Pencils for Drawing on Black Bristol

In the SCA I dabble in scribal art. I like to paint blank scrolls to be delivered to others for calligraphy who then turn them into award scrolls. Once I was introduced to black medieval manuscripts I was hooked and knew I wanted to do some of those.

Working on black Bristol has it's own challenges. I was used to sketching on white Bristol and inking it in black then painting it. Of course when working with black I had to come up with a way to put my design on black for painting that would be visible.

When I drew out my first planned one, I originally drew it on paper then used white carbon paper to "trace" it onto the black Bristol. Even before I completed the process I could tell there were issues why I didn't like it.

First, it's like drawing the piece twice. That's terribly inefficient to me as well as painful. I have arthritis in my hands and having to do the task twice, and the second time having to apply more pressure to get the design to transfer, quickly became painful and resulted in me having to break the process up over three sessions.

Next I discovered that even the tiniest little shift of paper, carbon, or Bristol would foul the design as it was applied. My loving cat helped me discover this one. Upon completion several of the lines were off kilter and I knew I was going to have to try to fix them with paint instead. More extra work.

The lines were extremely heavy. I used my smallest lead pencil to do the transfer work but the lines were still very heavy and thick and stood out way too much on the black paper. Yes, I could see them well, but I could also tell this increased the chance of them remaining visible after painting.

You can't see where the lines are going down as you trace so it's very easy to miss one. I tried to create a methodical pattern of how I placed lines so I wouldn't forget anything but with constant interruptions; phone, rest breaks, cats hawking on the floor or spike-climbing into my lap, I found after it was done that I still had missed a line or two. I did leave two edges taped before taking the assembly apart but even with that and laying the carbon back down to correct threw those lines off.

And last I discovered when trying to paint, carbon lines don't take gouache paint well. Gouache is a type of opaque water paint and when you run it over the carbon lines it likes to roll off. With a heavy application of thickened paint you can manage to finally cover it, but it's more like stacking the paint on and does not cling well.

Sample of the carbon transfer method

After learning this I began looking for something different to try for the next one. That first one was tucked away while I started the second.

What I found through digging on the net and through Amazon was a source of "art" pencils I hadn't thought of; pencils designed to mark dark colored fabrics.

There were several types to choose from and while I mulled over four of them - chalk, soapstone, ceramic "lead", and silver quilting pencil - I eventually settled on testing three.

I found the silver quilting pencil first so that is the one that I began testing. I used it to sketch out my entire second black scroll.

• Working with it was easy; just like a regular wooden pencil with a soft lead. However because the lead is so soft, if you want a fine line you have to sharpen it more often. 
• It sharpens easily in the standard plastic back-to-school pencil sharpeners.
• It does contrast nicely on the black Bristol so your design is visible for painting later yet it doesn't stick out like a sore thumb.
• It erases easily. This is both a pro- and con. Because the lead is soft it comes off very easily with a kneaded eraser and doesn't risk damaging the paper, however it does rub off easily if you lay your hand on it while working.
• Paint lays over it very well. You have to lay down a really heavy, repeated line for it to interfere with gouache application and even then a couple extra strokes of the brush resolve it.

Sample of the quilting pencil method

Next I found a ceramic lead pencil at the local fabric store. It's built much like a mechanical pencil with replacement leads and all. I've worked with mechanical pencils for years and this aspect appealed to me so I was eager to try it out. I began a third black scroll using the ceramic lead.

• It, too, contrasts well on the black paper; even sketches stand out nicely because the lead is white rather than silver. However it is easier to lay a too heavy line so a light touch is needed.
• It doesn't erase as easily as the quilting pencil. That is advantageous to the person that lays their hand down a great deal as it also doesn't rub off as easily but it makes cleaning up a bad line more of a challenge.
• The lead is .9mm so it lays a thicker line. I'm a fan of really fine lines and .9mm is considerably larger than what I'm accustomed to.
• Being a .9mm lead means it also makes an awful squeaky noise when you use it. That is why I was never able to use .7mm mechanical pencils either. They always squeak. It's the kind of noise that makes my skin crawl. Worse than nails on a chalkboard. I found because of the squeaking I couldn't finish drawing out the scroll with this pencil but I got enough done to provide a sample image.

Ceramic lead pencil sample

After working with both of these, I finally gave the soapstone pencil a try. I didn't do enough with it to have sufficient material for a sample photograph.

• The soapstone was difficult to sharpen. I never did succeed in getting the point small enough to be useful.
• I did try some sample lines and found it didn't contrast well, and felt strange on the paper. I can't describe it other than that. Like the paper was resisting it's application.
• It liked to indent in the paper. I found I had to use greater pressure to get it to show up well and that left too much indentation in the surface.
• I abandoned the soapstone after just a little while because I could tell it wasn't going to be suitable for my needs.

So I ended up settling on the silver quilting pencil. Fortunately they are very inexpensive and relatively easy to find (I found mine in the sewing section of the local WalMart but I've also seen them online at Amazon). Buying them at WalMart is easiest (through Amazon they're an "add-on" item. You have to buy something else worth shipping before they'll send the pencil).

So after my puttering I did end up settling on the first pencil I tried and I'm pretty happy with the results. I'll probably pick up another just to have it in reserve.