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I think your drawings are awesome. I love everything you do!

andrea, i love them! so glad you are back and blogging again!

They're beautiful to me. I wouldn't resent them one little bit!

Those drawings are so nostalgic and cool... Like the style... time changes a lot really

you, my dear, are INSANELY awesome!!! :-)

Love them both! The same thing happens to me, and I've learned to just stash a drawing away if I'm frustrated (instead of pitching it into the can). After a while passes, they sometimes look better to me!

D'ya think you have enough chutney?

And I'd say you do glass quite well. I'm impressed with the jars!

I think your drawings are A - W - E - S - O - M - E. I hope one day my drawings will be as great as yours :)
You're like my role model, no-joke :)

Have a lovely day!

The details are out of this world! Can't stop admiring it ^^

Wonderful and love the comentary!

I'm so glad you're back to posting again! These are both great!

it would be great on my fridge!
may be a little lack of shoes..
regards.G

Kathleen - there's no such thing as too much chutney! :-)

Andrea - So we can't expect a drawing of your vegetable rack any time soon then?

Great drawings.

just great sketch!

Both of these are so cool! I love them and I am glad you are posting again.

In the 70's you did have to have a chopper and my sister got one but I very girlie-like and wanted a Raleigh with a basket so she was cool and I was once again, the geek.

I am most drawn to the 3rd one down..it's the most eyecatching to me. I love the angle and the wonderful drawing ! winna

These are terrific! Yep, those choppers were the must-have bike in the midwest US too. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!

very cool, all are done so well. i'm drawing one for my discarded/abandoned/trash etc series. thanks for all the nice comments!

I think you're being a tad hard on yourself ... I like them all! I like the creative approach you've taken to the task. Well done! nancy

Amazing! I've always liked how you stress so much on the outlines, and then adding depth into the subject by hatching... it's just so pretty!

Loving these - each one in its own way.

I like the bike!

I like how you chose a section of the bike - very creative composition, and well drawn.

at last! you should be ashamed for this neglect- and for the woefully lack of bike knowledge yet.
how long do i expect for a gun draw?
at least a katty..
hung on a 81's motobecane MX 25 of course.
G.
raleigh super burner may suit.

c,mon....be truthful ~
you really can't ride a bike?

You have never owned a bike?! Shocking! Ahh the summer of '76. That was the heatwave, right? It was also the year Mr Pippa was born!

I really like these drawings. I'm glad you shared all of them. I always like the drawings you do with writing around them, but I also love the clean look of the final one.

Nice job, Andrea. You always knock the socks off all your drawings. And these three are no exception.

Love them all.

I love the angle of the bike. Love the second one, it's magic. So AJ.

Hello People, I was on a holiday for a month just passing by read this interesting post its great to see that every thing here is getting more lively...thanks a lot for these keep them coming....

___________________
Vince
Increase your brand popularity overnight

Knowing your love of fine detail in biro Andrea, have you seen these?
http://bit.ly/13bWI9

Cheers, guys.

Haven't been online since posting this, so am most pleased to read all these lovely comments.

Pippa, yes, it was the heatwave and also the year of the ladybird invasion. Ladybirds everywhere.

Rob, it really is true. Honestly. I can't swim either.

Loulou, it's so much cooler to be a geek.

Rhomany, yes, they are totally brilliant, aren't they? Way way too good for my liking!

Cheers, my dears. You make my day.

Oh, wonderful. Love all three versions, with a slight preference for the first one. When I look at your drawings, I feel exactly like when I was a child looking at Walt Disney's drawings - it seems to me your drawings make things neater, more approachable and more lovable.

I love, love, LOVE this. The contrasts between the surround and outlined cat with the coloured view is genius.

I really like this one. Your work tends to have a very detailed look, bordering on overworked. I think the simple silhouettes really help to balance things out. Well done!

OK, that's it. Now I can't draw anymore. I will just sit and drool over your work, Andrea.

B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L!

(: Pippa
Pippa's Porch

hi andrea, so nice to find you. your work is asounding. thank you for all your comments over at flickr. i can now come and visit over here too :)

that's so lovely. i love the simple line work for the forground detail. the frame and your cat. really pops the view. and not something i would have thought of.

Wow, how cool. I love this, even though it's quite a departure from a lot of your other work. The decision to leave the interior stuff in outline is genius, it works so well. Beautiful!

