I'm Falling (Back) in Love with Sketchbooks and Teaching at Sketchbook Revival

I’m a bit fanatical about sketchbooks. I love creating in them and I love encouraging others to embrace the practice, too.

What I love most about sketchbooks is the freedom I find within their pages.

My “serious” art is carefully crafted and highly detailed and although I enjoy painting my botanical watercolors, it’s also fun to create in a different way.

In my sketchbooks I can experiment and play and make a mess. I’m not limited by medium or subject.

No one has to see what I create and it doesn’t matter if my pages are “bad” or “good.”

I didn’t always approach them this way.

As a child I loved playing in sketchbooks (you can see some of them here) but over the years I lost the habit. As I grew up, I started believing I was not “good” at drawing or painting and so I didn’t do either.

Deep in my heart, I always wished I could.

In 2010 I began to dip my toe in art-making. Yet even as I gained confidence with watercolor, the thought of sketchbooks intimidated me.

When faced with the blank page, I didn’t look back and remember the joy I felt as a child when opening the pages of a notebook. Instead I looked at photos of beautiful sketchbook pages people were sharing online and knew I could never make anything like that.

Why do we put so much pressure on ourselves?

Eventually I got over my fear.

It took time. And it took me sitting down again and again to create.

Collaborating with Dana Barbieri helped. Challenging myself to work in a sketchbook every day helped. Committing to 30 days of painting every day helped.

I’m reminded again and again that the more art I make, the more art I want to make.

Part of it is habit. When I sit down day after day to create, it becomes easier to sit down day after day to create.

Part of it is curiosity. Asking myself, what would happen if? And then diving in to find out.

Part of it is allowing myself to remember the simple joy of creating.

The joy of creating is something we all forget a bit when we become adults. Sketchbooks are the perfect place to remember.

I don’t work in my sketchbooks every day.

I go through phases.

Sometimes I work on page after page after page, day after day. Sometimes months go by and I don’t open a single sketchbook.

My creative energy ebbs and flows.

And I’ve learned that it’s ok.

But I’ve also learned that if I take too much time away, I’ll eventually need to force myself to pick up a sketchbook and grab my art supplies and begin again.

Even just a few minutes of mark-making can help shake me out of a slump.

Oh, have I had some slumps!

After a bit of a slump, I’ve come back to creating a lot in my sketchbooks and it feels so good.

I’ve also been looking back through my finished books. They’re a record of my creative journey. A story of what was going on in my life, even when the pages have no words.

It’s good to remind myself, from time to time, of how far I’ve come and the path I’ve taken to get here.

My sketchbooks are a rich source of inspiration. They store ideas I can return to again and again.

It’s taken a while, but I no longer look at beautiful pages from other artists and feel intimidated. Instead I feel energized to grab my own art supplies and dig in.

I’d love to hear about your sketchbook practice. Through our stories, we can inspire and encourage each other.

If you don’t keep a sketchbook, have you ever been curious to try one? I hope so. And I hope you’ll listen to your curiosity and take the first steps in your journey.

Whether you’re a sketchbook fanatic like I am, or are still just dreaming about the possibilities, I think you’ll find plenty of inspiration in Sketchbook Revival. I am one of the presenters this year and want to invite you to join the fun.

This is Sketchbook Revival’s 7th year and my second year teaching in it. I’m so excited to be participating again and I’m looking forward to watching the other sessions, too!

I hope you’ll join us!

P.S. After I announced Sketchbook Revival in my Joy Letter, I had a few questions about how it works. You’ll get all of the details once you sign up for the free workshop, but in case you’re curious, here’s a bit more info:

The free workshop runs from September 23-October 7, with two sessions coming out each day. (You can see all of the presenters and the names of their sessions on the sign-up page). The lessons are pre-recorded and you can watch them any time once they’re released. After the 7th, you’ll have until October 19th to catch up on any you missed. There’s also an option to purchase unlimited access to the lessons as well as bonus content from the instructors.

Once you sign up for the free workshop, you’ll receive the full schedule and all of the details, including a list of suggested materials, some bonus lessons to get you started and access to a FAQ page to help if you still have more questions.