You've Got Mail!

I was in the dining room today, sorting, cleaning and wrapping the few unsold illustrations from the exhibition when there was a knock on the door. Through the clear glass pane of the front door I saw the immediately recognizable silhouette of a deliver man. Neither Neen or myself had ordered anything so I assumed the package was intended for a neighbor. When I opened the door to my great surprise I found out the delivery was indeed addressed to me.

Bemused curious and excited in equal measure I returned to the dining room with a giant cardboard box. I lay it on the table, showed Neen and said "This is a really nice surprise, I've gotta blog about this tonight". So before I even opened the box I grabbed the camera from the studio and snapped a quick photo.

When I opened the cardboard box I was greeted with a dense sea of brown paper. I pulled out one sheet, then another and sitting in the very bottom of the large box was a second, smaller cardboard box. I carefully lifted out the box and inside found these...

A brand new pack of 60 Faber-Castell Polychromos Colouring Pencils.

I use this particular type of pencil for pretty much all my traditional artwork. In truth I'd be completely lost without them. They work exceptionally well with acrylic and watercolour, so I don't use any other type of colouring pencil whatsoever. This set is amazing and is packed to the brim with colours I have never used before...I can't wait to try them all out!

So who sent them?....Well before I divulge exactly who the generous party was, let me preface by showing you this, a journal post of mine from earlier this year.

"I use Faber-Castell Polychromos colouring pencils every day. Art wise I'd be completely lost without them. They are amazing and I have always recommended them to fellow artists. Well I use four particular shades more than any other. Unfortunately I've only been able to buy theses four shades in large multipacks. (Most others you can buy individually) I contacted Faber-Castell Ireland yesterday to enquire whether I could buy them directly from the manufacturer, This morning the owner had sent me as a gift 4 boxes of the colours I use! A small but very very much appreciated gesture! If you haven’t tried them before I recommend going down to your local Art and Hobby and picking up a couple. They retail at approximately €1 each and are worth every cent." Morgan O'Brien, January 22nd, Deviant Art Journal Entry.

Well that was January, and since then those boxes have proved a life-saver. Every single image in my recent exhibition was created with the gifted pencils. When sending out invite's to the exhibition a week or two ago I took a chance and contacted Faber-Castell Ireland to thank them again for their generosity and invite them to the show. Quite understandably the owner of the Faber-Castell Ireland franchise Tom Martin couldn't make it, but I was happy I had at least extended the invitation.

No doubt the mystery package is thanks to Tom and the rest of the team at Faber-Castell Ireland. Thanks guys...the gift is hugely appreciated and a massive surprise! : )

Faber-Castell Ireland