Hello!
It is interested very much.
Please link to this site.
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What a lovely view. This drawing is lovely. What I particularly love is the linear frame of the window and the cat - it draws the eye into the view more. Really lovely. Glad you were able to draw the view before you moved. Hope that's all going well.

Pippins x

Ps You wouldn't believe the kind of things which were going through my mind when I saw a comment further up from a Pippa. First I thought that I was going mad and that I had commenting before looking at the drawing. Then I thought that someone was pretending to be me! No, just someone with the same name. Panic over.

And top it off, an Elbow soundtrack. Excellent job.

Jo here, just wanted to say that we are flattered to feature in one of your amazing pictures. x I love it!

I absolutly love this!!!! For tons of reasons, mainly the view and the way it works with white space. It makes me want to paint! I'm going to paint this weekend, sod the jobs!

I love this- especially the negative shapes that focus your eyes on the view :)

Congratulations , you are fantastic :$

What a sweet, peaceful view!!

This is such a calming image, it invites you through the window. Brilliant design.

Wow-this is a new favorite of mine. Excellent simplicity!

Isn't moving just the pits? Your beautiful illustration really captures the bittersweetness of it all. I feel for ya...

Andrea this is awesome. Love how you framed the window shades.

Thanks, folks.

Jo, I'm so glad you like it. I was going to tell you about it, but you get here before I could! I shall miss the view. Oh, and if you click on the link for my Everyday Matters set, you can see your house right next to Ged's guitar.

Cheers, everyone. You make my day.

What a wonderful drawing a design, Andrea. The cat's negative shape draws your eyes to the subject and the casually drawn window holds it all together. This would make a great serigraph; have you ever thought about doing a print of this?

Moving house? Good luck!

This one is particularly wonderful!

I'm actually kind of sad for you that you have to move. I feel like we're a part of that house too from seeing your house from various angles in your drawing. I love when you use different colored pens like this! Adds to the bitter sweetness.

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Hi Andrea, I also have a love/hate relationship with colored pencils. I use an electric pencil sharpener and then I keep a drafting pencil sharpener on hand to just sharpen the tips a little at a time as I need them. It is just a pencil sharpener screwed onto a cylindrical base that catches the shavings http://www.dickblick.com/zz214/01/. The only thing that I know about the leads breaking is that if you drop your pencils or tap them against something it will break the lead inside the pencil and then you are doomed to breakage for the life of that pencil. =( I also sometimes use sandpaper. I am sure there are others way more experienced than I who can give you better advice. Hey! How about those colored pencils that are all lead and no wood? maybe that would be better. =)

The only time this ever happens to me is if the pencil got dropped and the quality of the pencil matters too. Your drawings are so intensely observant!

I use an electric sharpener(X-Acto brand) and don't have breakages very often. Pocket hand-sharpeners ALWAYS broke mine, too.

Mind you, my coloured pencils are a 72 pack of Derwent Artists I've had since I was about 15.

I don't use coloured pencil much ;)

Hi Andrea, I remember discussions about this topic before on EDM. Lots of people found that buying pencils in Open Stock is better than a set for 2 reasons
1) It's usually cheaper and more importantly,
2) you can look at the TOP end of the pencil and see if the coloured 'lead' is centered in the wood part of the pencil. If it seems to be more to one side -closer to one edge - choose another that is centered. The off centered pencil has more stress on it as you sharpen it causing a torque (twist) and it snaps.

Also, for what it's worth: I use the old fashioned crank pencil sharpener like what we we had in grade school. With that type of sharpener I control how sharp the pencil should be and I don't waste as much as when I used an electric sharpener. Those things EAT pencils VERY quickly!!!

Hope this helps you some.

I understand the frustration with color pencils. I like the lack of clean up, but keeping a point on them is a pain.

1. get a centered lead - it does matter

2. best sharpener for me has been a little hand one with a cover to catch the shavings. The good news is that it's portable. The bad news is that it fills up quickly.

3. Recommendation from the girl at the shop - don't let them rattle around in the pencil bag (purse or whatever) because it breaks the lead even though the pencil looks fine. She put them in a little bag and then wrapped them up like a burrito.

Good luck.

