Tortillions / Paper Stumps ? Confused!!
I've got my Prismacolor Pencils on the way, so am now trying to get everything else in ready for them coming. I've not yet located a local store that stocks the Sansador or 'stumps' everyone talks about, but I have been pointed to an on-line store with them -- and where the postage is less than I'd spend on fuel trying anywhere else around home (even if I phoned first and only drove to somewhere that had them!)
My options are :-
Small Paper Stump (6mm dia) Pack of 3 .......... £1.50
Medium Paper Stump (10mm dia) Pack of 2 .......... £1.50
Large Paper Stump (15mm dia) Pack of 1 .......... £1.50
Small Paper Tortillions (6mm dia) Pack of 12 .......... £1.50
Large Paper Tortillions (8mm dia) Pack of 6 .......... £1.50
Stump & Tortillion Assortment Pack of 5 (1 of each of above) .......... £2.75
Small Paper Stumps Bulk Pack of 144 .......... £36.00
But I'm totally confused, as I have no idea what the difference really is between the two types, or what's best in terms of size. According to the site "Tortillons have one pointed end and are used for detail work. Stumps have two pointed ends and are used for smoothing and blending large areas of pastel or charcoal." I assumed there must be some other difference as the Tortillions are a lot cheaper, even when compared to the bulk pack of 'stumps', but all I can find on Wikipedia is that the tortillions are wound more tightly (I'd have expected it the other way as they're cheaper :huh: )
But does this mean I really need a mix of the two, even though both come in the 6mm size. And do I need a mix of sizes if I'm only working on stamped images?
I have 'quite a few' Magnolias, and about a dozen Nellies -- plus loads of Penny Black and House Mouse stamps -- so some open areas, but also a lot of pretty detailed work.
And how many do people tend to have in relation to the number of crayons they own? Do you have some you keep purely for colours you use a lot, and then a few you just rub down with sandpaper (which is how I understand you clean these) before/after using colours you only use once in a while?
Any tips/advice will be very gratefully received :wub: