Bat Flyout Scene in Ink

One of the coolest things I've ever done was witnessing a bat flyout. We live about 30 minutes from the Yolo Causeway, one of the top ten places in the world to see a bat flyout. We recently drove home from Sacramento at just the right time to be driving over the Causeway when hundreds of thousands of bats came pouring out from beneath us. Well, not pouring. They were flying. Hence "flyout" and not "pourout." It was spectacular and incredibly awesome because we totally weren't expecting it. 

I'm always happy to see bats, wherever I am. Every bat I see feasting means fewer mosquitos biting. Bats live all over the world, in a wide variety of habitats. You can find different bat species in forests, deserts, and everything in between. Today's project honors these nocturnal helpers. As a bonus, it gave me the chance to test out my new blending brushes. Affiliate links below. 

Bat Flyout Scene In Ink

Materials:

• dye-based ink pads (black, yellow, and orange)
• ink blending brushes
• white cardstock (I used a scrap of my go-to paper)
• circle punch
• black pen (I used Le Pen Flex)

Steps: 

Apply black ink to a blending brush, then add the ink to the cardstock. Use a light hand. You want some small areas of black, but mostly gray with white peeking through. You can see my example in the upper left. Ignore the other backgrounds; I was testing out different ink pads to see how they worked with the brushes. By the way, I LOVE my new blending brushes. They're super comfortable, have great control, and hold just the right amount of ink. 

Punch a circle from some scrap cardstock to make a template for the moon. Blend yellow and orange ink into the open space. 

Use a straight edge to draw tree trunks. To keep them looking natural, keep the spacing irregular and don't have all of them be perfectly vertical. 

Use quick, upward swoops to draw branches and twigs on the trees. As you go, thicken the trunks of a few trees to add variety. 

Now add bats! Start with a central blob and add short wings to each side. You can add as many or as few bats as you want. Finish by adding the ground to anchor your project. 

It's a shame that bats are typically only associated with Halloween. These wonderful creatures deserve to be celebrated year-round.