Eek! I found my heaven!!

Derwent Watersoluble Sketching Pencils

My local Pat Catan's (not sure if Pat Catan's is a nationwide craft store, it's similar to Hobby Lobby) is, unfortunately, going out of business.  I stumbled upon these amazing creatures that I had no idea even existed:

They are a DREAM to work with!  This pack is so reasonably priced on Amazon (click the photo to check them out) and you have everything you need to get started working with watersoluable graphite.  It even comes with two Derwent graphitone pencils which really lay down a nice dark color.

Loose and sketchy tangling is so different than the controlled precision that I'm used to, it was a really fun change of pace for me.  I notice my arms and fingers weren't as tired as they usually are when I'm drawing.

You don't have to draw loose and sketchy if you don't choose to with these pencils.  I used this water brush and rubbed it on the graphite pencil and then "painted" my shading that way too.  I will show another Zentangle drawing in a future blog post demonstrating what I'm talking about.  In the meantime, here is a Pinterest link with a tutorial on how to use these wonderful pencils.  There are alot of drawing websites that demonstrate how to use these pencils, but experimenting is really the best way to get to know your new art supplies.

Gelly Roll Pens for the final touches

Here is another close-up.  I used a Gelly Roll pen in white to add a little bit of highlight.  I didn't even pay attention to where the light source was coming from.  That's the best part of abstract art - it doesn't have to be perfect!