was the first live ArtSnacks challenge I did.  If you'd like to watch it, it's been uploaded to YouTube!

I drew a grey heron. I really like birds recently!

ArtSnacks is on a roll so far this year.  They've had a great first two boxes (at least according to my tastes) and they've been teasing their birthday box for next month, so I'm hoping I'll be just as happy with that one.  ArtSnacks' birthday is my subscription anniversary, so the March box will be the first box of my fourth year as an ArtSnacker!

Pencil shavings canister gets another sticker.

So, fellow subscribers, what did you think of the February box?  Did you like what you got?  Did you participate in the challenge?  Non-subscribers, are there any questions about the items I got this time?  Is there anything you'd like me to cover in my unboxing posts that I missed this time?

ArtSnacks - January 2018

2018 marks my fourth year as a subscriber to the monthly ArtSnacks box, though my actual anniversary will be in March.  Now that I think about it, March is also the birthday of ArtSnacks itself!  That means I'm exactly one year behind, ha ha.  Well, I'm still as happy as ever with my monthly delivery of surprise supplies; the novelty never wears off because there's always something new to discover!  Here's what I received in my January box, the first box of 2018!

Pencil shavings canister.

I was really excited to see everything in my box this month.  This year is starting off great!  Drawing materials are my favorite thing because they're so accessible; you don't need anything more than a piece of paper to start using them.  This month's supplies are neat because you can use them straight up dry or you can dilute the pigment with water for unique effects.  Here's the full list of supplies:

• Uni-Posca PCF-350 Brush Tip Paint Marker [red]
• Marabu Graphix Aqua Pens [cool grey, bright blue]
• Tombow Fudenosuke Soft Tip Brush Pen
• Sakura SumoGrip Mechanical Pencil

Now let's go over the contents in detail and check this stuff out!

Uni-Posca PCF-350 Brush Tip Paint Marker

This is one of the most unique paint markers I've received to date.  Not only does it have a brush tip (most tend to have chisel or bullet tips) it uses a clicker mechanism to deliver the paint, similar to a mechanical pencil.  I'm happy I got red!  The color is really vibrant and lays down thick and easy.  The brush is soft and bristly so you can get a wide variety of marks out of it.  Since the paint is water-based, I tried some water techniques but it didn't really do much.  The paint dries SUPER fast, too fast to play with it on the page.  Because of that, I really recommend keeping the cap on whenever the marker isn't in use so that the tip won't harden.

Marabu Graphix Aqua Pens

I got a very light cool grey and a bright blue color.  The pens don't have color names or even numbers printed on them, so I don't know what colors I got officially (^^;  The grey is SO light that it's barely perceptible on the page.  Hopefully that means there is a range of greys available instead of just this one.  In any case, I'm ALWAYS excited to try new watercolor supplies, especially markers and pens, a relatively new concept to me.  These pens come with a fine tip and a brush tip, although both tips are quite firm, so you can't get all that much more variation in line weight from the brush end.  Perhaps with use over time it will loosen up.  Since these are watercolor pens, it almost goes without saying that water techniques worked wonderfully.  I didn't try blending the two colors since the grey is so light it would just get lost, but I have a feeling that blending with other color pens would be super fun and satisfying.

Tombow Fudenosuke Soft Tip Brush Pen

Japanese black ink brush pens are my FAVORITE thing to get in my ArtSnacks boxes.  Ever since they were first introduced, I find I am never disappointed in them and I therefore never get tired of trying new ones out.  This particular pen has a really nice, unique, silky texture to the body.  Just holding it is pleasant.  It doesn't disappoint when writing and drawing, either.  The tip is small but extremely flexible so you can produce a wide range of strokes with interesting variations in texture.  Just press harder, move faster, tap at an angle--all kinds of marks are possible.  It's just as good for writing a letter as it is for inking a picture.

Sakura SumoGrip Mechanical Pencil

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed using the SumoGrip pencil.  After all, once you've tried so many mechanical pencils, it gets really hard to design anything that stands out.  But Sakura did it here!  First of all, this is one of the fattest mechanical pencils I've ever used.  It's fat, but it's still quite light and the grip is soft, velvety, and shaped like a triangle, so its girth doesn't cause me any problems.  In fact, this may be the most comfortable mechanical pencil I own.  To top it all off, it has a twist-up eraser.  The twist feature makes it easy to customize how you want to erase (if you make it longer, you can erase using the edge and get a thinner line) and it comes with plenty of eraser so you don't have to worry about buying replacements for a good while.  I twisted it out to its fullest and measured to find it is at least one solid inch of rubber, and that was after I used it a couple times!

