Summer Sketching
Our annual summer camping trip is always a good time for sketching and creative ideas. I’m not sure exactly why that is - different setting? Outdoor living? No household chores? Feeling more relaxed?
This year I filled almost a whole sketchbook, and just loved how comfortable it became to put pencil to paper. (I find that drawing can feel a bit daunting if I’ve procrastinated about it for a while).
I try not to set high expectations for my summer sketching, but do like to have a few ideas to pursue in my sketchbook. I don’t set out to make my sketchbook a finished work of art - it much more about capturing and exploring ideas for me, so I’m ok if it gets quite Scribbly.
Here are a few ‘wins’ from my two weeks of sketching:
feeling comfortable in my sketchbook
Finding sketching a relaxing thing to do
Getting comfortable all over again with drawing children in all kinds of activities
Filling pages with small drawings that will feed into illustration work throughout the year
Finding pages and pages of new quilt ideas spilling out of my pencil and onto paper (I can be making quilts for years from these drawings)
Here’s what I took this year, as far as art supplies go:
A pencil pouch with Blackwing pencil
A travel watercolour set
A water filled paint brush (Pentel)
A colour pencil
A pencil sharpener that catches the shavings
White gouache
A block of watercolour paper
Two extra paintbrushes (not used)
I really liked how compact this ‘kit’ was. (I love to travel light).The water filled brush was just perfect, eliminating the need for a jar of water, and a flat surface to work on. And if we were heading out and about, I could also just grab the sketchbook with attached pencil pouch.
I share my summer sketching in more detail in this video:
