Special Deliveries!

When we send Parcel Post packages to friends during the holidays I like to decorate the front instead of using a mailing label. I hope the deliveries look fun for the little recipients!

Pentel brush pens (JetPens) and Blick colored pencils work really well on cardboard boxes. Stabilo Colored Marking pencils (from Blick) are excellent for white highlights. The Kum two size sharpener (from Jet Pens) is also very handy.

The Pentel Brush pens have terrific line variations and work smoothly even on the cheapest cardboard.

Sometimes I'll do a quick sketch before hand. This is a Rhodia Dot pad (from Goulet Pens) and a Ohto Comfort 2mm lead holder from Jet Pens. I love these little pencils! An inexpensive leadholder with click advancement, a sharpener on the top and awesome colors too. I also have a green one.

 I try to obscure any previous mail info with something decorative. I turned the blacked out address into a present.

 It's usually a hectic time of year, but it's always worth it to take the time to personalize something special.

Sketching with the Tombo Airpress pen.

I'm not a big ball point guy, but the Tombo Airpress at JetPens terrific. It came in handy when  personalized copies of paperbacks that I had illustrated. I would prefer to use one of my favorite fountains, but with the pulpy stock I did not want to run the risk of making a mess of the title pages.

 Beowulf, Dante's Inferno, Ten Plays of Sophocles and Ben-Hur are just a few of the covers I've designed and illustrated for Penguin, USA. To say I was red-faced to be asked to sign some copies would be an understatement, but I truly appreciated the sentiment!

The Airpress has a nice smooth line and a chunky barrel that feels good to hold. It's also pretty cool looking, you can see the inside mechanism that forces air into the ink cartridge, making it easy to write (or draw) on tricky surfaces. Comes in different colors too. Ten buck us a little pricey for a ball point in my opinion, but it makes up for it in it's cool design features and usability.

I can only hope the owner of this book likes my sketch as much as I enjoyed making it! 

Thanks to Drew at Goulet Pens for ask me to sign them!

Ben Hur in print

I created the cover artwork for this new edition of BEN-HUR back in August. I just received an advance copy from Penguin Books that will be on sale starting April 3rd.

It was great to do a new edition of this classic story!

I used Noodler's flex pens and #41 brown ink for the drawings; all acquired at Goulet Pens.

Goulet carries the full line of Noodler's pens and inks.

I also used a reed pen in some designs.

You can see more about the alternate illustrations and cover designs at the original posting:

Noodler's Flex pens.

New tools!

Santa's elves (and Mrs Clause) were very generous and thoughtful this year... as always, and I've got a lot of new stuff to keep me busy for a while. I'll have reviews of these items posted soon. They're all awesome additions to my studio/carry bag. Links to some item are below if you want to check them out for yourself.

A nice bundle of items from my thoughtful family.

Great new drawing tools that I can't wait to get into!

Pictured above:

• Edison Hudson fountain (from Goulet Pens)
• Pilot Prera fountain (from JetPens)
• Sharade Tactical Pen
• E+M Pocket Clutch Pencil and sharpener (from JetPens)
• Noodler's Dragon's Napalm ink (from Goulet Pens)
• Field Notes 3 pack, grid notebooks (from JetPens)
• Quo Vadis 4x6, blank sketchbook (from Goulet Pens)
• Rodia 5 3/4 x 8 1/4 side stapled, lined journal (from Goulet Pens)
• Derwent Sketch Pod
• Sennelier soft pastels with a pad of Sennelier Pastel Card
• A Chronicle sketchbook
• Package of Flower Dot mixed crayons (from JetPens)

Let me know if you've gotten a great new addition to your writing/drawing tools!

Ahab Flex Pens

The Noodler's Ahab Flex pens were finally released at Goulet Pens last week and I gotta say, they are were worth the wait! I love these pens; with a big flex nib and large ink capacity, they are awesome. I did only a few little sketches with the clear demonstrator over the holiday weekend, but I'm looking forward to getting into them. They're an incredible value at only 20 bucks and unlike the flex pen releases in the past, Goulet has plenty in stock.

Ahab sketched with an Ahab.

The Ahab in three colors clear, Mandarin Yellow and
Dec 25 Red. I started with Noodler's Black ink on
a Strathmore 4x6 sketchbook.

The clear demonstrator.

Harpoon man Queequeg.

GULP!  I swallowed up six Ahab pens in my order!

Noodler's black and a little bit of Habenaro

Brause Nibs for astrology guides.

After seeing some of these Brause nibs in action, I knew I had to have some. I found a great little set at Goulet Pens and they really are terrific. They were a nice addition to the Speedball nibs and handles that I've used for years and they came in handy for illustrating the 2012 editions of Sydney Omarr's astrological guides for Penguin books.

This set comes with 6 nibs and a wooden handle.

I ordered extra handles.

The nib designs are awesome, each offering it's own line variation. 

Pieces in Noodler's brown ink.

Aries

Virgo

I needed to do a lot of thumbnails for this series design and my choice of tools varied. 

I love these  Pentel Twist -Erase mechanical pencils. They come in 0.7 and 0.9 sizes. I prefer the .9 for a wide lead that does not snap easily. The long twistable eraser is not one of those little nubby ones that can't take any pressure, it's awesome. They're easy to find at your local Staples. As usual, I buy in bulk for fear of them being discontinued. 

Both the 0.7 and 0.9 Pentel Twist-Erase pencils.

A Sharpie and a legal pad was all I had handy when
sketching ideas on the phone.

Sometimes a seemingly insignificant thought
becomes the start of an entire idea.

If it wasn't for these sloppy little drawings,
I'd never be able to get this job off the ground!

The Omarr guides are on the shelf in bookstores.

I colorized the artwork digitally so they could be adjusted in the final design; each guide needed it's own color scheme. We created the type design and look for the entire series.  The 2013 guides are in the works at my studio now.

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