March of the Tools II

Here is another one of my favorite tools. The Wacom Bamboo pen tablet. I like to use it to draw in Photoshop but mostly to have my own handwriting on things. I also really enjoy the pressure sensitivity of the pen. I am by no means using this baby to it's fullest potential.

Drawing on paper with a pencil is much easier to control. Just think about when you sign your name on one of those electronic signature thingies at the grocery store. Your John Hancock looks more like Jackson Pollock tried to use an Etch-a-Sketch. Until you get used to the pen tablet, it's like your learning to write your name for the first time.

I keep my fingers on Ctrl/Alt/Z (undo) and press them almost instinctively even if the result is pleasing. That keeps the process organic. I expect that most of my strokes are going to be duds. When a good one comes along, I'm pleasantly surprised and head for the redo button. It's kind of like throwing spaghetti noodles on the wall and seeing which ones stick -which ones I want to stick.

Check out my birdie here. I plan on using something like this for SB's birthday invitation. It's simple and possibly could have been done with a regular mouse, but the pen was way more fun. I really like the position of Birdie's feet. She's saying something here, like... "Come to SB's BIRDday party. It's this way," or, "I'm tired of standing on this left leg of mine."

March of the Tools

There are two things I feel are "must haves" for any artist/crafter -something that rends and something that mends.
Here is my trusty rotary cutter. Once I was purchasing some fabric in a local quilting shop when the clerk cut my yardage with one of these babies. I was sold at that moment. It has only been a resident of my toolkit for the past 6 or so months. I don't know how I ever got along without it before. I find it so much easier to cut straight edges especially on large quantities of fabric. If you've never used one of these, I think you'd find plenty of uses for it even if you're not a sewer. You'll need a cutting surface and a nice straight edge to make the most of it, but those aren't so expensive and can be found in lots of craft stores, even in WalMart. Replacement blades are between $5 and $10.

One of my other favorite tools is my glue gun. Once when I was teaching science in private school, I asked parents if the class could borrow some glue guns as I was in need of about 6 of them for a roller coaster project. One of the parents bought me 6 glue guns and told me I could keep them. They are still in my arsenal. I use them for everything from making hairpieces to adding texture on paintings, to burning holes in plastic things - thus the burnt tip.


This is my first "March of the Tools" post in conjunction with Heather Bailey's month-long blog feature. Click on the March of the Tools graphic on the sidebar to learn more.