My Top 7 + 1 Sketching Must-Haves for Spring '25

 

Kit Carson Park; watercolor/ink on stone paper

 

Spring is in the air and all I want to do is go outside and paint! But bringing along too many art supplies has always made me feel burdened and unfocused once I get there. 

As much as I love office and art supply stores, I've never been comfortable owning too much of anything: dozens of colored pencils, hundreds of paint tubes and brushes, shelves and shelves of jars, papers, and stuff is, to me, a nightmare. Not only do I lack the room to store those things, I don't have the mental space to hold it either--all those decisions: which pencil, what color . . .  Instead, I prefer to keep my supplies simple: a few brushes, several pencils, a small collection of watercolors, things that fit easily into my tote bag.

At the end of 2024, however, I decided it was time to treat myself to some new sketching supplies, especially as I planned to meet more frequently with Urban Sketchers. And so I bought (and now can't live without):

 1. A Sailor Fude Fountain Pen

For years I'd read various reviews about how super-fun these pens were: perfect for urban sketching and perfect for self-expression. Now that I own one, I know why everyone is so fude-crazy: they are indeed, amazing. 

Fude pens are a type of fountain pen with a bent tip originally designed for calligraphy, allowing for a thick or thin line from the same pen. As a writer I'm naturally a pen person so the fude has been a delight for both writing and drawing. My only very minor complaint is that the pen is substantially longer than most other pens and it doesn't fit in my pencil case. But who needs a pencil case? With this pen all I need is a sketchbook and brush (Sailor brand ink blends beautifully when wet) and I'm ready to go anywhere in town.

2. Acrylic Bottled Ink

 In the same way that I love pens, I love bottled ink. Although I prefer using pre-filled cartridges with my fude pen, I'm a big fan of using twigs, feathers, bamboo pens, and watercolor brushes for general ink drawing. Despite the availability of ink in every color you can think of, black, sepia, Prussian blue, and indigo are the best for me, along with gold and white for highlighting (with a twig, of course). (Note: the best thing about using twigs for sketching is they're free and you can throw them away when you're finished! Minimalism at its best.)

3. Black Stabilo Woody Pencil (Crayon? Or both?)

Is it a pencil, a pen, a crayon, or even a watercolor?? Whatever it is, it's designed for three-year-olds and that suits me fine. Beyond their versatility, what first drew my attention was how similar Woodys are to china markers. I love drawing with china markers but find them impossible to sharpen due to the outdated way they are wrapped in a coil of paper that requires a dexterity I don't have to unwrap. I've ruined so many markers while trying to remove that stupid paper I can't even count how many I've wasted. But now I have Stabilo Woodys with that same creamy, slightly waxy texture I enjoyed so much from the china markers. 

Woodys, again like china markers, aren't limited to black; there are many more colors on the market that I might investigate one day but for now black is it. Bold, expressive, and water soluble--what's not to love?

4. Stone Paper

Ink experiment on stone paper.

Wow, this stuff is weird, and it's really made from stone! I bought a sketchbook of it from the Albuquerque Museum gift store, but because it was wrapped and sealed in a plastic covering I never got a chance to actually see what it was I was buying.

When I removed the plastic cover at home was when I learned the truth: each piece of "paper" (which I later learned from YouTube IS made from crushed stone) was more like a piece of floppy vinyl than paper. The upside is that it's impossible to fold, tear, or destroy, meaning you can work and rework it without fear of it tearing. While this is certainly a plus, the same smooth, indestructible quality means it has absolutely zero control for what I wanted to use it for: watercolor. Which then turned out to be so much fun. "No control" lets the ink and/or pigment do its own thing; a constant surprise that lets me do what I like best: explore. It's also great for taking out of doors because you cannot ruin stone paper no matter how hard you try. It's even washable if you don't like your first attempts or colors.

5. Graphite Watercolors

I found these while watching yet another YouTube video. What intrigued me most was their similarity to one of my longtime favorite supplies: Derwent Graphitint pencils: water soluble graphite pencils with a muted undertone of color. 

Kuretake graphite watercolors have that same moody, semi-gothic, melancholy quality that appeals to me in Graphitints. One aspect I like is the limited palette of colors. All six work well together whether you choose to use two colors or six in the same sketch. As you can see from the photo above, I've already used them a lot!

