Sketchbook Practice Tips From A Novice

If you are like me, you drool at the sight of sketchbooks filled with lovely and creative paintings or illustrations, and you just aren’t sure how to get there yourself. Well I can tell you one thing: dreaming about it won’t get you there, but owning a sketchbook and a few basic supplies and then forcing yourself to open the book and paint might get you there, or at the very least a bit closer! That said, here are some ideas that might be helpful to anyone who desires to start a creative  practice but just can’t seem to get started, or find any consistency.

Now of course, a lovely spot like this one overlooking a lake in Sweden is conducive to painting in one’s sketchbook, but since most of our lives don’t look like this on a daily basis I was thinking that a plan of action is really a great idea. And if you are a perfectionist like me and actually putting paint on paper bound in a book seems really scary, then you’ll likely really benefit from my advice, which I hope to put into practice myself. Okay here goes:

1. Decide that you will commit to either a certain amount of time working in your sketchbook, or fill a certain number of pages per week. It could be a little as 15 minutes a day, or one page per week, for example, the key is to make it a part of your life. 
2. Treat your sketchbook time as though it is an appointment, and keep it!
3. Don’t worry about the results of what you do in your sketchbook, or if you mess up a bunch of pages you can always paint over them or cover then up with a collage of paper scraps!
4. Stop making excuses to yourself about how busy you are, about how difficult it is, about why you even dream about filling up a sketchbook in the first place, and simply DO IT! All that chatter in your head is just trying to derail something really fantastic.
5. Do be patient yet persistent, and think about developing a creative sketchbook practice that works for you! 
   

6. How about pretending you are on vacation once a week and then painting using inspiration from your own travel photos of places you dream of visiting? Hmmm, that could work for me.

7. While a sketchbook practice can be very personal, maybe starting the journey with a buddy would be helpful. Get together and work in your sketchbooks, or get together to share your progress. 

I hope some of this tips might be helpful to you, and would love to see photos of your sketchbook!

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