I updated the template of my blog today. I was very unsure about whether to do it, because you lose your customized changes. I've re-done them all (I think) except for the pseudo-Italic font on the headings of my links on the sidebar. I have to learn the new 'language' in order to be able to use those headings again - but the code in the template is automated now. Extra script is automatically added when you use the WYSIWYG interface for the blog to add new 'page elements', and then the sidebar links are generated by a loop by the code, which makes it a touch more difficult than it was with the old template where they were simply explicity listed, generation and display information all together. The code to display the sidebar headings is totally different.

I had to update it because it was getting difficult to navigate through the blog to find old entries that I wanted to re-read. This new version is much easier. I've put labels (tags) on each post now so I can find all the ones on a particular topic. I mean to go back and update various bits of information (with a little note showing the date when I updated it), rather than spreading information across the blog too much. For example,. I did ask the Scribies about using the Brause nib, and found out the answer. I want to add that answer to the post where I talked about the difficulties with it, not a new entry. It's got a tag on it 'Nibs so it won't be hard to find in future.

I've just about finished my little discussion paper on how I do my shading and highlighting. I've sent it to Sheila Hutson and Akiko to cast an eye over, if they feel so inspired, and ask for permission from 3 scribes whose work I reference. I'll blog it after that.

I STILL have a bunch of stuff to do before I can start on the Bedford Hours script analysis, drat it. But I have to do it, because they are 'dangling ends'.

As listed in my 'plans' post back after I got the critique from Paul, I have to :

* finish my highlighting/shading paper 100% (it's at the 99% stage, which can last a very long time. It's been sitting there for enough weeks already) Done 9th October, except I haven't heard back from the lady who wrote the Basic Painting Techniques paper, and now have Randy's review comments to deal with. That'll be a whole new project and learning for me.,

* write up the paint colours used in The Second Coming and coherently and neatly write out the mss I sourced from. Done 12th October

* add various comments to my notes resulting from Paul's critique I don't really need to put the comments in my notes. They are burnt into my brain. So - Done.

* research on the meaning of 'burnish' and how 'brown' fits in (Paul's critique)

* think more on gathering examples of pen flourishing (later. I'll think about that later on)

* find out what happened with my script analyses for the Second Coming (urgh.... I have a feeling that what I did was break the rule appearing in Mark Drogin's book =- never reproduce a script at less than 1/2 the x-height shown in the exemplars I used. So my a/d's ended up getting too short and ... bad things happened) Done, 10th October. The Drogin comment wasn't the problem.

* update that info about the Brause nib. Done 8th October

I'll go back and note in the original entry describing my plans when I have done all this stuff.
I hate dangling ends. No fun.

In terms of practical work, I'm working on the Gods of Snow quote. I could equally do it as part of practise after I've done the Bedford Hours script analysis, since that's why I'm learning it - but I've started practising it now, so I'm going to keep with it. That and making sure that my diamonds just touch the lines - I'm still getting careless with it. I've also got those pen flourish bits that I picked out from a couple of pages of the Bedford Hours (the dipped tops of the ascenders, for example). So I've got that to do when I want to be inky, and the other stuff to do the rest of the time.

In my plans post I wrote about doing circles a'la Bill Hildebrandt's book on flourishing. I've discovered that doing half an hour of circles then moving onto practising verticals is a bit much. So I'll leave the circles until I'm practising more interesting script.

This are some n's and u's from my practise pad. The letters are actually a bit less than an inch high. There's only a couple of well formed ones in there. I was working on having the ticks on the diamonds plus the spacing, so it's a bit of a mess.
I was still using built up diamonds then. I reckon they are kind of pretty, especially with the longer ticks on the terminating diamond. Alas, built up diamonds are not to be.
And no, of course it's not scanned in straight.

It's night, I've been drinking coffee, and I'm going to go do some stuff at my desk ...... inky stuff.