When the boys and I go to Myrtle Beach to meet up with my parents, we will hunt sharks teeth on the beach. They’re pretty easy to spot, once you get the hang of it. My sons and I had a jar full of them at one point. The excitement is in the find and that’s what keeps us looking for more and not so much the sharks teeth themselves. When I was a youngster, I would hide my brand new Hotwheels car under my pillow and try to forget what it looked like, just so I could pretend to see it for the first time again.

Speaking of first time, I am trying a new technique I learned by total accident (Thank God for imperfection!). After the initial rough sketch, I rub the entire surface of the drawing with a tissue, giving it a neutral grey hue. This allows me to work my darks as well as my lights more easily, since the entire drawing is now mid-tone grey, I can just pull highlights and push objects back into the shadows by darkening the lines.