Converting a spare room or garage at home or renting a studio space can help you take your artwork and drawing to the next level.
Studio spaces are ideal for creative ideas, generating an ideas wall, and creating more substantial work. The ability to display and store all of your work in one location is also a real benefit.
Professional Drawing Tools
There are myriad ways you can take your drawing to the next level, and to achieve this, you will need to equip your studio with the best tools and equipment. What follows is a comprehensive list of some of the equipment.
Display Boards
For any professional or amateur artist alike, possessing an area or wall to showcase your work can be a positive stimulus to help you create further artwork.
Also, collecting visual references and pining then to a wall display board for quick reference as you are working is an excellent way to get inspired or develop your understanding of different techniques. If your studio is looking drab or uninspiring, then displaying artwork on the walls can lift the whole environment and create a visual space full of ideas.
I recommend and have found the following display boards are versatile and an excellent way to quick pin and display information without damaging the wall of your home your studio spaces.
Storage Cupboards
Artists over time will accumulate more artwork, and you will see a lot of paperwork or finished mounted artwork laying around your space. The last thing you want is to work being damaged or lost because things are disorganized or untidy.
Artists planchets are a fabulous way to order and preserve your work in any way. A further benefit is that artwork can be organized in chronological order or by theme or materials.
There are many ways in which an organized planchet is decluttered and transformed and into a professional-looking studio. Click here to find artists planchest. At Amazon
Artist Grade Drawing Pencils
You will not want to go back once you experience the difference between drawing with artist-grade equipment. If you are looking to create and sell professional-grade artwork, you must build the quality of finish and permanence that need to work at this level.
Artist-grade pencils are expensive, but they have many advantages over their low-cost rivals. One of their essential strengths is the durability of graphite and its ability to retain a point for longer. The fact they're made from high-quality materials. It is especially true if you are buying pencils that you do not want to break when you first attempt to sharpen them. I recommend the following items if you are looking to upgrade your pencils. Click to visit Amazon.
Artist Grade Sketchbook
Sketchbooks are an excellent way to record the chronological development of your drawings from past projects. They are also a unique way to store and display illustrations for reference purposes. Sketchbooks are also an excellent way to explore preliminary sketch and to experiment with techniques on location generally.
Buying a sketchbook is a personal decision you are looking to buy a sketchbook, there are a couple of things you will need to consider before you purchase. Firstly, think about the size of sketchbook you want to use. Do you need a sketch that will fit in your inside pocket for small designs, or do you want to create larger drawings on location? The paper's size and quality are essential when you consider the type of work you will want to produce and the means of storing it as you are out of location. I would recommend the following sketchbook for the quality of its paper.
A premium quality sketchbook is tougher and includes high-quality cartridge paper. Often sketchbooks will be spiral-bound, making the process to turn to the next page without creasing and damaging the one in front a lot more convenient.
Tabletop Daylight Lamp
Its surprising how not having a natural light source will affect your ability to produce detailed work. Plus if you are working in the evening or night, you will need an artificial light source to help illuminate your workspace.
An adjustable daylight lamp is an excellent way to shine a light on a specific portion of a drawing or painting while working in your studio space. The following tabletop lights are excellent for mounting on a drawing desk or tables.
This lamp can be attached to a worktable as you are drawing and adjustable to different heights when working. A 32 Watt daylight energy-saving light bulb is a cost-effective way to light a table with over 8000 hours of lifetime. Remember, when inserting or changing a bulb, never to hold or touch it with your bare skin. Always use a cloth.
Mechanical Pencil
If you need to produce artwork or technical drawings with a high level of detail, then a mechanical pencil is the way to go. A good quality mechanical pencil will last a lifetime.
I recommend the Pentel Graph Gear 500 Drafting Pencil mainly because of the extraordinary level of balance you will experience when drawing with it. One of the main concerns with an entirely metal pen is the top-heaviness that results from the separate metal components.
The tip of the pental 500 is metal, and the barrel is plastic resulting in a finely tuned and well-designed drawing tool. The separate components of this pencil are easily assembled and take apart if need be. The metal cap grasped the core graphite and secured tight in place.
While drawing with is a pencil, it can be held in many ways and delivers a clear and well-defined line of exceptionally high quality.
Daylight Studio Lighting
Daylight spotlighting is a fantastic way to showcase artwork in your studio or home and create a more ergonomically lit environment. Eye strain and headaches are significant factors when working in inadequately lit conditions.
Another important consideration if you are working in color is how artificial lighting will make colors appear different. If you place a color under two lamps, one of which is daylight and the other artificial, the colors will look very different.
Daylight studio lighting is also energy-saving and has low heat, which means, in the long run, you will save money on your energy bills. Daylight low heat technology is much less dangerous as they give out less heat and will not burn if accidentally touched.
Daylight studio spotlights can dramatically change the way you look at the artwork in your studio and improve the way you work.
Artist Drying Tools
The artist drying tool is one of my favorite art accessories. It is an effective and convenient way to dramatically speed up your drying time.
There are three different tools you can use to dry paint and inks. However, there are some fundamental differences in how they work.
- The Heat Tool. This dryer produces very little air. However, it does provide a lot of heat to small sections of your work. This is an excellent way to remove air bubbles and dry, wet artwork quickly and effectively without excessive air.
- An artist's Mini Butane Torch. A small handheld touch that allows you to dry with a small gives out a frame. It provides intense heat to small areas without blowing air. Excellent for removing air bubbles and creating natural effects.
