Micron Pens and Watercolors – Quick Review

Beth
 Lately, I have been rather obsessed with pen and watercolor.

Artists like Caitlin Hackett are absolutely amazing (if you haven’t checked out her work, you owe it to yourself to do so. I believe she uses mostly ballpoint pens but also works with colored pencils and Micron pens on occasion)

There is just something about the contrast of the hard lines with the soft, blurry edges of watercolor that I love. I also really love how much texture and movement you can create just by using the right lines or marks on the page.

To that end, I have been doing a lot of experimenting with different pens and drawing tools.

While researching which pens to use, it seemed like Micron pens kept coming up over and over again. If you haven’t heard of them, they are fine-point pens that use archival-quality ink. That means that the ink won’t fade over time, which is important if you plan on selling your artwork or if you want it to last for a long time.

I went ahead and ordered a set of six of these pens from Amazon (which cost less than $10.00). The nib sizes included in the set are 005, 01, 02, 03, 05, and 08. Here’s a sample of each of the line thicknesses (BTW, is that the saddest-looking penny, or what?)
micronlines

I have been using them for a few days now and so far I love them! They dry instantly and leave super crisp lines. I especially like the level of detail that I am able to get with the ultra-fine points.

Here’s a quick sketch I did last night to give you an idea of how sharp the lines are. I’m planning on painting it tonight, but wanted to post it as-is so you could see what the pens look like on their own:

bwsketch

In terms of using them with watercolors, the ink doesn’t smudge or bleed at all when you paint over it. Also, it seems like it stays ultra-black even when covered with paint.

In the past when I have used ballpoint pens, it almost seems like the lines become more faded or something when you paint over them.

With these pens, everything stays sharp, pitch black, and super crisp. I can definitely see applications for both soft and hard lines, so I think having a good ballpoint pen and a set of these pens gives a lot of versatility.

If you are looking for an affordable, high-quality set of pens for doing ink and watercolor, I would definitely recommend these.

Update:

I wanted to come back and post the finished painting so you could see what it looks like with the pens. Here you go:

smaller-hiding

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8 thoughts on “Micron Pens and Watercolors – Quick Review

  1. How do the pens perform, should you use them to draw over a dried watercolour painting , rather than under it, as per your example?

    1. You can use them both ways. They are waterproof, so they won’t run if you paint over them. The only exception is if you use semi-opaque or opaque watercolors or something like gouache. In those cases, they work best if you wait and use them on top of your painting. With transparent colors, though, they work equally as well either way.

      1. In my experience even if I leave the pen drawing to dry for an hour or so the ink runs/smudges as soon as it comes in contact with water – I use Moleskine sketchbooks – am I doing something wrong?

        1. Hi Stephen,

          That’s really strange. I’ve never had a problem with them bleeding or smudging when I use water over the top of them.

          I spent a little bit of time reading online to see if I could find any info on what might be causing them to run in your case. I couldn’t really find anything too concrete, although I did read one comment that said that they are more likely to smudge if you use them on extremely smooth paper. I’m not sure how smooth the paper in your sketchbook is, but maybe that’s part of the problem.

          Just as an experiment, you may want to try using them on a different type of paper to see if you still get smudging. If so, at least you would know what was going on with your sketchbook. Other than that, I’m not sure what to suggest. Maybe someone else who reads your comment will have some input. Sorry I can’t be more help! Beth

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