I don't think i can suggest anything like the others. I just wanted to tell you that i'm so glad that i've found your blog and seen your artwork. Ever since i found your blog, i've been visiting it religiously every single day hoping that i could see something beautiful. You inspire me a lot, i love your style and love how you could crosshatch so well. I'm excited for your new coloured pencil drawings, keep them coming. Thank you for your art work. thank you.

I started sharpening with a razor - I use one of those box-cutters to do it. I think it causes breakages less often, but it is kinda messy. I like the point that I get with my hand sharpener (the prismacolor one that has a cover) but it fills up fast and I think it eats the pencil faster than when I sharpen with the blade.

i use cutter to sharpen my pencils....it is such a stress reliever for me.

Loving it!

Do you know that since that shavings drawing a couple of years ago (or so), i have not sharpened a pencil and seen the shavings fall without thinking of you? I kid you not. And every time, i think "there is no way in hell i could draw those".

I chime in along with those that use a razor to sharpen the colored pencils. It is a bit meditative to carve the point just so...

I have the same issue...I'm interested to read the ideas other have for solutions....

Terrific drawings by the way...such a clever twist on the palette!

I always use a blade - it wastes much less 'lead' and never causes breaking.

Hi Andrea,

My Coloursofts never break. But my Prismas always do - skinny leads. But then, I do use my coloured pencils as if I'm trying to carve the wood with them, rather than draw with them. I use one of those tiny little silver sharpeners. The "KUM" brand has worked best for me.

Have a quick peek at what I did to my green pencils recently, if you like! Here: http://tinyurl.com/68867c

And oh, I love these two drawings. I hadn't seen them before, and coloured pencils are so close to my heart!

Hi Andrea, I'll echo the above comments; if your lead is not centered, you'll have a problem with colored pencils breaking. Prismacolors have been the ones I have the biggest problems with. I use a Panasonic electric auto stop pencil sharpener to get extra sharp leads when needed. The other pencil sharpener I found that works is the Dahle 155; it's not electric so it doesn't sharpen as sharply as the Panasonic. But, the hand helds drove me crazy. Have you visited http://www.scribbletalk.com/? If you want to know anything about colored pencils, these artists know it. Plus, its a nice, friendly forum.

Andrea, I'd just love to see more colour in your drawings (I love your pen drawings but I always remember that mushroom you drew and the gorgeous use of colour) - don't give up! Hope no-one else is reading this ;) because I'll say it straight - Prismacolors are crap. The Ratners of colour pencils! Try Polychromos (or anything else!) and use a bog standard Kum sharpener. They seem to always be sharp and they cost nothing. (Mind you, cp's ARE annoying if you like sharp points, I agree.) How Prismacolors pass trading standards I'll never know and everyone says they break, be careful about lead centering etc - you don't hear that with European brands and we wouldn't buy them if they were made like that. I have a box of Prismacolors I can send you if you like but they are all in bits!! ;) Love the drawings btw!!

Hi Andrea. I use karisma coloured pencils. And I sharpen mine with the old fashioned hand crank sharpener, which works great. I bought mine in Lidls for about 2.99 last year. I'm sure they'll have them in again sometime.

I had exactly the same problem. I figured maybe it was to do with the softness of the lead (much softer than a HB) so I bought one of those eyeliner pencil sharpeners. Never had a problem since.
Of course, you can't get a super fine point, but a bit of sandpaper or an emery board soon sorts that out :)

That was the problem that used to put me off using coloured pencils, back when I was using cheap and nasty ones (not that I'm suggesting you are using cheap and nasty ones!). But since I bought my Caran d'Ache Pablos I haven't had any probems.

sharpen with a knife, and never drop them. if you drop them, and the leads are broken... omg its not even worth trying to sharpen them!
i agree with the pen thing - i always go back to my pen. but i find in my case its a sense of impatience - with pen things happen immediately, while drawing in pencil requires work that i don't have any patience for these days!

I keep reading the other comments about dropping them and that may be what is causing the leads to break, which makes me wonder how often the box of Prisma color pencils I bought was dropped before I bought it. I don't even use all of the colors, but the ones I do use break every time I sharpen them and I've never dropped mine. This is very frustrating!!

Awesome drawings by the way!

I think everyone has already covered the pencil breaking problem very well - I can only echo what has been said. No to prismas, and get a good sharpener. I never have trouble with my polychromos and coloursofts breaking. I like the little hand held sharpener Faber-Castell makes, it's nice for colored pencils.
Awesome drawings here!

