Noodler's Flex pens

Noodler's flex pens are hard to come by. They sell out as fast as retailers get them and for good reason, they're probably the best value in a fountain pen. They're great to draw with and at 14 bucks how can you go wrong?!?

I used Noodler's flex pens and ink 
for these Ben-Hur drawings.

They're old-school piston fill (Nathan doesn't believe in or produce cartridge refills) that have a terrific flex nib. I ordered mine from Goulet pens along with a bottle of Noodler's #41 brown. (They sell as soon as they're released, so sign up for the email alert for when they're back in stock). Goulet is a top-notch retailer; shop on their site once, and you'll be back again; they're awesome

I used a reed pen and my new flex pens to illustrate the cover of Ben-Hur; for a new edition published by Penguin USA. 

I really like the flexbilty of these nibs.

Flex pen, reed pen and a little wash.

To be honest, the Noodler's Flex is not the word's most luxurious pen. In fact, people complain the that resin it's made from is kinda smelly, I call it that "new Noodler's" smell, and it fades the more you use it. But if you maintain them properly (it's easy), they are sure to be workhorses for years to come. And be sure to read the insert that comes along with a new pen... it gives you everything you need to know about this gem of a company!

Below are the comps of my cover designs.

Above is the approved design.

This new edition should be in bookstores 

in April 2012

What you carry with you...

Tom Stoppard said,  “If you carry your childhood with you, you never become older.” I gotta believe he's right. If I cannot carry at least one drawing tool with me at all times, I'm out of sorts.
I thought I'd share the contents of my every day go-bag; the stuff I don't leave the studio without. When I have it, I know I can do all the dumb stuff I gotta do...

I've got a Black Paw messenger bag that is pretty roomy and presently holds the following:

• 3 Moleskine sketchbooks (1 soft cover, 1 storyboard, 1 watercolor)
• Canson Mi-Teintes pastel pad (9x12)
• Strathmore 80lb Windpower Drawing pad (8.5x10)
• 60 lb Strathmore Sketch, 100 pgs, (9x12)
• A Niji roll with one set of Blick colored pencils
• A Windsor Newton travel watercolor with 14 mini pans
• A set of 12 Diane Townsend pastels (the fat stubby kind)
• A Nomatic PE-08 Easy pencil case (red). I'll show the contents in a future post. (JetPens)
• A Lihit Lab Teffa Pencase (brown). Again a future post. (JetPens)
• A Pleple Choco pencil roll case, great for brushes. (Loew-cornell 4,6,8,10) (JetPens)
• A set is Stablio point 88 mini markers
• a bottle of Higgins black drawing ink (a Ziplock bag is a MUST!)

All not too heavy or bulky. It works well for on the run and in the studio. Naturally I can't carry it everywhere; my solution to that in a future post...