Brown Gel Pen Showdown + New Watercoloring Book & Artist's Viewfinders

[@myanitabonita]

I want to start watercolor painting in a few weeks while I'm in a lockdown. I really like your videos. Especially that you give alternative solutions for those on a budget. I don't think people's art should be limited because of a budget. Thanks for making these!!

[@JetPens]

Great review of our brush pen sampler! Thank you for your continued support of our website. :)

[@mindofwatercolor]

Hey thanks for the comment guys!

[@rubydavidson2893]

Thank you for discussing the use of framing. That is very helpful. I'll have to try it.

[@carolb6581]

Thanks, Steve, great info for this newbie to watercolor! Especially appreciate the watercoloring book review as I quickly hopped over to Amazon and ordered Kristy's Summer Cutting Garden! Thanks again...really enjoy your videos! 👍😊🌟🌟🌟

[@alexthe1cat]

You are such a trip, Steve. Never, never change.

[@maryriley6163]

I love brown inks, thank you for the comparisons.

[@karenturner-cf7vq]

I like these pens. For pen and wash. So this was interesting for me. Thankyou.

[@DrawingWithFire]

Great video Steve! 😁 I like the homemade view finder...i think I will give that a try. 😉 I hope you're staying nice & cool.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks Val. Not as hot as normal SC summer weather yet but its coming. We've had a lot of rain.

[@DrawingWithFire]

The Mind of Watercolor lol well send us the rain...please!! 😃 The monsoon season doesn't start until July 1st. We'll be 90+ for at least 6 days straight this week. 😫😭 We're supposed to be 95 today. This is the 1 time of the year I dread & all I can think about is snow...lol. I'm glad you haven't been as hot! I hope it stays as cool as possible for you.

[@joeyotten2091]

Love the shirt! From the ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from the shadows shall sprint, renewed shall be blade that was broken, the crown less again shall be king.

[@mindofwatercolor]

YES!!! Love all things LotR!

[@angelarafael9875]

I cried when i saw your shirt...😊 it reminded me of one of my favorite artists;alan lee...thank you for your reviews and tutorials it really helped me a lot in my watercoloring 👏🏼

[@Sathiera]

I hope Jetpens gives you a thank you 😃 Thanks for letting me know about the samplers. Keeping them all bookmarked 😃

[@Sathiera]

And they did! Should have looked first.

[@OldLady-um9kt]

This was a great video. Be yourself. Enjoy life. That is what it's all about. Love all your videos. Thank you. Hugs!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks Connie!

[@BornAgainFarmGirl]

Great suggestion, thank you for sharing !

[@SDIVADesigns]

What a great suggestion! Thank you so much.

[@elsagrace3893]

I love brown Ink too! My favorite is Uni Ball Signo 207 blax in the Burgundy color. It also comes in a golden brown color, green, blue, purple, teal that are all almost black. They do loosen but not too bad. I really enjoyed seeing more brown ink. Thanks. I've got to check out Jet Pens.

[@fufufuaru]

that zoomfinder looks super useful. I use my phone's camera sometimes for the same purpose, but I might look into getting or making something similar to it.

[@carlolsen]

I love the Gondor shirt!

[@Daihatsu_Hijet]

thanks I never thought about brown ink before, now I know a hell of alot more then before Tony West Hills Ca.

[@capbin146]

Great video, variety. I made my own for an a6 sketchbook. Piece of thick plastic trim to cover size and then black permanent marker to reduce to paper size. Fits in sketch book and frames your sketch. 2-3 sheets and you have one for all your sketchbooks. Hope that helps somebody! Love your channel!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Great idea, thanks!

[@angelarafael9875]

You can erase the Ink for the pilot frixion pen with the white rubber part of the cap...:)

[@essietangle9931]

Steve, from this video I bought a small box of 0.5 pilot juice in the coffee brown, they are really great for drawing when you dont want a black line. Thank you for the review.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Cool, glad you like them!

[@monaburkard7163]

Hi Steve, love your review of pens. I have to say I may have as many pens as I have brushes (which is a lot! Just can't help myself). I discovered the Zebra Sarasas a few years back and can't resist the multi-color packs. Never connected them to watercolor tho- interesting! I always learn something from your videos, so a big THANK YOU. Heading down your way Saturday from NY on the way to Savannah - hope you will arrange some good beach weather for us :-) ! Going to the seashore islands to paint and relax. Have a great weekend!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Oooh, hope you can avoid the rain from Tropical Storm Cindy. Just made landfall.

[@monaburkard7163]

Be safe Steve! The storm should be over by the time we arrive. Right? looking forward to some cool driftwood and seashells!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Should be, the worst is in the southern LA, Al, MS area right now. A lot of rain on the fringes though. You'll probably drive through some of it. Stay safe and have fun sketching and painting!

[@essietangle9931]

Thanks Steve!

