I thought I’d make this month’s blog post a little different and give ya’ll a sneak peek into one of my sketchbooks for this blog’s first iteration of a sketchbook tour!
Sketchbook Tour: Why am I doing this?
I’ve always kept my sketchbooks very close to my heart; I rarely show them off and I recently haven’t been sharing my sketchy drawings on social media at all. It made me think: do I treat my rough, scribbly, scrobbly sketches TOO preciously? Am I scared of what people will think of my rough work?
When I was brainstorming ideas for blog posts, I made the decision to put myself out there and do something that felt a little strange: dedicating a whole series to sharing the inner pages of my sketchbooks. Let’s get vulnerable!
*a few random sketches that fell out of my head.
I’ll be outlining what kind of sketchbook I worked in, what materials I used, what intention I had for the sketchbook and what I learned from actually finishing the sketchbook! (Which, trust me, I have A LOT of unfinished sketchbooks…)
I’m also planning on this post to be the tiniest kick in the butt for me to draw in my sketchbooks more! Blank page anxiety is a real thing, ya’ll.
Sketchbook #1
What kind of sketchbook is this? Oh nelly, I chose this book for the first sketchbook tour because it’s my favorite! I hand sewed this one with smooth white Bristol paper and regular sewing thread.
I am not a seasoned book maker but my friend Meghan showed me a sketchbook she made herself and I fell in LOVE with it! She used high quality paper for it and it just felt great to hold in my hands. Ya’ll, there was some real sketchbook jealousy happening. So I just had to make own!
I think everyone has a preference about their sketchbook size: my preference is smaller. I made this book so that it was 5x7 inches, which ended up being perfect. I know if I have smaller sized pages, I’m more likely to actually fill the page. If I only ever worked in 5x7 sketchbooks, I would be very happy! What’s your preference?
P.S. If you’re looking into making your own sketchbook, I recommend watching Sea Lemon’s tutorial on Kettle stitching: It’s what I used to create this sketchbook and few more after this one. It’s great for beginners!
This sketchbook was actually my first venture into hand stitching and woah, I got SO hooked to it!
If I could make ALL of my sketchbooks I definitely would. While I loved the process, my hand stitching wasn’t the best so I hid my stitching by pasting some rough pink paper I made during my papermaking phase onto the covers and spine of the book. I’m pretty happy with the result and every time I look at my sketchbook I’m reminded that I saved some paper from being thrown in the trash. Definitely a win-win!
I LOVE this sketchbook, but it was also a lot of work. Doing this is certainly a labor of love!
What kind of materials did I use in this sketchbook? Lots of watercolor, brush pens, dip ink pens, colored pencils, paper collage and oh so more. I can’t remember everything but there was lots of fun stuff to work with!
I felt open to using ALL the materials for this sketchbook and I’m really happy with the result. I wasn’t afraid to just try stuff out: I slapped down watercolor, I gouach-ed the heck out of pages and I used my fancy dip pen nibs A LOT. It was fun and really encouraging to use mediums that I may normally be a little hesitant to try out. I found out that I really want to work with dip pens more and I’m even trying to incorporate it in my professional work now.
In fact, I made the dividers for this blog using that same dip pen!
What was my intention for this sketchbook? The intention of this sketchbook was to draw as much as possible! When I made this sketchbook, I told myself that I would draw something substantial in it at least once a week. I may have even said once a day?? The main goal was to draw and paint something in it as often as possible.
Before I even started drawing in this book, I also told myself that I would FILL the pages with art. And that meant good or bad art! Whatever came, as long as the pages were filled top to bottom.
Setting that intention allowed me to focus on why I was drawing instead of what I was drawing. I wasn’t scared about drawing or making something bad or worried about being too scribbly because I knew what my overall goal for the book was before I even started.
For some people, having a sketchbook where you don’t think about what you’re going to make ahead of time can be a great thing, but I thrive with structure.
I’ll definitely be thinking of my intention for my other sketchbooks before I start working on them! If you’re like me and you crave structure, set an intention for your sketchbook and share it with me! I’d love to hear what you come up with.
And know this: not all of my sketchbooks are as polished as this one; I often include waaaaay more writing and chicken-scratch-esque sketches in my sketchbooks. You’ll hopefully get to see all that in the next sketchbook tour :)
What did I learn from finishing this sketchbook? You can fill up a sketchbook REALLY quickly when you set your mind to it. I also learned that playing around with full colored sketches is really fun. When I was younger, my sketchbooks were usually only in black and white because I felt like color was reserved for finished pieces only.
I also learned that I had A LOT OF FUN trying stuff out in this book and I can’t wait to finish another one.
I’m not saying everyone should share everything they make in their sketchbook. An artist’s sketchbook can be a wonderfully personal thing but I love it when I can see into the working mind of other artists. This is my way to give my working mind to the children’s book community while also getting over my fear of sharing!
Thanks friends! Until next time (with another finished sketchbook) ❤️
Hugs,
Marissa
*a super sketchy sketch that I love!