Review of the Stillman & Birn Delta Series Sketchbook-Day 1

Recently I won a Stillman & Birn Delta Series Sketchbook, and ...wow!  I've had the hardest time stopping myself from creating in it, and settling down to write the review.

I'm reviewing the Delta Series sketchbook 7x7 in.  Please take note of that.  Stillman & Birn has an Alpha, Beta, Delta and Epsilon series, and each has different paper, so if you are interested in this particular sketchbook, you'll be looking for a Delta.

Because I have sooo many pieces I want to share, I'm doing this review a bit differently.  Instead of bogging you down with tons of art all at once, I'm going to post some of it each day this week.

But first, the Specs:

Stillman & Birn Delta Series Sketchbook Archival Quality Extra Heavy Weight Paper
Color: Ivory
Weight: 180 lb - 270 gsm
Surface: Sheffield roughness 360 SU. Internal and surface sized. Superior wet and tear strength.
No. of Sheets-25
Size: 7 x 7 in 0 - 17.8 x 17.8 cm
Archival: Alpha cellulose content 87%

Suitable for precision erasing, complies with international standards of responsible forestry. Extra heavy weight binders board.  Bound in the United States.

The informational leaf wrapped around the cover implies that the Delta series is suitable for pen, pencil, pastel, marker and paint.  I set out to prove it.

To start with, I chose Neopastel IIs, a wax, water-soluable pastel.  This first picture shows the neopastel dry, and it shows the texture of the paper.  I was tempted to just leave this as is, but Neopastel color does rub off if you don't wet it, so...

I used a water brush to blend the color.  The trees and shadow were drawn with an American Craft Precision pen, which is a good pen to use over waxy materials because it doesn't clog easily.

Tomorrow, I'll show you a Bleedthrumanade* done using alcohol markers.

Day 2, Day 3, Day 4

(*Got lemons? Make lemonade.  Got Marker bleedthru?  Make bleedthrumanade!)