ArtSnacks Challenges!

I'm feeling really good about my year in art for 2018.  I've got lots of well-made plans and goals and my intent is to take everything slow so I don't burn out or get overwhelmed.  My ArtSnacks subscription is going to continue this year so you can look forward to my monthly reviews from here on out!

New Art - November ArtSnacks Challenge (ArtSnacks - November)

Welcome to another New Art post! Last week I decided to skip my regular post because I was on vacation and hadn't created any new art worth sharing. This week, though, I'm back and ready to go! The art I'm featuring is my November ArtSnacks Challenge, a piece made only with the supplies that came in this month's box. I also figured I may as well combine this New Art post with my ArtSnacks unboxing since they're so closely related and actually happened all in the same session.  This promises to be a robust write-up!

November 2014 ArtSnacks Challenge by AnimeGirlMika on deviantART

This month's ArtSnacks box arrived in its regular timely manner but I continually faced delays in unboxing the contents.  First I forgot to check the mail on the actual day the box arrived.  Then, when I checked the tracking and saw that the package had been delivered, I only had time to retrieve it from the mailbox.  Other responsibilities kept me from opening it for a further two days.  Maybe it's because I had to wait so long or maybe just because the items were so good, when I finally got to open this thing, I was ecstatic with what I found.

First peek!

Another candy I could hardly wait to eat!

These items made me shriek in excitement. I scared my dogs!

Of course the first thing I was so excited to see was the Copic Wide marker; I love my regular Copics and have been eyeing the Wide set for a little while now.  But the other items in this box were exciting for various other reasons, too.  Here's the list of what I got [specific attributes in brackets]:

• Lyra Water-Soluble Graphite Crayon [2B]
• Krink K-80 Permanent Paint Stick [Blue]
• .Too Copic Wide Marker [Y15 (Cadmium Yellow)]
• Kuretake ZIG Fudebiyori Metallic Brush Pen [Silver]
• Extras: Sour Patch candy (no ArtSnacks-themed item this time...)

Ready to start experimenting!

The beautiful view from my window was my inspiration.

First step: bold color from the Copic Wide marker.

I started my ArtSnacks Challenge with the Copic Wide marker and played around to see what kinds of marks I could get out of the giant, but narrow, chisel tip.  I must admit I was a little disappointed at the limited range.  I tried to create organic, leaf-like shapes but found the marker more useable when I simply drenched large areas in color.  While it wasn't very versatile in terms of my artistic process, I believe people also use these markers for Western-style calligraphy, so it might be better suited for that.  Also, my marker seemed a bit dry--I had to go over areas several times to get good coverage--but perhaps that's due to going through the shipping process; the marker was certainly brand new (sealed with a sticker).  Maybe if I turn the beast tip-side down for a while, the color laydown will improve.

Well-capped paint stick.

I thought to continue my Challenge with the K-80 paint stick but realized the remaining ArtSnacks probably wouldn't do well on top of it.  I still took the above photo to show the interesting cap system; one big, typical cap and one small, fitted cap.  Very protective!  I didn't use enough paint to show it, but the stick also has a twist-end at the bottom to push more up (once exposed, the material will not retract).

Graphite.

Metallic ink.

I decided to leave the paint stick for last and move onto the graphite crayon.  I was a little familiar with it already because I actually bought several of these when I visited Seattle earlier this year.  I was very tickled to receive another one with my ArtSnacks.  This item not only covers large areas well, its pencil-like tip allows for relatively fine lines, too.  I didn't realize at the time, but this graphite crayon is also water-soluble.  My sister noticed it when I showed her these items at November's Kikai meeting.  She tried it out with a water brush and ended up creating a lovely piece.  (Something else to note: if these graphite crayons interest you, make sure to buy one of the specially-made, oversized sharpeners to maintain the useful tip shape!)

After creating my branches with graphite, I embellished them with the metallic brush pen.  I also added organic lines over the Copic marker to create a more leafy image.  I was very satisfied with the pen's performance.  The coverage was excellent, the even flow of ink being reasonably opaque and beautifully reflective.  The brush tip also provided a nice range of line widths.  The only complaint I have is that the ink flows so readily that whenever I take the cap off, I inevitably mark on the inside.  Then, when I place the cap on the opposite end of the pen for safe-keeping while I work, the ink on the cap gets smudged all over the end of the pen.  Not the worst thing ever, just a minor annoyance; I otherwise love this pen.

