Tuesday Tips and Techniques: Inscribe

This is a tip for using those fine point pens you have ruined by clogging the tip on surfaces that the pen didn't like, or for pens that have run out of ink.  Scribing tools are available at your local craft store, but why not use those art dollars for something more fun?


Inscribing your page is as easy as writing or drawing.  The difficult part is seeing where you've made your marks. 

Adjusting your paper so that the light hits the paper from different angles can help you see what you've done.  Here, I've made a basic spider web.  (I saw a spider in the house so spiders are on my mind).  I've adjusted the contrast so you can see my marks on the page.

Here's a close up of my writing on the bottom right corner.  This method works best when using dry medium such as oil pastels, colored pencils, or water soluble pastels which is what I have used on my page.

I've added multiple layers of color to the entire page.  Are those trees I see in the background?  I think my spider web is in the woods.

What's a spider web without one of our little arachnid friends?  I painted him into the web with craft acrylics after I completed the background.

Here's the completed page.  You can see that I've blended some of the water soluble crayon to mimic sunlight coming through the trees.


This method works best when using dark backgrounds.  I really like the way the white pops off the page.  The crayon can be blended to your liking by carefully avoiding the inscribed marks.  Blending can also be done over some of your white marks to tone them down.


I hope you give this scribing method a try, and I hope you're having a wonderful day as you "Celebrate, LOVE, and Create!"