I tried the ink wash (value scale) several times today. While I do have trouble with getting the values right bc they all look pretty similar I do seem to have some trouble with the surface. As you might see in the lower row values 3 4 and 5 produce some puddles and thus the structure of the paper is mlre pronounced with darker and lighter spots. I feel this is due to the fact that the mix sort of pearls off the surface. I used 120lbs hahnemühle cold pressed paper. I’m not a fan but this is some leftover paper I had lying around and it is supposed to be sturdy enough for wet colour. Is it the paper (as I said not a fan of hahnemühle) or is it sth I did wrong? This was my first approach to ink wash, I had only used ink pens up to this course.
You did a good job. This is great.
Thanks for the kind words but the lights (and darks) all look alike, I really don’t know how to create a painting with this without cheating and using watercolour blacks 
Hi Jennilein. I have a suggestion for you to try. Start with the really dark color and paint a square. Pull some of that color apart on your pallet and add some water, and paint another square. Now pull some of that new lighter color apart and add more water and paint another square. etc etc etc. If you do this there will always be a progressively lighter shade. And you can go even lighter than the ones on the value scale you have in your posted photo. Make sure you add enough water for each step so that you really can see a difference.
Terri Robichon
Thank you, I tried but probably didn’t use enough water, as there was no difference on the palette, that’s why all the darks look alike. I hope I will get there, I’m really dreading the painting of the lesson, bc of the poor value scale.
But what can I do about the “puddles” on paper, I feel like the tooth of the paper gets overly pronounced with dark and light spots the way I do it. As I said it’s pretty rough paper. The paper for my actual painting will be slighty smoother, as I plan using a different format, they are both cold pressed, though.
If you are getting puddles, you have too much on your brush. After you load the brush, try touching the tip on come kleenix before you paint to remove the excess.
Terri Robichon
I tried wiping the brush at the rim of my palette and a kleenex both, it’s a bit better with the actual drawing now, but at times I still see a buildup. Can the brushsize matter here? I think I used a 6 or 4 for the bigger areas with a miniature brush for some details.
Yes, brush size does matter. Keep experimenting and eventually you’ll start to figure out how to adjust the brush size and the amount of water. I also congratulate you on sticking with it, trying to understand WHY things are working or not working. Another thought, if you see too much moisture on your actual drawing you can also carefully blot some of that away with a kleenix or paper towel.
Terri Robichon
Thanks, so I guess I need to use smaller brushes =less surface =less moisture?
Yes, I do wipe away the moisture with a dry brush or paper towel, but again that doesn’t always work. My paper is pretty old, maybe it’s disintegrating
I know you are trying to use the old paper you have lying around. But you might be better off with a hot press or other smooth paper. and yes, it takes some practice to get successive values to be watered down enough. Another way to do it, is to stat with the lighter colors, then, after they have dried. add another wash on top to darken it. (with ink, you don’t have to worry about lifting the prior layers off like you do with watercolor)
Thank you. I will try starting with lighter values. That sounds like a good idea!
I only used the paper because colf pressed was used in the lesson, but I agree with using hot pressed instead, so I will try that out as well
Thanks for jumping in on this conversation. Yes, I often use inks like watercolors and the fact that once the ink is down it will always stay is one of the features that I like about it. Of course, that feature does make it hard to fix mistakes.
Terri Robichon