[@JackJenkins]

Hi, Steve, Good job, as usual. As a retired photojournalist and struggling neophyte watercolorist, I kept looking for the perfect, portable viewfinder for framing potential landscape scenes, then one day I went, "Duh," picked up a 35 mm slide, poked the film out of it, stuck the resulting cardboard frame in my pocket and have been happily looking through it ever since when going out to sketch. My revelation was that size doesn't matter, simply hold the frame closer to the eye and frame whatever scope of scenery you want. Stick two of them in your pocket and you can easily use them together to experiment with different formats. Well, anyway, it works for me... and it sure in the heck is portable. Just thought I'd pass it along.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks Jack! Yes. As I mentioned, on location something like a slide works great. I have a 2.25" large format negative holder that works great for that too. The commercially made View Catcher I linked to in the description is like an oversized slide but you can easily change the aspect ratio. Size, as you indicated, is changed by moving to or from the eye. It seems to help some people but I personally don't use viewfinders on location much. Whats more useful to me is the photo cropping potential. For that it needs to be like the Zoomfinder, or a home made variant that can actually change size. Very useful.

[@JackJenkins]

Thanks, Steve. The ZoomFinder sounds great. I'll probably pick up one; didn't know they existed. (More Gear!! :) )

[@JPKeslensky]

Nice review, can't say that any of those gels got me too excited. Perhaps a sepia or brown Dr Ph Martin's Bombay dip pen ink might be interesting for use with watercolors. I'll have to give it a try. I previously enjoyed watching you work in a video with a dip pen and watercolor wash combination on one of your birds and I have been wanting to try that, but hadn't considered using a colored ink. As always, thanks for the inspiration.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks JP. I'm always interested in seeing what pens will do for portability location purposes and I think I identified a couple here that might work for line and wash.

[@Queenread82]

Hi Steve, thanks for another great vid! The Zoom Finder link goes to one of those angle ruler things, so you might want to update it.

[@Queenread82]

Amazon doesn’t have it but Jerry’s Artarama (?) does.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yeah, Amazon quit carrying it. Thanks for the heads up. I forgot where I linked to it,

[@richardlumpkin4607]

Nice opening music Steve. Kind of a big band vibe. Reminds me of how I worked my way through college. By the way, nice video!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks Richard. Love big band. It reminds me of my dad who used to listen to it on one of those cable radio channels every day. He was a musician and conductor. Played sax in a dance band in high school.

[@richardlumpkin4607]

The Mind of Watercolor Played in a dance band for five years. Depending on the score I played fifth trumpet, fifth trombone or tuba. Messing with many trades and mastering none. Also played for R&B circus. Just finished thirty five years in church music and about to venture into real estate. Too much info. When do I find time to paint... As always, thanks for the education.

[@maryalgar8779]

And, as I'm sure you know, there are Winsor & Newton drawing inks - peat brown and nut brown. So many choice. I too liked your sample of the Zebra brown-gray.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yes, lots of great brown ink choices for dip pens. Not so much if you want something self contained.

[@spiritsjoy]

My favorites are the Zebra sarasas and hi tec c/maica; i have them in every color. I know your least favorite was the hi tec but for pens with such a small nib they are smooth non scratchy dreams. Its a shame that the maicas are being discontinued.

[@batya7]

Thanks. I never considered sketching with ink, let alone brown. I'm still is in a good old #2 pencil. I think brown ink would make a nice difference.

[@AmyEarls7683]

Have you tried the Faber-Castell PITT artist pen in dark sepia? The ink is waterproof and works well with watercolors.

[@mindofwatercolor]

+Amy Giglio yes I used one in one of my sketchbook videos somewhere. 😀

[@nsavar5864]

Hello, Steve. Great vlog. I always learn from your videos. Cool viewfinder tips. I never thought to use it on photos. Thank you for sharing. As a noob I just learned about the rule of thirds to help with composition, and for a static viewfinder (old 35 mm slide shell), I scratched lines on clear film and taped the film to the viewfinder. Maybe that tip will help other new artists. Question about the brown pens: did you mention what type of paper you used? I've noticed that some of my "permanent" pens smear/reactivate on certain paper and stay put on other paper. I wondered if it was just me or if you find that paper matters for ink. Thanks again. You are a treasure. --nina.

[@mbfrezon]

rocking the Gondor tshirt!

[@mindofwatercolor]

You bet!

[@renmuffett]

Have you tried the Sketch & Wash pencil from General's? Mine is # 588 and its so amazing. it is a watersoluble, soft, black graphite pencil. May be used wet or dry, or use it dry then apply a water wash. Its a great sketching pencil.

[@mindofwatercolor]

+Renee Moles-Marks yes, I have a couple Generals and a Derwent set. They are great.

[@janeward2878]

Ahh Steve I love your videos but I nearly gave up on this one because I thought my head would explode trying to listen to you over the top of the music for the first 3 minutes! Such a relief when it stopped.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Oh, come on!

[@leolaus332]

ha great response

[@MaryPrasadArt]

I enjoy your videos. Love the shirt. LOTR is my favorite book trilogy and movie trilogy. Just a note, FriXion is a pronounced friction since it erases by using friction. It has an interesting formula that reacts to heat.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Ok, thanks. What does the heat do? Just allow it to be erased easily?

