Tried out the Strathmore toned gray spiral sketchbook! I did like how you don’t have to worry about pushing all the mid-tones as Stan mentioned, and the whites really pop ✏️

Quick tips for building a still life studio setups on the REAL cheap! 1) I did spend $32 on this table. The main reason was I wanted one I could adjust the height and also collapse and put away. A year later, its used every day and I may get another one. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B088CMZZLR/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 2) Go to big box home supply store and get a bag of clamps. Usually about $10 and lots of sizes. You will use them to keep stuff together. 3) Dollar store has big sheets of foam core board for $1 or $1.25 each. Get black and a few other colors. Use for the base, background, etc. Especially helpful if you are taking photos of set-up and not only painting. 3.5) While at Dollar store, get a small pack of big construction paper (also $1.25). Many uses for base, background, etc. 4) When your big box liquor store has its annual wine sale, go buy three bottles. Do not spend more than $10 total and buy ONLY based on how the bottle looks. You're not going to drink it, your going to use if for the next 10 years in still lifes :) buy the stuff that has a nice looking bottle, but tastes so bad no one will drink it! :) 5) Hit the thrift stores in the right neighborhoods. You know, the ones where all the houses around are about 100 years old and used to be the fine homes of lawyers and doctors. Families and widows donate a bunch of cool stuff you can pick up for cheap and the money goes to charity. When in the store, remember the light their sucks. Its yellow, difuse, and from all angles. Look at the item and think about how it will look with one light source, shadows, reflections, etc. Pick the ones that have shapes you want to draw. 6) If you can't afford expensive lights, don't worry. Spend time looking at bulbs. LED lights let you put more light out of smaller fixtures. Many bulbs now have built-in defusers. You can build difusers with scrap cloth or even sheets of tracing paper. Just try different things 7) Collect drapery samples. Any type of cloth, scraps, leftovers, etc. If you have an aunt that quilts, she will give you some! But thrift store tablecloths or drapes with a hole/stain/burn mark. For still life, you don't need enough for a table to seat 8 people, you only need a 2x2' piece.

I do just about the opposite of all of this? I work on Mixed Media/Watercolour paper because I like the opportunity to add inks if I'm so inclined. That being said, they DO smudge, so on graphite-heavy pages, I usually spray with a hair spray or fixatif so the lines don't go anywhere. (The hair spray isn't archival, but it usually doesn't need to be - plus I can use it indoors). I also make my own sketchbooks - I found a stack of old books at my local thrift store, gutted them, and made them into mixed media sketchbooks - but ymmv. I *like* making my own sketchbooks. They feel more personal, more like mine. The exceptions are for my classes: I bought both of my sketchbooks for this term.

Couple more sketchbook thoughts that might be useful. 1) Put your name and contact info in the front cover! They sometimes get lost! 2) Put start date when you begin. Put End date in when finish. Consider dating first page of the day. Its good to track progress! 3) Even better, consider writing the dates on the outside when you finish (white gel pen works for me) Then when you have a shelf or two full, its easy to sort by dates and find stuff. 4) I created a single page for the inside cover of my sketchbook as a google doc. I print out a copy and tape in each new book. Contact info, space to remind me to write in dates, checklists for warm-up exercises, checklists of notes I want to remember and refer back to often (7 habits of creativity, List of what sketchbook is for, Habits of mind, Habits of work, etc.). The lists come from books and even Draftsmen podcasts that I found great and help me if I flip back to and think about. 5) Creative prompts -- I again use google docs to print out ones I find on the net and think are useful. I size it about the size of a paper bookmark and tuck it in to mark my page. Good to have along. 6) Consider taping an envelope in the front cover if the book does not have one. I like the front rather than the back so it doesn't impact drawing. 7) Use it to take notes as needed. Its there and adding your thoughts and reactions are useful if you want to go back and review progress or even expand sketch into a larger work.

I just hope they solve my problem fast... Still dont have acess to the full course... i sent my payment and pictures of it, but until now, didnt have any answer...

Quick thoughts to consider and might help: 1) Stan points this out, but everybody is different. When distance runners give advice, they always warn: "Your mileage may vary." SO..... Consider buying a bunch of cheap small ($5 4x6") books with various types and draw the same pic in each. Experiment and find what you like. 2) No one book works for everything. I like a rougher paper for landscapes, for example, esp with graphite and charcoal. I am looking for texture. But I also use Bristol for some drawings. 3) My EDC (Every day carry) is a multimedia book. I like having one book that I can use at a location for most mediums from pencil, pen, makers, or even the pocket watercolor or guoache box. Plus, I LOVE the feel of a fountain pen or charcoal on the paper and it gets the marks I want. :) 4) Blick Studio newsprint books are a great value. Price is very reasonable and I always have a book handy for warm-ups. 5) Warning: I do not like this company! I avoid buying things here. That said, the Master Touch books from Hobby Lobby are a solid value when it is a week they are advertised at 40% off. Unfortunately, the value is too good to pass up. I go in about four times a year, stock up on these books, and then buy the rest of my supplies (that have a profit for the retailer) at an art supply store that has good values.

Some time to draw. Stan's reference photo has nice highlights, but the lack of reflected areas in the shadow due to the black and soft background threw me off a bit. But reminded me to draw what I see and not what's in my mind. These are my first tries. Two in graphite and one in fountain pen. I admit my background on the left side is not dark enough, especially on the graphite in the middle and I did not get the lost edges I see but did not execute as much as I wanted. Finally, I attached a pear shot I just made on a light background for a reflected shadow area. Feel free to use if you want.

Quick Intro: I am retired and just started back to school for a BFA in studio Painting. I have been plein air painting for a few years and consuming information like Draftsman. But I do not have any formal training in drawing, including no high school art classes. I know I have some bad habits and some pretty basic things I don't know. So I am finding time outside of my school work for this class. My focus is on a reset. Forget bad habits and learn in a organized ways what I should be spending my studio time on to get better in drawing. I am attaching a recent work: Cliff Palace (Mesa Verde)", 22x30, charcoal on paper. I completed this earlier this month. I mostly work in pastel and oil painting. I have seen solid improvement in my painting, but I need to step back and make sure my drawing is solid to continue to take steps forward. Look forward to seeing everyone's work!