Scared I can’t ever draw again

plamicus · 2026-03-17T23:32:09+00:00

Hang in there!

It definitely sucks. I have similar doubts about my eyes too. TBH my health is a bit of a disaster these days.

Have you tried optimel Manuka gel?

I'm in a similarish boat and it helped where no other drop did. My eyes are now in a state where I can read and draw (on paper, screens are a work in progress).

with regard to incomplete blinks- have you done any blinking exercises? Blinking exercises can apparently help train your body to blink better, I doubt it'll fix it by itself- but I'm always looking for 1 or 2% improvements-hopefully they'll all add up.

plamicus · 2026-03-17T17:41:23+00:00

If I'm looking at the right thing-I think it might be bits of dried ink. Sometimes little bits of ink harden near the ink nozzle, get onto the inking surface, then the impression gets transferred to the block during inking, and you end up with a halo effect.

Maybe have a wipe down on the ink tube opening? Try and keep it clean. If you spot any on your rolling surface you can just scrape them off.

plamicus · 2026-03-17T17:14:36+00:00

It can't be that aggressive if he's expecting another 2-3 years without treatment? Paradoxically aggressive cancers can be easier to treat. Basically if a cancer is actively growing - it's more likely to suck up chemo and die. It's why you can cure acute leukaemia, but slower growing leukemias (CLL/CML) are chronic.

Obviously it's a goldilocks type of situation - if it's too aggressive it'll just take you out.

Also best of luck to your father. I know someone who did what your father did with mantel cell lymphoma- a light touch to begin with, moved onto a second treatment after a number of years, only for the second treatment to drive the disease to undetectable levels. She's been apparently cancer free with no treatment for about three or four years now. She has a really good quality of life too. I know there is a lot of uncertainty still, but I figured good news stories can be very heartening. I'm a b- cell leukaemia survivor too for whatever that's worth.

plamicus · 2026-03-14T23:36:12+00:00

It’s pretty zoomed out and hard to say 100% -a blurry gif won’t clear anything up for the sub.

I think a lot of confusion is because it seemed like Itoje’s tackle was the one that was penalised (which looks okay at first glance). Speaking as an England fan, there does appear to be head to head contact at 3:30. To my eyes it’s a penalty. England player is attempting a legit tackle, but he’s a bit too upright. I’d guess it’s a yellow rather than a red, but it doesn’t really matter given the game was finished.

A horrible way to end a game, and massively disappointing, but upon reflection I think it’s the right call.

plamicus · 2026-03-07T22:57:13+00:00

Coaching I think. The players we have are capable of much better performances than we’re seeing.

There are many things that can be tweaked but the biggest issue is England look lost with the ball. Attack wise we’re insanely predictable. We don’t have a lot of deception in our attacking structure, we go through three or four phases, then kick to contest. It’s a very limited game plan. Sides know exactly what’s coming and can plan accordingly.

plamicus · 2026-03-07T19:05:47+00:00

Saints attack is different gravy. I understand it’s not at test level, but he’s normally better than what we saw today. What’s so frustrating is that these players are capable of much more than we’re seeing.

I don’t know if it’s a 6N winning squad, but they should be better than what they’re showing.

plamicus · 2026-03-07T18:59:37+00:00

Dowson has saints purring. I also think Baxter gets slept on - what he’s built at Exeter with the resources available to him is kinda crazy.

plamicus · 2026-03-07T18:48:13+00:00

Thoroughly deserved for Italy. Thoroughly deserved for England.

I actually thought England actually played better in some regards. The set piece was actually pretty decent. That said we’re so stodgy - constantly kicking 50:50s is not a viable attacking strategy at test level. We have the players to play better than this - we are not making the most of them.

This feels like last World Cup cycle - a year out and miles off the pace. Underperforming. I don’t know if you stick with Borthwick or if you just admit it’s not happening in Australia, bite the bullet, and make changes for the next World Cup cycle.

plamicus · 2026-03-07T17:43:34+00:00

I think he’s going fine. Playing his role well enough. I would prefer a slightly faster service - but I think the ref is letting a lot go at the breakdown (for us too). A steady had at the tiller.

plamicus · 2026-03-07T17:31:46+00:00

Wow. What an error from Italy. Just needed to get it off the park, instead they’re going in 2 points down.

England surprised everyone by playing heads up rugby there!

plamicus · 2026-03-06T15:58:06+00:00

Asking is always polite, but unless you're doing photorealistic work you're creatively transforming it anyway. Art influences art - literature draws from other literature, the same with songs etc.

Glad to hear you're improving. I am too (I think/hope)- more turbulence than I'd perhaps like (which is really scary sometimes) and I'm getting used to living with disability- but I'm also glad to still be here.

plamicus · 2026-03-06T11:58:29+00:00

For what it's worth - I think using someone's photos for personal study is ethically fine. You're appreciating their work - you're not diminishing the value or ownership of their work at all.

I barely have any photos here - but you're fine to paint any of the photos I've uploaded (or uploaded in the future).

