Sketchbook Hacks

I'm off to Montreal but as I was packing my art supplies I thought I would do a post about my sketchbooks.




I use a lot of sketchbooks, some I make some I buy.

But I always add a few things that make it work better for me and I thought I would share my sketchbook hacks.

First thing I add is a ribbon bookmark, very few sketchbooks have this feature at least not the ones with the paper I like.

This is very easy to add, just turn to the back of your sketchbook, cut a ribbon about 4-5 inches longer than your sketchbook, and then tape into place.  I use packing tape.

Next thing I like to add is a pocket.

I tape this in place with packing tape again right in the back of the sketchbook as well.

For a large sketchbook I just take a business sized envelope and cut it on the diagonal.

I save the other half as I can use it in the next sketchbook, just tape the opening closed and turn it to the other side.

With smaller sketchbooks I will use different envelopes and cut them to size, taping as I go.

Next thing I add is an elastic,  I know seems pretty low tech but I get asked about this.  As your sketchbook gets to be about 1/3 or more full it expands. (especially if you are adding paint)

The elastic helps to keep it together.

You will also find with a bound sketchbook that you will need to reinforce the binding as you go, again packing tape works great for this.

Even with a coil bound book I use an elastic.  Some people will use a binder clip but I find that it can make dents in your pages and there is never a big enough clip and it ends up falling off.

I then add a large ziplock bag.  With my large sketchbooks I can't close it but I will still store my sketchbook in one.

This has saved me more times than I can count especially when travelling.

It protects your pages from rain, spilled coffee, rogue ocean waves, sticky fingers, etc....

Another habit I have developed is using a date stamp.

I carry it with me when I travel and I use it in my sketchbooks.

 I don't use it if I think the painting is framable.

The first few pages of a sketchbook I leave blank.

I use them to add technical info or ideas that I want to always have available to me.  Lists, reference material, photos from my sprocket, stickers from my travels.

I usually add a business card or at least my name and cell # in case I lose my sketchbook.

So what types of sketchbooks do I like......it really is personal preference.


I like these bound Peter Pauper Press books.  You can find them at Chapters/Indigo which is great, they have very nice paper that holds up to painting and come in a few sizes.

They are also cheap.  Now with watercolour paint the paper will buckle but it is thick enough to get some paint effects that you don't get on lightweight paper.

Amazingly Michaels has a good bound sketchbook,  their Artist Loft one, which comes in lots of great colours actually has pretty good paper in it.  You will have to maintain the binding with tape as you go though.

I also really like these Nature Sketch books.  It has some of heaviest paper out there in a sketchbook.

I also like the wide variety of sizes it comes in.

The Nature Sketch books have off white (buff) paper in them.


Here is the Nature Sketch and the Peter Pauper Press side by side.

I also make a lot of sketchbooks using a Zutter machine.

The main reasons I make my own are:

- can have a variety of papers in one book including good quality watercolour paper as well as tan and grey sketch paper

- I can make it bigger, more pages

- I can make it the exact size I want. A lot of times paintings in my sketchbooks end up being framed, I can make a sketchbook that corresponds to common frame sizes.

Another system I use a lot when working with really high quality watercolour paper is a hand bound book and detachable cover.

So I will take 150-300lb wc paper,  score with a bone folder and tear into full pages (a large rectangle that is folded for 2 pages).

I will then stack them usually 3-4 deep and sew them together with a few binding stitches.

I then have a cover made from gatorboard and duct tape.  I use an elastic to hold the wc paper book into the cover.

I could give you all the instructions but you just need to watch these videos if interested in this system.

Video 1 Sketchbook

Video 2 Cover

One of the best parts of this system is that the cover is large enough when open that I can add these magnetic clips.


I just got these at Staples.

I can then have my metal watercolour palette attach to the book for easy painting in the field.

When I am not using the watercolour sketchbook I then close the cover and clip it together.  The gatorboard is thick enough that I don't get any dents in my paper and the elastic inside holds the paper in the cover.

 I prefer metal watercolour palettes so I can use those magnetic clips for both the sketchbook and on my easel.

I buy them empty and then fill up plastic half or full pans with my favourite paints.  I let them dry and then place them in the palette.

