Natural bristles are made of animal hair, while synthetic bristles are often made out of nylon, polyester, or a combination of both. There are also brushes with a blend of natural hair and synthetic filament (like that of the Silver Brush Black Velvet series). The advantage of natural bristles is that they can hold a lot of water, which is perfect when you're into watercolors. The synthetic, however, is flexible and springs back, although it cannot hold water as much as the natural can.
Usually, like paper and paints, choice of brush is by user's preference. Some prefer the softness of the natural hair, while others love the flexibility and spring to their synthetic brushes. So if you are looking into buying, I would suggest that you try at least one of each, and see what is better to your liking. One thing I also noticed is that light handed people tend to prefer the softer brushes, while heavy-handed painters tend to prefer the synthetic brushes. So, I'll be doing a review of my current brushes. From L-R:
Also check out: Arts and Crafts Shops in the Philippines Note: Will update the photo once I got hold of all my brushes. *Prices are subject to change without notice It's that time of the year again! To celebrate my birthday and recently hitting the 5k follower mark on Instagram, I'd like to give back to the art community. So I'll be hosting a giveaway on Instagram!
Note: This is open to Philippine residents only. Instagram account must be public to join the giveaway. Must follow all steps to be counted. No need to tag or mention me please. One Winner of:
2 Winners will receive:
I will also give away original artwork and print by Drew Europeo (@calligrafikas), Joannie Candi (@joanniecandi), Paola Esteron (@paola_koala), and Jen Miguel (@frecklesandink). SIDE NOTE: This giveaway is open to Philippine residents. For the first prize, I'll be choosing from those who only have a student grade watercolor. This is to promote using your materials instead of hoarding them (which I do, bad habit lol). To join: 1. Follow @dtzrgza and like my Facebook page (fb.com/datz16) 2. Also follow: @des_artroom & @artnebulaph 3. Post a picture of your student grade watercolor set/s (please mention the brand) and explain why you want to win an artist grade paint. Use the hashtag #NotAnotherGiveaway2 4. Tag your friends! Giveaway closes on my birthday, August 16, 2016, Tuesday. I'll be announcing the winner on August 17, Wednesday. Goodluck! I like buying planners, but I never finish one. At most, I can only get halfway through the year before I leave it at home and forget it completely. You see, I'm the kind of person who loves backpacks but hates big bulky and heavy things inside it. I like less clutter in my bag, especially since I also bring my art essentials everywhere I go. So if it's heavy, I leave it at home, which happened with my planners and my Monologue Sketch Book A5.
Some time last year, I decided to try doing a Bullet Journal. It's an organization system created by Jonathan Carrol that is customizable. It's like dumping all your needs in one notebook, may it be your to-do list, your journal, or your sketches, but with indexes and pages, so that you could find your random ramblings easily. And I did. For two months. I tried moving my Bullet Journal on a ring-bind notebook, since I realized it would be easier if I can add or move pages around, and it lasted for another month. But then I hated bringing the journal everywhere, especially since it's heavy and bulky. I then resorted to apps on my phone. I like making lists but I used to hate writing long journal entries of my boring day. Used to because now I spend 10 to 20 minutes of my day to write journals Last night, I was preparing an all-out watercolor and calligraphy beginner's kit for my best friend. Basically, the package includes materials for watercolor and calligraphy. But since most beginners usually ask for brands and where to get them, I made this post.
WATERCOLOR:
CALLIGRAPHY:
Physical Shops mentioned:
Online Shops mentioned:
P.S. Do remember that when you are starting out, you tend to buy everything to try out, and then you start hoarding. After a while, you'll have a lot of materials that you're barely using. You have to know when to stop. Ask yourself, do I still need this or I just want this? So with watercolors, it would be wiser to buy half pans or tubes and choose your own favorite colors, or the classic primary triad (RYB), instead of buying several paint sets of different brands. Because if you think about it, you would rarely use all the colors in a 60-color set, rather than buying the primaries and just mixing your own colors. It's also better to buy one to two of the same art material, may it be brush pen or paint brushes or inks, and to use it first before buying another. But most importantly, enjoy. Enjoy the process of watercolor painting. Enjoy each stroke while you're doing calligraphy. Enjoy learning and making art. And don't compare yourself with another artist. Instead, try to be better than yesterday, and to focus on your progress. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to leave me a comment. Have a happy and responsible hoarding! ;) Also check out: Arts and Crafts Shops in the Philippines (Official event poster by the awesome Pearl Diano)
I once attended Ate Gail's (The MD Writes) pen meet. It's a meet up of people who has a passion for Calligraphy where everyone got to meet new friends with the same interest and hanged out. Ever since then, I've been itching to plan a watercolor meet where I would invite online shops to do a pop-up, invite artists for a demo, and hang out with fellow artists. So I pitched the idea to the Watercolorists PH group, and they are all up for it. That's when Liz of ProjectVanity messaged me and told me that we have a venue. After that, we started planning. Just Add Water is a fair exclusive for watercolor. I'd go as far as saying that it's the first watercolor fair that's held in Manila. We specifically planned this for a month, asked several watercolor artists if they can do an on the spot demo or talk. The event happened last November 14, 2015, at Commune in Makati. For the whole day, the place is packed with people who Thank you to these people:
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