Starting a sketchbook

I've been drawing a lot this year. I would doodle on a daily basis in my journal, and I previously wrote about how adding drawings to journal entries helps recall life memories.

But I've never had an actual sketchbook, where I could keep all of my drawings in one place. I think it's partly because I thought my drawings were too silly for a sketchbook. I also believed that keeping a sketchbook required significantly more willpower to maintain the habit of daily drawing. Frankly, the thought of having to draw something perfectly to put it in a sketchbook was a bit terrifying. But it was a video I recently saw by Sketchbook Skool, How a sketchbook can change your life, that convinced me to start one (if you're interested in drawing, the entire channel is a huge source of inspiration for beginners and I strongly recommend to check it out).

I previously had a chance to familiarize myself with Danny Gregory's book, Art Before Breakfast: A Zillion Ways to Be More Creative No Matter How Busy You Are, which I absolutely adore, and I like how he talks about keeping a sketchbook in a different way, emphasizing that it is a place where you should feel safe and that there is no drawing that cannot be put into a sketchbook, everything goes. Another reason for starting a sketchbook is that I've recently noticed that I've been drawing impatiently. As if I'm not allowing myself to enjoy the process of drawing. I hope that attempting to complete illustrations of a specific scene or object, rather than just rough drafts that never become illustrations on their own, will help me practice patience and eventually improve my drawing skills.

I settled on a small format for my first sketchbook, 8.5’’ x 5.5’’. It appeared to be less intimidating, and I like the constraints imposed by the smaller format, as well as the fact that I can easily carry it with me anywhere. In making my decision, I was also hugely influenced by a video by Teoh Yi Chie (another favorite YouTube channel on drawing) in which he discusses the benefits of working with a smaller format.

Filling out that first page was definitely daunting. But I'm realizing that recording the mundane of a day, whether it's my breakfast or art supplies, may be fun.

Drawing at the end of each day is quickly becoming my favorite part of the day. My intention with this sketchbook is to experiment with various media. I've always enjoyed watching videos in which artists walk you through their finished sketchbooks. Who knows, maybe I'll prepare something similar once my sketchbook is full.