Time to move into paint ... Wah ha ha!! you so know you want to, go on... :-) xx

I use one of those little barrel type pencil sharpeners that hold the shavings - they have a slot specially designed for coloured pencils with no end to it. It means that the 'lead' isn't pushing against the end of the sharpener and they never break.

Well worth trying

I mainly use Polychromos but have a mix of other bits and pieces

I use paint more :>)

I don't use them myself, but from memorye the CP rock starts over at Scribbletalk.com seem to use electric sharpeners.

I didn't read all the comments, so perhaps someone else covered it:

1. look for centered leads when you buy colored pencils
2. when pencils are dropped, the lead inside gets broken and that's why the little pieces come out even though you've just sharpened.
3. in college we used utility knives to sharped, and that worked well.

good luck!

First I want to tell you how much I love your work - everyday I look forward to checking your blog.

As far as sharpening pencils, I had this problem for a long time too. At a certain point I was even using those pencil sharpeners made for makeup (like eyeliner pencils) because they seemed to break less. But eventually I picked up the trick of using knives to sharpen. Exacto knives work, but I find they feel a little bit flimsy; the best ones that I've found are utility knives. Very sharp, strong, and no chance for slicing off a finger when rummaging in a bag.

Good luck! Looking forward to seeing more work!

WOWZA!

Wow. Well, thank you ALL!!! I know you guys are good but I wasn't expecting this kind of response! I guess it's one of those times when I've touched on one of those subjects that really hits a nerve.

I'm quite overwhelmed and am not sure where to start. This is great though, really.

A few of things that I've got from this;

1. it could actually be that ALL my colour pencils are actually broken? that is a shocker!

2. don't buy Prismacolour. I use Karisma (which seem to have been distcontinued) and Faber Castell - which are still all broken.

3. being extremely accident prone (clumsy) I've ruled out sharpeneing them with a blade.

4. 'centred lead' I had NEVER heard of this before.

5. and then there's the miicrowave suggestion. i'll definately give that a go and report back on it.

My problem is that I like a super sharp lead for super detailed drawings. Hmmmmm.

I'm just going to go through all this info again. Thank you SO much.
You are stars!

Hi Andrea,
I can second the recommendation for the Dahle 155. You can get it at Dick Blick in the US, not sure about your side of the pond, though.

Andrea, your drawing of the pencil shavings is fascinating. I'm always amazed with your ability to do such wonderful detail.

I use Prismacolor pencils and prefer a very sharp point. I treat my pencils like glass Christmas ornaments to protect the leads, and I use a KUM hand-held pencil sharpener (tiny, silverish). Since it's difficult to locate replacement blades, I bought a bunch to last me forever (less than $1 each). Prismacolor once included this sharpener with their pencil sets, and I think it is now encased in their new hand sharpener with the lid and shavings holder. My electric sharpener eats them.

Any hand-held sharpener should have an opening at the point end so the point is protected from jamming.

Love my primacolor pencils though they sometimes break. I don't seem to have an extensive problem though. I can't say that my pencils get special treatment either.

I use an electric sharpener - Boston brand. It's not a fancy model, just one from the local store.

I have noticed that it works much better when you sharpen a soft graphite pencil every so often to keep the mechanism working smoothly and empty the shavings very often.

my goodness! when i see this kinds of drawings i realize how lazy i am whenever it comes to draw. nice!

My theory on why coloured pencils break whereas graphite do not is the colour pigment (am I the first to answer this question you posted?). Pigments are powder to begin with, and so when they are compacted, they are constantly working to get back to their powder (earth) state of being. A more breakable colour pencil, given this theory is correct, might mean more true pigment and less medium. This is just a guess. I stick with Prismacolours because of the brilliance I get out of the pigment. I don't care that they break. In fact, if the pencil splits down the side, I extract the "lead" and use it like a conte crayon. Then you can rub the drawing with a sideways colour pencil if desired. Keep going strong, Andrea. You're work is as brilliant as ever. -Micah

Might want to try a Koh-I-Noor 983 3 hole sharpener/pointer (www.hyatts.com/art/kohinoor-983-3-hole-sharpener-Q63000)for thinner core pencils. One of the holes sharpens just the wood leaving the core untouched. Rotate the sharpener and use another hole to to put a fine point the core. Third hole works like plain single hole sharpener. I have been using mine for about 20 years now with good results.