- Conventional Hairdryer. The hairdryer can blow either hot or cold air to dry paint and inks quickly — a highly effective way to move paint around the surface and create visual effects with watercolors and acrylic paint.
Drying Rack
If you produce many wet paintings or drawings in succession, you will need a place to store your work safely, allowing them to dry.
Wet paintings can be placed in parallel and stacked on the shelves allowing air to circulate between the different sections.
Producing a lot of wet work in succession is an excellent way to save space and protect the surface from damage as they dry.
Another quick and convenient way to dry a lot of wet work is to extend a clothesline across your studio space and wet peg work and allow time to dry.
Brusho Inks
Brusho inks are pigment powders that come supplied in little plastic containers. Brusho inks are an excellent investment because they can last for years as pigment powders.
One good hack that will make your pigments last even longer is to cut a small hole in the top of the plastic container. Then dispense the pigments powder far more efficiently like a salt cellar, this will dramatically cut down on wastage.
A good quality starter set will supply six individual pigments, including transparent colors like lemon yellow, orange, crimson, and sea green.
When adding water to the dyes, it is good to use a good quality watercolor paper or full grade cartridge paper, as you will need to add a lot of water to create engaging surfaces.
The real beauty of using Brusho is its complete randomness, which lets you create some exciting surfaces when sprinkling color pigments onto surfaces.
There are two ways you can use Brusho, and best done with a handheld water spray bottle.
The first method is to sprinkle the Brusho powder onto a dry piece of watercolor paper. Take your spray bottle and start to spray water onto the paper. You can create different effects if you spray from a distance and then spray close up on the paper.
However, be careful not to use too much water to create a washed-out effect, which you may not want.
The second technique is to take a piece of watercolor paper. The difference with this technique is that you will be sprinkling the Brusho onto a wet surface. As soon as the Brusho hits the damp surface, it will begin to activate with the water and create a sense of movement on the surface of the paper. This is an effective way to combine different colors on the surface of the paper.
Airbrush
The Master airbrush SP 7b-20 is a good quality, affordable airbrush kit in most people's price range under $100. The master airbrush kit comes complete with a compressor, pressure gauge, filter, and hose and is excellent value for money.
The airbrush is lightweight duel action control that can adjust the paint flow as you use it. It is a well-balanced airbrush that is easy to hold and move around. It is connected directly to the compressor by a three-foot air hose.
A three-foot air hose is strong and flexible and made from braided material, which protects from kinks that would disrupt the airflow. The air hose also comes equipped with a quick-release hose adapter, which makes separating the airbrush from the hose fast and easy.
This is a basic and compact airbrush set that offers excellent value for money for beginners wishing to attempt this technique.
The H-Frame Artist Easel
I have used various types and sizes of easels over the years. However, I found the sturdy H-frame easel to be the best all-around produce, which can last a lifetime.
Whereas the A-frame easel can be used for display purposes, the H-frame easel is its sturdy cousin, providing an excellent platform for drawing and painting on various scales.
The H-frame easel is available in a more substantial upright form and a smaller tabletop design. Both offer a reliable and stable working platform on which canvases and heavy drawing boards can be secured when working. Both are excellent options if working in a restricted space or studio area.
Tabletop Lightpad
Gone are the days when tracing paper was the only method to define an outline when drawing. The tabletop light pad is an excellent, handy way to develop quick sketches from more complicated pictures.
The light pad is an invaluable tool if you need to generate a lot of repeatable drawings and images in the same format. It allows you to speed up the drawing process with the minimum amount of mistakes.
One of the main things people think about when buying a light pad is the light intensity. The ultra-slim Huion A3 LED light pad has adjustable light intensity and ruled edges on two sides in centimeters with an additional paper clip. The Huion light is also available in the less expensive A4 dimensions.
Both devices are super light which means they are easily transported in a case. Plus both come equipped with memory functions that store any previously adjusted settings.
A useful tip when using thicker quality paper and your image will not show through is to turn off any external overhead light source. This will allow any pictures to appear clearly when using the light pad.
Document Camera
Another fantastic technology that has made artist life a little easier is the digital document camera. It is a tremendous piece of technology that allows you to take digital images of objects of various viewpoints and levels of magnification. This is an excellent way to project images live on a screen or flat surface for drawing and tracing.
The Lumens DC192 Ladybug is a high-definition camera mounted onto a heavy-duty flexible cable. It is equipped with 12x magnification optical zoom and one-touch focus. The flexibility of the camera head means that it can be moved up close to a document or object and focus on the details.
Studio Designs Drafting Table
This is a dual surface drafting table which allows you to work at an angle with an accompanying flat area to position drawing equipment or visual reference materials. This table is made from durable heavy-gauge steel, which means it's extremely sturdy and robust. It also has the additional feature of adjustable height.
An additional feature is an ease at which the desk's work angle can be adjusted when drawing. The table is also equipment a sturdy pencil tray to prevent drawing equipment from falling on the floor and being damaged.
Artists Magnification Tools
If you enjoy drawing complex natural forms or highly detailed objects, then using an artist's magnification tool is a good idea.
This is also an excellent way for children draw, who love to draw while looking through a magnifying glass.
Indirect or shadowy environments with no access to a direct source of natural daylight. A bright light source is essential to produce highly detailed artwork.
A magnification tool can provide you with a stable and bright LED light source under which you can complete highly detailed drawings.