I do put magnetic tape under the plastic pans to help them stay in place, this also lets me add an extra row of paints.

This system also lets me change out the colours in my palette really easily.  I also have palettes of colours for places I travel to frequently.  I have a Maui palette, a Cabin/Mountain palette, and a desert palette. (Palm Springs, Phoenix).

For travelling my kit looks like this.

I have 2 metal watercolour palettes with the colours I'm using at the moment.

- pencils, eraser, sharpener, small ruler
- water brushes, I like sakura, make sure your water brushes have the little valve so they don't leak
- some watercolour pencils
- some fountain drawing pens
- molotow white paint marker

I put the water brushes, fountain pens, and molotow marker in a ziplock. This way I can easily remove it and set it out if I'm going thru airline security and the plastic bags helps with any leaks I may have.

One hint I also usually put a paper towel in that plastic bag to absorb any leaks.  I find my fountain pens may leak a bit while flying due to cabin pressure.







This post ended up being longer than I expected, hopefully I didn't ramble too much.

See you next time.

Gail

Moving On

So we move forward.....

I greatly appreciate all your emails, opinions, and comments.  This is definitely not how I expected this week to go.  I'm sure I'll be having a few more of those conversations with myself until I can fully put it aside.

....but I need to keep going. Nothing like a little bit of controversy to get that creative juice flowing!

This is just a peek in the sketchbook of the new project I'm working through.

Looking at how to use a drape within a piece that will either close off a view or reveal.

Of course I think my personal work will have different connotations....but on a more neutral level I was thinking of  a school project that corresponds with the changing of the seasons.

Maybe it's the cool weather the last few days here in Calgary but I can already sense that moment coming.....

.......when you see that first tree starting to change and it hits you like a ton of bricks......

(please excuse the hasty sketch) This is where it usually occurs to me as I'm driving by a nearby park.

So I'm just putting on the final touches on the school version and hope to show you the complete tutorial shortly.

Thanks again for all support and kind words that you passed along I was overwhelmed to say the least!

"Calligraphy Magic" Book Review and Giveaway

So you've got the sketchbook, you're painting and sketching like mad capturing those summer memories, why not add some fancy lettering.

The gracious folks at FW Media have provided me with another book to review and giveaway.

"Calligraphy Magic" by Cari Buziak is a more technical manual.  I have only perused a few calligraphy books in my time and I must say I am quite happy to have this one in my collection.

Highlights:

- 15 alphabets showing you all the strokes (I love the versals)

- nice tutorial chapter to show you how to make all those calligraphy strokes

- like most painting/craft books it includes a chapter  on tools and supplies, usually I find these chapters redundant however in this case I really liked it.  It was fairly short and had some good tips, like proper care of your dip style pen.

- there is a whole chapter on ornamentation, gilding and coloring.  This was my favorite part of the whole book as I have always been fascinated with illuminated manuscripts.  The Celtic Knotwork instructions were great and I can see myself adapting this into a project for school.

- there is also 12 step by step projects for you to try.  I found the presentation of the projects a little formal. I think there are so many applications here it would have been nice to see some examples from contributing artists on how they incorporate lettering into their work.  But hey maybe that's an idea for another book.

- I was very interested in the chapter on how to create your own computer fonts as I would love to create a personal handwriting font

- practice papers for photocopying are also included

Like everything in life it just takes practice.


This is my ink box.  I don't do a lot of ink work but I love adding white ink details to paintings as well as metallics.

After reading this book though I realize how badly I want to be able to add that fancy lettering......so practice I will!

So if you are interested in this book you can enter the giveaway by leaving me a comment on this post or sending me an email at thatartistwoman@shaw.ca

- giveaway open till Wednesday July 13th/2011 at 11:59pm.  The winner will be picked by random integer.

- open to US or Canadian residents only

- I'll post the results on Thursday

If you are interested in purchasing the book "Calligraphy Magic" you can check it out here at the FW Media Bookstore. 

It's on sale now but I also have a coupon code (40% off) for you:

               July 11CM

Good Luck everyone! 

(Disclaimer: Review copy provided to me by FW Media)

How to Make a Color Wheel for your Sketchbook

You have probably seen these color wheels in the store.  I pull mine out occasionally when designing a project but when I'm out and about painting I need a tool specific to me.

