I basically redid everything I just did, only in a 5 x 7 size instead of 4 x 5. I blew up my drawing, extended the clothing and added a border at the bottom, retraced it, and re-transferred it onto my Claybord. I didn’t mask it because, frankly, I have no experience with Claybord or scratchboard of any kind. So, I don’t know if that would work. I don’t want a mess with masking fluid stuck in the textured surface. I might be able to look up the directions on using Claybord, but I haven’t gotten to that yet. I’m just skimming their tips now…It says “don’t worry about using masking fluid.” I’m not sure what that means. The implication seems to be “don’t use masking fluid” or “don’t bother using masking fluid.” I’m trying to read between the lines, I guess. I suspect the paint will wash off rather easily, but I hope not too much. After skimming, I am also wondering if I would be happier with the smooth Claybord, since I am used to hot press (it’s smoother than cold press, which is rough in texture, but not as smooth as smooth Claybord) watercolor paper. We’ll see.
I found I had to press quite hard with my pencil while transferring. I didn’t need to lighten my lines, which came out faint even though I pressed hard. Ouch. This is a good time to mention the perils of repetitive strain injuries. Susie of boygirlparty.com did a great demo on a tip to help avoid this. If you work small or with fine detail especially, it’s a good idea to read up on how to avoid injuring yourself. This is important information not only for painters, but for anyone who works with their hands. I’ve also heard that taking a ten minute break out of every hour is a good idea. Unfortunately, I tend to take that time to check my email! Typing definitely does not count as a break for your hands! 😉
I also got a “tool kit” for Claybord. Usually, I scrounge for everything I might already own that might work for any given task, but since I don’t technically know what I am doing, I went with the recommended route. I usually wait until I am extremely frustrated before I cave in and take the recommended route. I thought I’d skip that step since I’ve been frustrated enough lately.
Incidentally, has anyone noticed the remarkable ability cats have to land on your things (or steal your chair) within seconds and still manage to look like they’ve been dozing there for hours? How do they do that?
