Saturday sketch 001 - Lost in thought

A sketch made in pen and ink using Pigma micron pens on a regular sketchpad.

Daytone dye based ink - 60 ml bottle pack review

The brand is not well known among the artists. There may be a dozen reasons for that. Availability of well known ink brands in the market and narrow publicity of this brand in Indian market may be a few of them. But the ink is an unexplored jewel for regular creative work.

The ink bottles come in 500 ml and 60ml plastic bottles but the 60 ml ones are much handy and suits users for personal creative works. The 500 ml is just too much if the work area is not huge. The company generally sells the 60 ml bottles in pack of fifteen and there are single colour pack and pack with all available colours. While the single colour pack seems to be aimed at art shops for resale, the pack with all colours is a lovely addition to any ink lovers collection. Individual plastic bottles are not eye catchy and the packaging is also poor. Pricing for individual bottles of 60 ml comes at a meagre Rs. 40. The box of 15 bottles is priced at Rs. 450 at 30 per bottle. In comparison to other options available in the market this is way too cheaper.

The colours they offer are Dark Brown, Havana Brown, Olive Brown, Yellow Ochre, Mauve, Dark Grey, Royal Blue, Blue Black, Deep Black, Rose Red, Brilliant Red, Emerald Green, Bright Violet, Crimson & Turquoise Blue.

 

The choice of colours is great and fifteen colours can be really useful in creating an art piece. Colours are quite bright but the inks tend to fade a little after application. The bright violet, emerald green turquoise blue and olive brown are some colours that can be well used in writing which are not readily available as writing ink. One negative though is that the ink tends to bleed slightly in comparison to other quality inks for writing.

The manufacturer nowhere claims the ink to be waterproof neither there's any claim regarding light fastness. So it is safe to say the inkwork would not stand the test of time. But considering the price of the ink it is too much to expect and is prudent to use it in temporary drawing and sketching works. Here is one such drawing.

Trending Now - Spit'em RED

In India chewing paan  & gutkha is so much in trend. Chewing Paan is timeless chewing custom and no one apparently has any objection on that. When added with tobacco, it is a dangerous addiction and no less lethal than any other tobacco product. The gutkha on the other hand is easy to purchase and carry, therefore seems popular alternative to the age old paan. These two are going well hand in hand and tobacco becomes their affectionate partner in the business.  

The other side of the coin is the ugly littering. the spitting of the chewables make every corner a dirty spot to look on. Street, walls, sidewalks nothing can escape the indifferent litterer.  The government paints a sidewalk today and in a week the spitting speckle them with ugly patches of red. Its after all free painting from the public! So if you wanted to know whats trending on the streets of India..Spit 'em red is the answer to your quest.