Tag Archives: colors

Review – Micron Rose, Brown, and Sepia Colors

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So now we get to the final group of the Micron colors that came in the 8 pack of Micron colors. These are the weird or non-standard colors, in my opinion.

The first is Rose, which is a pink: they just call it Rose to make it fancy. It’s a very deep, pleasant, pink color, not like the very vibrant, in-your-face pinks that dominate what is considered pink these days. It doesn’t really approach purple, but it is darker than most roses I’ve ever seen. It’s surprisingly nature-y for a pink, though. It does have some problems with bleed-through on thin paper, but not a lot.

Next we have Brown, which I would call light brown. I would say it’s sort of a fertile, soft, earth color. Again, for a light color it’s fairly subdued, not like a Crayola pencil or anything. Again, it’s surprisingly real looking. It has no problems with bleed-through at all really, and goes well in a landscape.

Finally we have Sepia, which I call dark brown. It’s very mud-like. Another deep, saturated color. It can get very saturated though, and end up looking like black in the final product, so it does take careful application. It also tends to pool, resulting in spots of darker color. Some skill is required to get it to look right. Surprisingly, though, it has very little bleed-through even on thin paper.

micron color test 2.0

These ‘non-standard’ colors are very nice overall. If one is looking to do nature sketches, landscapes, etc. these are quite nice. They are very subdued and blend in nicely. I find them much more pleasant than the bright reds and blues of the other Microns. If you just want standard colors for organizing or technical things, these are not the pens you need.  However, if you’re drawing a lot of the outside, or in cool colors, these are fantastic.

Review – Micron Red, Blue, Purple, and Green colors

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I have reviewed several Micron pens in the past. But in case you were wondering if they could add a little more color to your life, here are some Micron Colors in .05.

It is an eight-pen set of colors from Micron that I’m looking at. It includes black so that’s out. The first four colors I will look at are what I call the ‘standard’ colors. They are red, blue, green, and purple.

I have already talked about the blue and the red so I’ll cover those quickly first. These pens are larger than the ones I reviewed previously so the ink is a bit more saturated. They aren’t as glaringly red and blue as before, but they are still some of the brightest and most vibrant of their colors on the market, aside from the awful nano-liner. Getting this large also makes them more prone to bleed-through, of which there is a slight hint in the blue.

Next we have the purple, which, in the Micron style, is a very aggressive purple. It is very deep, and in low lighting could be mistaken for black. It is very highly saturated, and changes little to none when applying pressure for some time to just tapping it on the paper. Amazingly at this darkness it isn’t very prone to bleed-through.

Finally the green. This is, surprisingly, a fairly sedate green, falling in the middle of forest and lime. It is unmistakably green, but rather unremarkable. It doesn’t jump like the other inks in this set. It just sits there, making it rather like greens in real life which you have to look closely to appreciate. Again, surprisingly enough this color is the most prone to bleed-through in the entire set, even writing fairly fast it leaves dots on the other side of fairly thin paper.

micron color test 1.1

So overall the ‘standard’ colors in this Micron package are great. They’re not really the best for sketches of nature or the outside world, but for labeling and organizing they are great. For example, different color parts in a schematic. It’s nice to have colored pens around and these hold up the Micron standard. I can definitely find a use for them.

Review – Pentel 18 Color Pens Fine Point Markers

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Markers are fun. They’re not the type of thing one thinks of as a serious art supply, though. When one says markers, one most often thinks of the Crayola variety. But I have here a set of 18 Pentel color pen – fine point markers. I wonder how they compare?

the box

 

 

First thing, the pentel is is not to be used at all like a Crayola marker. It is thin, like a pen, and obviously can’t be pressed. They don’t fill very well, so coloring is not and option. But that is not really what one would be doing with these. They make a very fine line, almost like a ballpoint pen, but thicker. It is suited to detail work. They are good for mixed media or a sketch style. Blending is an option and a good one with these pens, in my opinion. They are not particularly suitable for larger images, however, because of their small size. They may even work better as just regular pens (even for writing) than as a marker.

The nib

 

The body of the pen is slick but holdable. The side is marked with gold lettering that indicates what they pen is, but it is hard to read and rubs off easily. The lids do not snap into place but they do fit snugly enough to not dry out after extensive periods of time. I have had them for long enough to confirm this. The case fits all of them and keeps them organized with ridges. The top folds over and Velcro’s shut preventing the markers from falling out.

The body

 

These pens are very nice but not exactly like the markers. They are more like colored pens but with felt tips. While they have a very limited application range they are very nice and quite usable. They are however, quite expensive little things, especially for how quickly they can be used, I would only recommend getting them if you do have a known use for them.