Wright Park

Sketch done at Wright Park in Tacoma. Ink and watercolor wash in a Moleskine watercolor book.

Port of Tacoma - Les Davis Pier

Participated in the June get together at Les Davis Pier.

Les Davis became famous for inventing the 'Herring Dodger' (an attachment to your fishing line that makes your lure dance) in the early '30s.

Pen, ink and wash in a Moleskine watercolor book.

Sketchbook Hacks

At Frances Buckmaster's suggestion, I'm posting this here.  It was originally on my personal blog, with a link to it on our USk Tacoma Facebook page.  So for those not on Facebook.....

In my meaning here, a "hack" is an alteration, usually a clever one.   There are 3 hacks in this photo.



First, I made the cover of this sketchbook black.  It's a spiral bound, 9x12 Montvall Watercolor 
sketchbook.  The cover has some text on it. I like to add stickers to my sketchbook covers, particularly of the places I've sketched in the book.   It's also paper and I prefer a thicker, more supportive cover.  I added a black heavy card stock by gluing it on to the existing cover.  It made it both plain black and a little heavier.  I've already added some stickers.

The next hack is the removal of the spiral binding.  This was not my idea.  I saw it on Steve Reddy's book a week ago.    He removed the spiral binding and replaced it with a few book rings.  These are available at any stationery store in a choice of sizes and even colors.





This makes it easy to remove and replace a sketch out of the book.  I scan my sketches and the spiral binding makes it really difficult to get good focus on the flat bed scanner.  Being able to remove the sketch, scan it flat and then put it back in the book is a good thing.



The spiral binding also takes up extra room in the sketch bag.  The book rings seem not as bulky.

The last little hack comes from Brenda Swenson.    She mentioned it during the workshop I took recently at Daniel Smith.  Many sketchbooks come with an attached elastic band to hold it closed.  Brenda uses an elastic hair band when the book doesn't come with an elastic!  The child size ones are good for smaller sketchbooks.  This large sketch book uses an adult one.  They are also available in many colors.  When I take it off to use the book, I just wrap it around my wrist so I don't loose it while on location.



There you have it.  Three hacks in one post.

And.... this is more information from Frances about why the book ring hack is very useful, added here on her suggestion, from her comment on Facebook:

"I belong to Peninsula Art League (Gig Harbor). Quite a few of the PAL members participate in the 2nd. and 4th. Thursday sketch-outs in Gig Harbor (15-20 attendees at outings.) Two of our co-administrators of USk-Tacoma are the regular Hosts of these Gig Harbor area sketch-outs--Mary J. McInnis and Pam Jenkins are members of PAL-- (as are their substitute Hosts--Kris Nail and Karen Wilsey--)..i.e. participation as members in PAL is quite important to a good sized batch of Urban Sketchers-Tacoma participants. What does all of this have to do with Kate's 3 great hacks? The Board of PAL, at their last meeting, made a decision that's very important to Urban Sketchers who are PAL members: We may now submit Urban Sketches into the required process leading to being a 'juried participant' in PAL member gallery shows. And, right on the point of Kate's hacks: only framed originals may be entered to be juried. Kate's hacks make this opportunity possible for those of us who hate to break apart our sketchbooks. (Of course, we are legion!) So, thanks a lot Kate! I will be 're-doing' the original format of some of my sketchbooks post haste!!"

Disc Bound

On Sunday Gail W. looked at my book and suggested I write ablog post about it. Here it is.

For some months now, I've been using this Circa Sliver Foldover Notebook as a sketchbook. It's my preferred size at 5 x 8.5 inches, light weight and adaptable. I like this particular notebook because it has a firm cover for support and the cover easily folds over so I can stand to sketch.  The source is on-line from Levenger's Circa line.



I tear full sheets of watercolor paper down to fit.  If I want a double page spread, I don't do the last tear but, instead, fold the paper.  All pages are then punched with the Circa desk punch.  There is  a travel punch available but it can only accept watercolor paper of about 90 pounds. I also like to have a page of card stock to hold the stickers I used to put on the cover of my sketchbooks.






I can easily remove just a single page to attach to my coroplast lap board if I want to sit.  Then I can put the page back so all my sketches can be reviewed in the book.




My book holds a divider with a pocket, some notebook pages and a zip pouch.  You could add other items, such as calendar or planner pages.  Letter sized paper can be cut in half and punched to fit the book so you don't have to buy the pre-punched refills from Levenger.  If more pages are desired, larger discs can be used.





As the book fills, I remove sketches and store them in envelopes.  I could "reconstitute" a group of sketches into a disc bound book at any time.