One using colors of my palette and on the paper I am using.

Now at home I have a binder filled with test sheets for reference and you can put in a little test swatch right on one of your sketchbook pages but why not take it a step further.

Trace and cut out a circle that will fit onto your sketchbook page.  Make it out of the same type of paper or as close as you can get.  If you have a coil binding you can just rip out a blank page to use. Trace on a smaller circle so you have an outer rim where the colors will go.

Using the your palette, here I'm using my field kit, make a color wheel.  I like 12 sections:
-  3 primary (Red, Yellow, Blue)
- 3 secondary  (Orange, Green, Purple)
- and 6 tertiary ( primary and secondary mixed together, i.e. greenish yellow)

On a page of your book draw a window that will show 4 analogous colors at once. Analogous colors are colors that sit side by side on the wheel.

Also make a little window that will only show one color directly opposite the middle of that other window.  I used the same circular objects I used to trace out the wheel.  You want your windows to be a bit smaller width wise that the actual color segments.

Using scissors or a paper cutter cut out your windows.

Poke a hole thru the center of your wheel, put it in place on top of your window page and mark the center thru that hole.

Poke a hole thru that page, insert paper fastener, put color wheel on at the back of that page.

Now you have a very useful tool.  It shows a 4 color analogous scheme as well as a contrast or complimentary color that goes with them and it's right in your sketchbook at your fingertips.

Turn the wheel and you get another color scheme. 
Applications:
- have your students construct this color wheel tool and then picking a color scheme paint a composition limited to these colors.
- paint side by side color sketches, one with only analogous colors and one adding in that complementary color.
- use the complimentary color for the focal point
- use this tool to analyze how other artists utilize these color schemes.

Art Journals and a Easy Painting Exercise:

Now that we are days away from Summer Vacation (school ends Tuesday!), I thought I would talk about a tradition at our house.  ART JOURNALS

Now I personally always have several journals and sketchbooks on the go and I try to keep my kids in the habit as well. 

We sketch from life and sometimes from reference photos.....the important thing is to keep them engaged.

Find a journal that works for you.  I find book sized works best (6"x 8").

I also like coil bindings but a book bound sketch book allows you to do a 2 page spread.

Watercolor sketch books with good paper are hard to find and expensive!  So I often make my own.  I cut my large pieces of wc paper to size, I add sketch paper for every second page and a very thick cardboard back.  "Staples", an office supply company, coil binds them for me for about $3.50 a piece.

I then pack everything into a small field bag.

So what's in my field kit........

- a sketchbook (I'm trying out a moleskin, not impressed so far)

- a small clipboard (these are great for the kids)
- my cottman wc kit (I just keep adding tube watercolor to it when I run out, I then let it dry out and I'm set)

-brushes, pencil, eraser, white crayon (for resists), quarter(for lifting out circles), fine black sharpie.  I keep my brushes in a hard plastic case to protect the bristles, it's the only way, I have also used toothbrush travel cases for this.
- kleenex and paper towels tucked in the pockets
- for water I take an old water bottle and a small cup, the one here stays at the house

So now you're all set....how to get started?

Here is a really easy painting exercise that I do with the kids.  It will help loosen you up.




It's a water reflection painting and you can change up the scenery and make several of these.  Great for school too!

You can do reflections on a lake, river, ocean, pond, puddle, there are lots of possibilities.

If you want you can lightly pencil in a horizon line.

Start painting you sky in.  Be more intense at the top and then fade out into a squiggle at the bottom.  I have used the color to indicate my horizon line and I stay mostly down the center of my page.

I want this to be a city scene looking down a river.

I'm only going to use a few colors here (limited palette).

Start putting in some shapes on one side to indicate buildings.

When I reach that horizon line I dilute my color, my shapes are just smudges of color.

Do the same on the other side.

Add a few shadows and darker details.  I also smudge a little color into that horizon line just to define it a bit more.

You can then add a little detail in ink if you want and you're done.

Here is a cabin on a lake at sunrise.

Keep it loose and don't fuss.

So break out a journal or sketchbook this summer and stayed tuned for my next post with more on art journals.

See you soon.