Fall=A Bouquet of Sharpened Pencils

I don't know about where you live but fall in Los Angeles is our time of 'hot'. Unlike other parts of the country where things start to cool down and leaves start to turn, Aug-Oct in LA can be the hottest time of the year. But hot or cold, fall does bring thoughts of back-to-school and for me (one self-confessed office supply crazy person), I always think of the line from You've Got Mail where there is a shared appreciation of the thought of A Bouquet of Sharpened Pencils.

And, I know I am not alone! I started this blog entry wanting to share one of my favorite products I have started to use this year. They are not new... just new to me, and I have been having a wonderful time using these in tons of ways. The pencils are the InkTense Watersoluble Pencils by Derwitt. And, I do have a bouquet of these sharpened up and ready to use.
In the past I have used these on fabric and love the color saturation you can get and how easy they are to work with. But, I've been having a great time lately using these on paper.

When my little art group met last year we started each gathering by picking words out of a hat and either drawing or fabric playing with designs these words conjured for us. These were great fun and lately I have started taking some of these further and coloring them up with the InkTense pencils. The time spent on the initial drawings was enlightening, and adding color nudges some of these drawings in new directions.
The pictures here show how I have been using the pencils on drawings created from the phrase - 'bad pharmaceuticals'. (we do take turns coming up with the words thrown into the basket...)

After inking the original drawings I pull out the pencils & my little color chart that I made up. It makes color selection easier.

Then I color in the drawing with the selected colors:

And finish them up with a fine brush and water.
Hope you get to try out the InkTense pencils... What's your favorite art or school supply?