Grey for grey

The pantry is the best place to find colour (and pickles) on another grey day in Montreal. And to go with this kind of day, I filled my Indigraph pen with Noodler’s Lexington grey ink. I’ve had an untouched bottle of it sitting on my desk for years, but it was quite a revelation when I started drawing with it today. I have other sketcher friends who have used it for years, but it was only when I did the drawing for this sketch that I rediscovered its beauty and subtlety. It has the gentleness of a pencil line, but it’s permanent. That means that when you add watercolour to it, it whispers softly in the background without shouting like black ink lines tend to do.


20 Comments on “Grey for grey”

  1. Jane Jackson says:

    I love the thought of gray ink whispering softly in the background; poetic and descriptive!

  2. beth says:

    Nice, I like the grey. Paint what you see

  3. Jane Hannah says:

    I very much agree with you about the the Lexington Grey ink… it is unique -))) Nice painting!

  4. Judy Sopher says:

    Really nice. I like the effect of the ink also. I am using Noodler’s black waterproof ink called American Eel.. But I am going to try Lexington Grey now. Thanks .

  5. Renata B says:

    Last night, while drawing a wood manikin in pencil on my sketchbook, I was thinking about going over it with ink, but I didn’t want to use black. You just gave me an awesome idea because I have Lexington grey in my fude pen.
    Shari, you’re such an amazing source of inspiration. Thank you for sharing your art with us.
    Renata

  6. -N- says:

    Colored inks which don’t run are always a delight. Try making (or buying) some iron gall ink – it has its own beauty.

  7. Kaye Smythe says:

    Do you have a book or online workshop with your process for painting? I love your work and would love to see steps as you develop a project. Thank you for brightening my email daily.

  8. Alison says:

    Well, that was an aha moment! Thanks for that. I will definitely look into that ink.
    Delicious sketch, lots of punch. And it reminded me we’re all out of pickles.

  9. toddpop1 says:

    Love the vivid colors! So good to see. And look at you, all about the Lexington Grey ink… Looks great! Just what we need to help us through this… Whatever it is!

  10. Daniel Dudovick says:

    So cool! Now I have to order another art item, grey Noodler´s. Amazon will be happy. ❤️

  11. Joanna S Tseng says:

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts about this ink! It re-inspired me to fill my next fountain pen that I recently cleaned with a gray toned ink. I look forward to exploring it with watercolor washes.

  12. SuSkjersaa says:

    Thanks. I think I’ll try it. I tend toward softness when I can achieve it. Spending summers on the Oregon coast, I know about grey. Everything is grey, atmosphere, ocean, buildings, even the people…except when the sun decides to appear.
    Su

  13. joantav says:

    You described how Lexington grey looks perfectly! I see you are finding great subjects within your house. Well done!


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