Urban Sk-egg-ing in Bothell

3/31/18 Roy talking about his new book.

Urban sketcher and illustrator Roy DeLeon had a book-signing party at Neverending Bookstore in Bothell for the children's book he illustrated, The Pope’s Cat. I joined a bunch of urban sketchers from Tacoma and Seattle to cheer him on and, of course, sketch him.

Since it was the day before Easter, I happened to have several eggs in my bag that I had hard-boiled. I sketched him first on paper, but what’s the challenge in that? Sketching on a curved, rough surface is much harder.

The afternoon turned out warm (mid-50s!) and sunny. After the book signing, I didn’t have to go far to spot the First Lutheran Church from the store’s parking lot.

I took a short walk around the corner, and a bright yellow Oto bike caught my eye. I’d already used my yellow egg for the church, so all I had left was a pink one.

In case you are planning to do any urban sk-egg-ing yourself, here’s the best pen for the job: a Tombow fudenosuke brush pen. The first time I tried urban sk-egg-ing a few years ago in Tacoma, I used a Copic Multiliner SP technical pen, and the point was too stiff and fine to get a good line on a curved, rough surface. The Tombow brush tip has just enough give that I enjoyed the line I was able to get on the eggs. (And the ink is non-toxic, of course.)

3/31/18 First Lutheran Church, Bothell

3/31/18 Oto bike

Happy Easter to those who celebrate, and to those who don’t, Happy Colored Egg Day!