There is also the Arc system at Staples and Tul at Office Max/Depot.  So far, I haven't liked their notebooks as much because they are either too heavy or too flimsy.  Their choices are limited to leather (heavy) and "durable poly" (flimsy).  Except for the discs with which the books are sold, they do not offer any replacement .75 inch discs, which is what I prefer.  On the pro side, they are less expensive than Levenger.  I signed up for Levenger's email notification so I am alerted when items go on sale.

Of course, you could work out the same system using a 3 ring binder.  That would be cheaper and more easily sourced.  However, I've not found very many that fold over well so I still prefer this disc bound book.

Sketchbook: re-purposed/renewed and easy to make.

I made my 1st sketchbook on a whim last month. It was part of an effort for the Artist Way task. I am trying to romance my muse into getting back to being the artist I used to be. I thought that perhaps if I made something very nice/special that it would entice her to want to use it. Thus far it is one of "those" kinds of art objects that fell into the agonies of what I call "new sketchbook syndrome". It happens frequently among artists with art stuff when you get something incredibly special then don't want to use it for fear you will mess it up! Silly but true, it happens more than you know.
   So I made this sketchbook from one full sized sheet of Aquella watercolor paper that you fold and tear accordion style. This ensures that I have quality paper which is a trade up from most watercolor sketchbooks. The best part... no weaving pages. The mask material is left over from a quilt I made long ago but never finished. It is wrapped over scrap matte board. The ribbon and embellishment were woven to wrap around the button to close the book. The entire project took me 1/2 day to make and so much cheaper and better than a $20-$30 sketchbook mass produced. Also since there is maybe 30 pages front and back you get that sense of accomplishment when you fill the sketchbook all the quicker. For all you prolific Urban Sketcher who are ready to take your work to the next level, I highly recommend trying your hand at making a sketchbook.- Feather

An even more minimal kit for sketching every day

So many teachers have said it.  Improvement in any endeavor depends upon constant practice.  Taking workshops or watching video tutorials isn't enough.  To improve, it's important to sketch every day.  Even if there isn't time for a complete composition in a large sketchbook, moments can be found to do a quick drawing.    These could be on the bus, in a coffee shop or even waiting in line.

Field Notes Workshop Companion limited edition notebook

To that end, I, too, have a small kit I carry every day. It does fit in my purse/bag but sometimes it's still more than I want to carry.



I've recently purchased several of the Field Notes Workshop Companion limited edition notebooks because the paper is  good for sketching.  They are 6 for $20.   It even can stand up to a light watercolor wash.   They have a dot grid, which isn't ideal but is acceptable for these quick, 5 minute sketches.  However, it is a limited edition and won't be available for much longer.



Then I read about this Etsy shop.  YellowPaperHouse offers several sizes of small notebooks.    One option is the Field Notes sized books.  The paper choices include Canson Mixed Media and Watercolor papers.   These are decent papers, especially for a tiny book meant for fast sketches.   I made some sketches in both these books this weekend and I am very happy with them.   I suppose you could make these yourself but at $6 each, they are fairly affordable. 





These tiny sketchbooks make it even easier to sketch every day.  One of these and a pen makes a good carry-every-day kit.  Add a bit of paper with a few watercolor dots and a waterbrush and that's the enough to add some color to the drawings. 

Skansie Net Shed - Gig Harbor, Washington

Getting to Gig Harbor that morning was very quick and easy, something I thought would be worse with the golf tournament gearing up. Going home was a different story, one should avoid #16/I-5 from the Narrows to downtown Tacoma until the road construction is done.

My thanks to Feather for opening the Net Shed, what a cool place and there certainly was plenty of marine and other subjects in the area to sketch for some time.

Pen and ink, with watercolor (on one) in a watercolor Moleskine sketchbook.

Sketchers Gathering at Freighthouse Square

Freighthouse Square is experiencing a healthy rejuvenation which is nice to see and fun to experience. The dental office located across the street north of the square, is a most unique entrance to a dental office that leads you into the back corner of a warehouse building. The skeleton of an old dental chair wrapped in Christmas lights, resides on top of the office entrance.

Pen and ink with watercolor in a watercolor Moleskine.

Tacoma Urban Sketchers Gathering - Washington State History Museum

A most enjoyable gathering at the Washington State History Museum. It was my first visit here and I certainly didn't see all the exhibits, yes, there is a sequel in the works. Kudos to the museum staff, they were welcoming, friendly, and helpful (not something I experience at all museums).

The fish butchering machine on the right is much more complex than represented. One of the benefits of the two and half hour format is that it often keeps me from 'biting off more than I can chew' when it comes to what is included in a sketch. I've gone back to putting a border around a lot of sketches in this book and the boxed date is blatantly stolen from Pat Graham's work. Pen and ink with a watercolor wash in a Moleskine watercolor sketchbook.

 Post-sketching lunch was had at the Tacoma Art Museum Cafe, I recommend the coconut black bean soup. Good food, good conversation, looking forward to the next gathering.