New Love for Acrylics & Testing the New Derwent Artbars

I have found such a new love for acrylics the last few days, I've no idea why.

unfinished page

Rather than using them as I usually (for the background then using other materials for the foreground or mixing them together) I've just been wanting to do nothing but paint with acrylics. As I usually do when the creative instinct calls I've just gone with it, and I find it sooooo relaxing slapping down the paint and leaving it where it lies.

But I received some other art materials which I've been so excited about getting, the new Derwent Artbars, so I'm thinking acrylics will be put to one side tonight lol. They are watersoluable wax bars, and they can do all the things Caran D'ache neocolour II can, but you can make them either translucent or opaque. They are triangular so you can literally draw with the points too, and I find it's easy to manipulate with water - so you can keep some lines visible and erase the ones you don't want, which sometimes I cannot do with neocolour IIs. I did have time for a tiny a bit of a play, so for 10 mins I just drew with them and then added water to the page, it created this page:

The new Artbars :)

For touch ups I took the brush directly to the bar to create a paint - I really like the thick yummy paint they can make. I think I definitely prefer them to the neocolour II, but still being a such an easily dilute-able material I think they will work best for larger background work in my journals, unless I'm feeling all abstracty that is, as I don't like how this page turned out.


I'm going to link with Paint Party Friday and Studio Sneak Peek as I've not joined in any online art hopping for aggggggggggggggggges, hopefully I'll see you there, much love Jennibellie xxx