Rating: 
Summary: Not what I expected or wanted
Review: A better title would have been, "Creating Textures in Pen & Ink, Enhanced with Watercolor." 75% of each texture comes down to "make a detailed ink drawing". The other 25% is enhancing that ink drawing with watercolor. The pen & ink predominates everywhere. If this is the style of drawing you desire (e.g., detailed drawings where pen&ink predominates), then you will probably give this book 4 to 5 stars. I was looking for watercolor texture techniques and was disapointed. With that said, the drawings are very well executed and the instruction quality moderate. The author relies too heavily on step-by-step examples as a teaching tool. The addition of color greatly enhances the pen & ink drawings, with spectacular results.
Rating: 
Summary: New title for this excellent book.
Review: A better title would have been, "Creating Textures in Pen & Ink, Enhanced with Watercolor." 75% of each texture comes down to "make a detailed ink drawing". The other 25% is enhancing that ink drawing with watercolor. The pen & ink predominates everywhere. If this is the style of drawing you desire (e.g., detailed drawings where pen&ink predominates), then you will probably give this book 4 to 5 stars. I was looking for watercolor texture techniques and was disapointed. With that said, the drawings are very well executed and the instruction quality moderate. The author relies too heavily on step-by-step examples as a teaching tool. The addition of color greatly enhances the pen & ink drawings, with spectacular results.
Rating:
Summary: I love this book.
Review: As a new botanical illustrator working in mostly in watercolor I have often found rendering realistic fine detail and texture a difficult and frustrating task. This marvelous book introduces the artist to a new approach that produces detail and textural effects that are both effective and fairly easy to achive. The illustations are beautiful and the explanatory text is clear, to the point, and easy to follow. The book is well organized; starting with the various pen and ink methods and how they can be combined with watercolor techniques. This is followed by the demonstration of how these techniques can be applied to achive realistic rendering of multitudes of surface textures from apples to zebras and almost everything in between..
Rating:
Summary: If You Are Into Detail and Realism, This Book is for You!
Review: I bought this book when I was just beginning watercolor. The book is awesome to look at, but a bit on the overwhelming side for someone just beginning watercolor. However, the contents of the book is well worth the investment. I had experience in the distant past with pen & ink and was fascinated at the way that Mrs. Nice put the two mediums together for very realistic pictures. There are pages with many illustrations of examples of textures in each medium, and many contrasting examples of textures using the same object so that you can easily compare the different effects of each technique. I find these pages invaluable and something that I refer to over and over. These reference pages are worth the price of the book. However, once you get past these pages, there are breathtaking examples with many notes listing colors used and information useful for duplicating the same texture. The topics range from natural subjects, to man-made subjects, such as marbles, glass, rusted metal, and blue jeans! Also of great interest to me is the small section of eyes from both man and animal. This book is a treasure trove of information for anyone interested in capturing realistic textures of almost anything. It is a book that you will not only gaze at for fun, but also refer to again and again.
Rating:
Summary: If You Are Into Detail and Realism, This Book is for You!
Review: I bought this book when I was just beginning watercolor. The book is awesome to look at, but a bit on the overwhelming side for someone just beginning watercolor. However, the contents of the book is well worth the investment. I had experience in the distant past with pen & ink and was fascinated at the way that Mrs. Nice put the two mediums together for very realistic pictures. There are pages with many illustrations of examples of textures in each medium, and many contrasting examples of textures using the same object so that you can easily compare the different effects of each technique. I find these pages invaluable and something that I refer to over and over. These reference pages are worth the price of the book. However, once you get past these pages, there are breathtaking examples with many notes listing colors used and information useful for duplicating the same texture. The topics range from natural subjects, to man-made subjects, such as marbles, glass, rusted metal, and blue jeans! Also of great interest to me is the small section of eyes from both man and animal. This book is a treasure trove of information for anyone interested in capturing realistic textures of almost anything. It is a book that you will not only gaze at for fun, but also refer to again and again.
Rating:
Summary: Texture for illustration
Review: The style of this book is of ink illustrations colored with watercolor. Very good resources to use as examples. I would call it more illustration than watercolor painting. If you like the style, it is a great resource. I keep it my library and pull it when I need it. Good for the well-seasoned beginner.
Rating: 
Summary: Fun Book
Review: This is a fun book that can be used to inspire creative ideas using pen and ink with watercolor. It gives good illustraton on how to create different effects and texture thru this mixed medium. I think it is a good selection to add to your library.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book
Review: This is a wonderful book for anyone interested in pen & ink drawing. Instead of trying to explain techniques in detailed text, it shows you step by step with color illustrations. It is written for all levels & the instructions are easy to follow. There is information on types of lines, value and contrast. A wide variety of techniques are also covered. These include, dry surface, damp surface, wet on wet, spatter, blotting, impression, stamping and salt & alcohol. It shows how to draw & paint metallic objects (gold, silver, iron, rust), baskets, pottery, brick, stone, marble, granite, textiles, clouds, weather, earth textures, rocks, wood, trees, leaves, foliage, flowers, fruit, & eggs. Another section includes instruction on drawing transparent objects such as glass, eyes and many varieties of water. There is also a section on animals covering butterflies, animal hair, scales & feathers.
Rating:
Summary: excellent examples
Review: This is a wonderful book to add to anyone's library. This book shows the effects different types of marks a pen creates. It would be a good book to have if pen & ink were the only thing of interest. Fortunately the watercolor sections are just as good and when she combines the two the effect is stunning. Ms. Nice provides ample demonstrations for both the pen & ink and watercolor. She demonstrates different ways of creating texture with watercolor - using alcohol or rock salt for example. After getting this book I started to practice pen & ink just so I could expand my horizons with my watercolors. The results have delighted me so much most of my new watercolor paintings have pen & ink in them.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Mixed Media Book
Review: This is a wonderful book to add to anyone's library. This book shows the effects different types of marks a pen creates. It would be a good book to have if pen & ink were the only thing of interest. Fortunately the watercolor sections are just as good and when she combines the two the effect is stunning. Ms. Nice provides ample demonstrations for both the pen & ink and watercolor. She demonstrates different ways of creating texture with watercolor - using alcohol or rock salt for example. After getting this book I started to practice pen & ink just so I could expand my horizons with my watercolors. The results have delighted me so much most of my new watercolor paintings have pen & ink in them.
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