Finished off with the super fun paint stick.

Finally, it was time to come back to the paint stick.  It feels difficult to describe how much fun I had using it.  The coverage was less forgiving than I hoped (there's basically one line width and one shade) but the way it felt to draw with this thing was marvelous.  It's very much like coloring with a child's wax crayon but...better.  Like riding a swing compared to riding a roller coaster, same basic thrill, the latter enhanced to satisfy a more experienced customer.  In less metaphoric terms, the paint laid down very smoothly, producing a texture uncannily like a wax crayon but without the resistance one typically finds when pulling such a crayon across the page (especially those super cheapo crayons!).  I was also able to cover a surprisingly large area considering how little stick I used.  I am very interested in procuring more of these paint sticks because I think they'd produce an even better result if used exclusively with each other, particularly for an impressionist-style piece.

The finished piece outdoors with its model.  T'was a beautiful day!

And there we have the November ArtSnacks box and the piece I created with it! Even though my Challenge is already done, the items I got this month were so fun and different that I still feel like creating with them (in fact I already have, at the Kikai meeting I mentioned earlier). Did you get the November ArtSnacks box and, if so, what did you think of the contents? Did you do a Challenge piece? Did you get different colors or styles than me? If you didn't get these ArtSnacks, is there anything further you'd like to know about them?

ArtSnacks - October 2014

It feels like I only just received the September items but I'm already reviewing my October ArtSnacks supplies!  It was a hefty box this time and included some unusual selections.  I suppose it's a testament to its interest that instead of basic lines, dots, and gradation, I was inspired to complete my ArtSnacks Challenge drawing as a means of testing these art tools.

First peek!

Although I already saw in a video earlier this year (when I was deciding whether to subscribe to ArtSnacks in the first place) that the October box is Halloween themed, I had long forgotten by this time.  I was therefore very pleasantly surprised to see all the black and orange!

That candy smelled so good I could hardly wait to eat it!

Decent item count here!

Here's the full list of items from my October ArtSnacks box:

• Lyra Colorstripe Colored Pencil
• Cretacolor Black Chalk Pencil
• Pentalic Woodless Charcoal Graphite Pencil
• Pro Art India Ink
• Protégé Short Handle White Nylon Brush

I really enjoyed using the colored pencil.

Like I said above, my ArtSnacks were so inspiring that I felt like creating a complete drawing right away.  I decided to use these items in the order listed on the menu so I started with the colored pencil.  I must say, after using it, I think it's a shame these are no longer in production.  The color laydown was so smooth and rich--making excellent gradients and covering the paper quite thoroughly and quickly when desired--it's the first time I've really considered buying a different brand of colored pencils.  The yellow color I received inspired me to draw the moon, stars, and eyes you see above.

Note how quickly the pencil tip was worn down.

 
The next item I tried was the black chalk pencil.  It was certainly interesting.  Rather like charcoal but more...crumbly?  It's difficult for me to describe the difference but I can say the tip wore down very quickly and it produced lots of dust.  To create a larger drawing with this pencil would require much sharpening and might even use up the whole thing.  On the flip side, I got satisfyingly dark marks from the pencil in relatively little time.  I smudged the chalk with a paper towel to take care of the stray dust and chalk flakes which also gave the drawing a more refined look (compare the smudged body to the unsmudged head in the photo above).

Various shades accomplished with the woodless pencil.

 
Here I get a bit confused because the ArtSnacks menu describes this item as a woodless charcoal pencil available in "3 different grades: soft, medium and hard", but what I received is clearly a 4B graphite pencil.  I'm not sure if it's just a typo on the menu or if I actually received the wrong item.  It's not a big enough deal to complain or inquire about, just a curiosity.  The item I did receive is something I've already used before and which I still have in my repertoire.  I haven't looked into whether I already have this exact hardness (I probably do since I tend to have even numbers, i.e. 2B, 4B, 6B, etc.) but it's still a good one to have since you can get both fairly light and fairly dark marks from it.  I recommend this pencil for drawings that will be all or mostly graphite since being woodless makes covering large areas much faster.

Some of the ink is still wet and reflective in this photo.