[@MaryPrasadArt]

The pen has a "Unique thermo-sensitive gel ink formula disappears with erasing friction" - it's really interesting how it works. See the video here; it shows how the molecules recombine to "erase". www.jetpens.com/blog/pilot-frixion-erasable-pens-a-comprehensive-guide/pt/670

[@condorreades2148]

You can get great effects with these pens if you wet the paper FIRST. Draw into the water and the ink will disperse like watercolor.

[@lisathaviu1154]

Love, love, love JetPens. My accountant husband, not so much. They also carry a really nice selection of pencil\pen cases. If you enjoy drawing with brown, you might want to try Noodler's Brown No. 41 ink, or, for a not quite waterproof ink, Noodler's Golden Brown, which is my favorite. I usually go to the Goulet Pen Company for Noodler's inks and pens.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks for the recommendation. Good in fountain pens I assume. I have a Noodlers Brown tucked away somewhere that I almost forgot about so I'll have to take a look.

[@Juhani139]

I suspect a few good tips for finding the right spot to paint would be to look for anything where you think "man i wish i had a camera for this!" I think we've all had those moments, where the light it just right, the texture intriguing and the layout from that particular angle just perfect. And you know, if you came back an hour later it wouldn't be the same. Those are the scenes to paint! (I've never done plein air, would love to try it.) Pens: I really like the first uniball signo brown black. Would look lovely in a sketch and wetted for tonal values. I'm thinking a sketch of a woman on gray or brownish paper with white pencil/charcoal for highlights. :) Nice shirt. LOTR 4ever. I'm busy listening to the Children of Hurin audiobook at the moment. Awed by Tolkien's storytelling.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Once you become comfortable with it plein air gets in your blood. Love it!

[@suzalasuzala1135]

loved the risky business entrance!

[@mindofwatercolor]

😊

[@dottiburke40]

Hello, I know you use M. Graham watercolor paints and I'm wondering if you have ever had any issues with the paint developing mold on top? Yep this is what's happening to mine. I have them in a folding lid palate with a rubber seal.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Never have had that happen. I tend to leave them open to dry though. I think it only happens if they stay wet for a long time.

[@TerrieJohnson731]

Haha! I just got my Pilot Juice .5 Gel Pen in Coffee Brown. Had to get it from Japan! Seemingly, Brown ink pens are not common to the Western World. I knew I would not find any in my local dept stores, and we just have a JoAnn's I never go to. Amazon is my art Store. I want a more Mid Brown, to reddish Sepia color, though next too black, the ink is clearly brown. Thanks for this video.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yes, I noticed that. I was surprised they found 10 brown pens they could even put in the sampler. Thanks!

[@sallyyotz3995]

Isn't the Pilot FriXion also erasable?

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yes it is.

[@johns80schick]

pilot frixion pens do erase with friction or heat so be weary of that.

[@donnidehart2177]

Where can I get the zoom finder like the one in the video? Who makes it?

[@mindofwatercolor]

I have a link listed in the description. 🙂

[@niteycat]

I see you got your Canson Heritage from Hobby Lobby. Great they carry them, but, my Hobby Lobby refused the 40% for either the sketchbook art pad sale and the coupon. Nice jazzy music. Bring back Reese please.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Oh man, I hope my Hobby Lobby doesn't start doing that. AC Moore does that on Arches blocks and it drives me crazy. Reese is around. He was in the last video.

[@niteycat]

Found out it was just that store and that clerk. I went to another one and they honored the sale and apologized.

[@mrsdutch1949]

Another useful thing about the FriXion pen is that it is erasable 😊

[@celticqaidbear]

You should be able use you hands to frame or crop area you wish to paint. This was the way I told in art school .

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yes, you can. Doesn't work as well but its better than nothing.

[@mimilawrence5772]

The frixion pen is pronounced " friction" just like the normal word. As you have already said it erases with friction, also with heat. Quilters use these as fabric marking pens because the lines disappear with heat from an iron. Don't leave anything written with this ink in a hot car. Your ink could disappear. I've heard that cold will restore the ink, but I don't know if that works. I would hate to draw with this and then lose my drawings. Thanks for all your great videos. They are very useful and entertaining as well.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Interesting, thanks for the input. Turns out I don't really use this one much for drawing. I like others I tested better but the erasable nature has some benefit. Maybe for sketchbook work. Did not know about the fading though.

[@maicascorner5064]

Are you on Skillshare, Steve?

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yes. Only two workshops so far but working on a couple others. skillshare.com/mindofwatercolor

[@eileengoldenberg270]

I love jet pens!! And free shipping with $25 or more...which is not hard to do..thanks

[@mindofwatercolor]

You got that right. $25 is nothing once you get to looking around.

[@onyana]

The first brown pen pilot frixon is an erasable ink. You turn the pen around and erase using the end.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Aah, yes, so it does. Thanks! And that was one of my favorites.

[@elflordsjourneys]

Thanks for sharing your cheap picture frame idea, besides being a brother in the LORD we share a fellowship of the RING.😀

[@mindofwatercolor]

Awesome!

[@mikenorton6899]

Not sure if you intended to have the background music running. Turn it OFF. Please! Great info but the music was terribly distracting

[@elizabethbarnett5781]

had to skip the first 9 minutes to get to the actual comparison!