Hi Andrea,

This is my first comment, so first let me thank you for your blog. It's so nice to see such wonderful work on a regular basis!

I'm afraid I don't have any pencil sharpening tips for you, however I do have a tip for you and your readers:

Derwent pencils have a factory in Keswick, Lake District. I've only ever bought my drawing pencils from the 'seconds' bin there. You can get pretty much any of the Derwent pencils you want for a fraction of the retail price. They're only seconds due to cosmetic faults such as illegible lettering etc. and all the ones I've had from there have been great! Plus, it's always a good excuse to take a trip to such a beatiful area.

Once again, thanks for sharing.

Phil

Should I cover my eyes and apologize? **wink** Once again, you've turned something so ordinary into something amazing. At the risk of sounding terribly "cheeky" I have to say "Nice knickers!" :D

Great drawing - love the interview!

Andrea, I very much enjoyed reading that interview. It gave me a better insight into what fuels your imagination and feeds your muse.

Just read your interview (by the other milly). Great to see all your work. The sepia collection is amazing, well done you. Eileen

Loved the interview and nice to see your work in a narrative, really impressed - well done you! I love the complexity of the underwear drawing - I seriously would not know where to start, it must have took you an age to work it all out! Your pen work is truly staggering and an inspiration. Keep producing magical stuff!

If only the contents of my underwear drawer looked this good!

I believe you that this was difficult to do - but now I'll ust sit back and enjoy your work.

OMG, there is no end to your amazing ability! That small pink ribbon is just perfect.

Cute, cute, cute...and of course expertly drawn!
ronell

Just visited your edm challenges on Flickr - it was like seeing old friends. Such wonderful things!!

Oh, too cute! Love the touch of color! Never would have thought of drawing this - great idea! I think this one is going to become my second favorite of your drawings (the first being the working table you drew a while back, with a lot of stuff and books on it).

Your talent is truly amazing. I am always in awe at the fine detail of your ballpoint drawings—wow!

I just got the latest newsletter from Chronicle Books and you are one of the 5 artists they picked for there "what's in your Moleskine" contest! congrats on that! (they show one of your button drawings)
I like the touch of color,too,and the interview was great.

You are truly a great soul! The Guru wishes you luck in the spiritual journey of life!

Thank you all, folks. I'mso glad you like my knickers!

This is the LAST time I will be flashing my pants. Well, maybe...

Glad you liked the interview too. It's a very cool site. And, always well worth a visit. I was very flattered to be asked to participate.

Jules, I know what you mean about seeing some of those oldies. This set has built up since the beginning of my blog! It's nice to see some of them again (only some!), and it's quite a colourful set.

Jackie, thanks for letting me know about the Chronicle Books competition. I didn't know. That's made my day.

Cheers, guys and dolls.

loved the interview andrea... really wonderful hearing what inspires and motivates others. and your work is of such a ridiculously high standard. very intimidating. and thank you for your comments on my blog. it's quite scary taking those first few steps.

Hi Andrea,
really like your blog. I've put a review of it on my blog http://madebypeople.blogspot.com/ Take care,
Ed

You're simply too much... I love this post and drawing from beginning to end.

You have done a tremendous job. It has so many minute details which only an expert can do. Keep up the good work.

A charmimg charm! The only luck that I have is the bad kind - so I'm with you on that one. Keep up the hard work, it beats luck hands down! :-)

I hope that doesn't mean luck has turned it's back on us! Great drawing as always.

Very charming drawing of an enchanting figure!

Have just been looking at your recently completed sketchbook - am awestruck! Congratulations on your wonderful work - and I trust there is much more to come.

I come here from the edm challenge and I discover your sepia album :it's amazing, really...

I don't hold much stock in just plain old luck either, but if you're talking about when preparedness and opportunity collide, well that's a little different.

Oh I believe in luck...it's disguised as hard work and perseverance. lol
Love your little charm...nice!

Peace & Love,
~Barb~

very nice

Andrea, Congrats on you moleskinerie.com feature! I love this little charm, the colors and textures are beautiful.

Thanks, guys and dolls.

I like this one. I always like the ones that are different from my usual style. And, the ones that others aren't that impressed by! Just look at my Fave Moley drawings.

Yep, Jim, I'm with you. That's what I believe in too.

Thanks, folks.