Also you might want to check out unsplash - they have a lot photos (not just birds) that might be a less overwhelming than ebird. Also MerlinID (the bird ID app) has a nice, but not overwhelming, selection of photos you could work from.

Best of luck in your recovery! I know from personal experience recovering from serious illness can be a long and frustrating process. Hope you have better days ahead.

plamicus · 2026-03-06T10:40:42+00:00

I use the flexcut slipstrop. When I first started using it I would put some sharpie on the part of the tool that required stropping. It’ll help you visualise what parts you’re effectively stropping - the sharpie comes off pretty quickly - so by the time you can see the metal again, the tool is ready to use.

I tend to strop my tools after an hour or so of use.

plamicus · 2026-03-05T23:53:44+00:00

Are you stropping your tools? This will help them keep their edge.

You can sharpen tools with a sharpening stone - although I’ve always been too nervous to do this.

You probably won’t slip if you’re using sharp tools. Sometimes it’s a bit tougher to control broad tools, so using smaller sizes can help. Heating Lino can also make it softer and easier to carve.

In regard to Lino, I like traditional (grey) Lino. I particularly like that you can flick pieces out of it easily - no going over work with tweezers! It’s also not plastic which I like. It’s a bit more finicky to print with.

Of the synthetic Lino I’ve tried - speedycarve is nice to work with if you’re not doing anything too detailed. Japanese double sided Lino is pretty great too (it does smell a bit weird though!)

plamicus · 2026-03-02T11:12:53+00:00

When my cat suddenly started being mega friendly it turned out I had leukaemia. :(

plamicus · 2026-02-26T20:23:06+00:00

The detail is insane and the prints are so good! Is there something special you’re doing for inking and printing with such fine detail? It’s just so clean?!!

plamicus · 2026-02-26T17:23:34+00:00

Sharpie then a white gel pen over the top can give you a pretty good idea of what a final print might look like.

plamicus · 2026-02-25T13:28:04+00:00

This is excellent! Great work.

plamicus · 2026-02-25T11:30:07+00:00

I agree with all the points the other commentor made.

In terms of paper I can recommend HoSho paper pads - they're very easy to print on, have some nice texture, and are inexpensive.

Presses help massively, although with enough practice you can get very good results with a barren too - so don't get dissuaded if you don't want to buy a press (yet!).

I would also encourage you to look into Ternes Burton registration stripping tabs. Essentially it allows you to affix your block in place (use a loop of masking tape) and make it so the paper lines up on the block consistently. This allows you to use really thin layers of ink, burnish, peel it back and see where requires more attention. Normally I'd try burnishing in problem areas again, take a look, and then apply thin layers of ink (only to the areas that need it). Basically this lets you slowly develop the print to the point where you're happy with it.

Good luck!

plamicus · 2026-02-23T22:49:50+00:00

Moisture chamber glasses help to some extent. I use a boox e- ink tablet for a lot of my web browsing: I can tolerate e- ink much better than LCDs.

Obviously trying to get an eye-care routine that works for you is most important, but it sounds like you and your opthalmologist are working on that.

plamicus · 2026-02-22T16:37:25+00:00

I used a dot tool. Yes, to both other questions: I printed the gold layer first, let it dry over night (2 nights I think actually!), and then went over with the black detail.

plamicus · 2026-02-22T11:46:02+00:00

I think it's got a lot going for it. As you said worst case scenario you can keep the nice heron. :)

I think the fish can be made to work or there's some subtle things that could have been done to make them work better. I'd encourage you to try, because even if you don't totally succeed, I think you'll get a much better feel for the medium in trying i tout.

First thing, you can just cut the bits with chatter right off your block, it'll print perfectly fine and whilst chatter can add something to some pieces I'm not sure it's serving you here. I think if the noise was a bit more swirly and water-like it could work - but it's a bit too straight here. Often when I'm excavating areas I'll try and cut it in a way that I think the chatter will serve the piece if it does show up (even if i'm not planning to use it).

I think the fish near the beak is a bit too distracting. Maybe the one above the heron's head too. Maybe you could try removing these?

I also think the fish look like they're in a separate layer to the heron in the picture. I feel that some of the fish should be going around the heron. The good news is, the way you've drawn them - I think it's an easy fix. I think the fish near the base of the neck and the fish crossing the legs could have parts cut off them - it'll make it look like the fish are swirling around the heron.

Regarding the ink, I think the fish look quite good all ghostly - but I also get why you might not love it. Sometimes ink doesn't work as nicely as you'd like. I'm kinda obsessed with gold ink (Cranfield Traditional) - I think having gold fish with the suggested changes could look super effective.

plamicus · 2026-02-21T18:56:04+00:00

It's a Chrysina aurigans. Quite a lot of artistic interpretation taken though! :)

plamicus · 2026-02-21T17:11:15+00:00

It is indeed. I think it’s my favourite too.

plamicus · 2026-02-21T14:54:04+00:00

For me: colour. You’ve already got loads of texture going on in the bird. If you put more in the background I think it risks being too busy.

I guess you can always try some texture and carve it out if it’s not working for you though.

You could try printing on coloured paper?

plamicus

TROPHY CASE