Spring break!!! It’s spring break and I’m on vacation in the spring break capital of the world – Breezy Point, MN. There’s a snowstorm coming (again) and we’ve already been to the pool today. Thank god for NCAA March madness and my drawing kit.

I don’t have a studio. I have a desk but it is too small for a big drawing and usually covered with all kinds of crafting leftovers. So I sit on the couch with my pencils and use a drawing board. One nice thing about all this is that I can take my drawing anywhere with minimal fuss.

I have two Global Arts 96 capacity pencil cases. I have velcroed them together. I don’t even try to fit 96 in each – I do two pencils per spot for the most part and for the 96 you are supposed to fit 3.

Here’s a closeup of one of the “pages.” it’s typical except for the blue Pablos – I  needed to bulk up a Blick order, so I ordered a bunch of random blue Pablo pencils. Note the 1″ long Luminance light blue – I keep pencils until I really can’t even try to use them any more.

 

In the back of my 2 Global Arts folios, I keep all the white, black and colorless pencils. My  other colors are 90% Luminance; 10% Pablos. Here I have some Caran d’Ache colorless blenders, Prisma colorless blenders, a couple Prismacolor Art Stix – Clear and white; some water soluble white pencils for last minute highlights and a  black pen just in case I need it.

 

 

Here are the accessories I shove in to the case or bring with in other places. A white eraser, a Kum double holed pencil sharpener (Kum brand from Germany has NEVER let me down), a piece of rubber eraser and one of the most amazing accidents I have come across.

 

I always like to have a razor blade handy in case I need to scrape away a detail or add a white highlight. Razor blades are dangerous – obviously. I was at a fair where I was helping kids make little magnets of acrylic paintings. We painted on 3 x 2.5″ pieces of paper, then affixed a business card magnet (available at Office Depot or Max) to the back.

 

I took some business card magnet scraps and put them into a piece of paper randomly.  I noticed my blade stuck in there safely and an invention was born. This little case not only secures my razor blade but also makes it hard to find for my kindergarten aged daughter. Mostly it makes the sharp blade safe from cutting my fingers off at any moment as I reach for something else inside my case.  I am never without my magnetic blade holder and the tool within.

 

 

Here’s a close look at my drawing showing some of those white scrapes. I am trying to strike a balance between detail and impression. It’s tough for someone as anal as myself! At least I can take some of the pressure off my drawing by being nuts about my pencil setup!