The last two items were clearly meant to go together: brush and ink.  Perhaps I've never used real india ink before or maybe this type is just different, but I was surprised at the thick, plastic texture once dry.  I felt it was more like using acrylic paint than ink.  I don't recommend using the ink to fill in large areas, especially when diluted.  The ink dried so quickly that everything I filled looked splotchy and unflatteringly showed brush strokes.  These traits seemed to be even worse when I dipped the brush in water after ink (diluting on the brush, essentially) before laying it on the paper.  I also was a bit disappointed in the dropper that comes with the ink because it didn't create a very wide range of droplets on the page.  No matter how I coaxed, they all came out around the same size and not nearly as small as I hoped or expected.  Next time I'll be using this ink for linework.  The disappointments I experienced while creating this piece showed me that I'll probably be much happier if I use it to create lines with a nib instead of filling large areas with a brush.

After all that with the ink, I only have a little to say about the brush.  It behaved very well.  I'm really happy that I received a round (my favorite brush shape) and I'm fairly sure I didn't yet have a short handle round brush in this size (9, I think; the size mark is not clearly differentiated from the number 6 but this is much larger than other 6's I have).  I'll definitely go to this brush again in future.

 

October 2014 ArtSnacks Challenge by AnimeGirlMika on deviantART

So what do you think of the Halloween ArtSnacks?  Did you get a box, too?  If so, did you get different colors or sizes than I did?  What did you create for your ArtSnacks Challenge?

New Art - Chibi Genie

For my new art post this week, I'm featuring my September ArtSnacks challenge.  The way I do the challenge is to create a drawing or painting using only the supplies provided in that month's box.  Sometimes I'll use an extra item such as an eraser or a brush, but this time I needed only the exact supplies I was given.  Let's take a look! 

September ArtSnacks Challenge - Genie by AnimeGirlMika on deviantART

As you may guess, I drew chibi Genie as an homage to the great man we lost recently: Robin Williams.  I don't want to get too deep into the impact his sudden death had on me but I will say I loved him as much as one can reasonably love a person known only from their acting.  That he, someone so bright and warm and cheerful, was lost to depression has made me finally (if not slowly, hesitantly) take steps to overcome my own mental health issues.  That's not what I want to talk about here, though.  Let's talk about Genie!

Sketched with ArtSnacks pencil and eraser.

I had actually sketched a chibi Genie once already before I received my ArtSnacks.  One of the things that made me use the idea for my challenge was the brilliant blue watercolor marker I received.  If I hadn't gotten that color, I definitely would have drawn something else.  It was great that the supplies I received allowed and encouraged me to finish an idea I had already started.

Lines inked on a sheet of clear vellum with the ZIG marker.

Inking on the clear vellum was a great experience.  It's not flimsy like tracing paper, but it's the same translucence which made it very easy to copy the lines from my sketch.  If there's any place for this paper in my normal repertoire of supplies, it's as a surface for inked lines that I intend to scan in and color digitally.  The paper takes ink beautifully (no feathering) and eliminates the need for a lightbox or transfer paper to ink a sketch.  This is perfect for inking something to be digitally colored because it provides a very clean scan without a lot of trouble.

I colored on the back of the page.

The blue appears smooth but muted.

A suggestion from the September ArtSnacks menu to create two-sided art prompted me to add blue on the back side of the paper--behind the lines rather than over them--allowing the color to show through on the front side.  The result was very interesting.  As you can see in my photos, it's obvious that the color becomes very desaturated on the front but, less noticeable, it also doesn't show the stroke marks from the back.  I tried another technique later, attempting to shade using the watercolor marker on the back, but it didn't show through at all.  Viewing from the front, the area I had layered extra color on looked just as smooth and even as the rest.

It's also easy to see the clear vellum couldn't really handle the watercolor marker; it got very wrinkly even though I didn't go so far as to blend or gradate with water after using the marker.

For the final touch, I shaded with the pencil.

Since shading with the watercolor marker was out of the question, I finished this piece by shading on the front using the pencil that came with the September ArtSnacks box.  It seemed to enhance the faded, nostalgic look of the blue watercolor and polished off the drawing nicely.

This is one of my best ArtSnacks challenge pieces yet.  It was satisfying to create something I really loved since last month's challenge felt like a big flop.  I'm also happy to have drawn a picture that has meaning; usually my challenges are all about experimentation with the tools with the end result being secondary.  It probably helped that I was already familiar with some of these tools and super excited to try the others.

Did you create an ArtSnacks challenge this month?  What do you think of chibi Genie?  Is there something you would have tried with the September supplies that I didn't?