6. Blackwing Pencils

"Half the pressure, twice the speed." Or at least that's what it says in the ads. 

I'm always on the lookout for a pencil that works alone and I think I've found it with Blackwings. Originally designed for musicians, Blackwing pencils have a long history of literary and artistic use. I particularly like the rectangular, extendable eraser. The three barrel colors I've shown here: black, white, and gray, are not the colors of the lead, but rather signify three different degrees of hard and softness. Currently, I can't decide which one I like the best, but I'll let you know when I do!

7. Escoda Synthetic Watercolor Brushes

I've wanted Escoda brushes ever since the pandemic and my first Domestika class when they were recommended by watercolor artist, Alex Hillkurtz. For a long time I delayed buying them because they were a) expensive, and b) I already had plenty of brushes.

Several weeks ago I caved and bought a set of three. Made in Barcelona, the hype is true: they are worth every penny and I have nothing more to say. The big brush is REALLY big and not exactly portable, but the smaller brush is just right for local travel. My only question: Why did I wait so long??

8. Bonus "Must-Have" Tip of the Day:

Now that my new supplies are in place, I wanted somewhere other than my apartment and neighborhood cafes to sketch, and with that in mind I recently bought memberships to Albuquerque's Natural History Museum, art museum, zoo, aquarium, and botanical gardens. The memberships help the venues and the venues help me. Whether I'm indoors or out, spending time with dinosaurs and sculpture or sharks and tourists--there's always something fresh to draw and paint, no excuses!

Urban Writing

 

Ever since I moved a few years ago to downtown Albuquerque I've done my best to fit in as much walking as I possibly can.  At first I tried walking once a week, choosing different routes and scenery for each separate outing. Then came the pandemic restrictions and I began walking much more frequently, solitary journeys spent exploring the exteriors of closed businesses, locked libraries, and empty churches. It was a somewhat melancholy pursuit, but it was also a healthy way to get fresh air and sunshine and, of course, exercise. It was also a good opportunity to think about my manuscripts and other creative projects without distraction or conversation. Yes, it was lonely, but it was also time well-spent, especially as I would often take photos to later use as reference shots for some at-home urban sketching sessions.

In the last year things have changed considerably. Most places such as cafes and shops are fully open, more people are out walking or bicycling, and the general atmosphere is a lot more upbeat, exactly what you'd expect from a busy urban environment. I love the activity--even if it is more crowded and not as easy to take photos of individual businesses without appearing overly intrusive.

However, the change from "empty deserted street" to "watch where you're going" got me thinking about how fun it would be to switch from "urban sketching" to "urban writing." How could I use what I saw on my daily walks as writing prompts rather than solely as potential scenes for drawing?

A big part of urban sketching is what artists refer to as "reportage." More than simply drawing or painting what you see in front of you, reportage asks that we give an impression of what we feel and think about a scene. In other words, what's the story? And what do we personally bring to the sights we are witnessing? What part of us makes the scene our own?

To explore these topics more fully, I wrote up a list of ideas to get my pen moving:

Urban Story Prompts

• Choose a location and then write a scene that takes place there in the past.
• Take the same location, but now cast it into the future. What has changed? What is better, or worse? What are the people like?
  
• Could the same or a different location be the setting for a fictional crime? What could I add to make it more sinister?
  
• Or how about using that setting for a romantic tryst?
• Is there a particular area I see every day that could be the catalyst for neighborhood dissatisfaction? A place that a group of characters might want to tear down or drastically improve in some way? Why do they want to do this; what's their motivation? What's preventing them accomplishing their goals? Politics? Money?
  
• Choose and use a location as the basis of an important fictional memory for one or more of your characters. It could be an entirely new piece, or woven into something you're already working on.
  
• Create tension by showing a character's fear of a setting, or their excitement at the prospect of going, or returning, there for some reason.
• Invent two characters that have just left the place you are looking at. Why were they there? What transpired? What was their mood when they left?
  
• Use the setting, even if it is a beautiful, elegant environment as the backdrop to a dystopian, Orwellian nightmare.
  
• Or how about as the setting for a whimsical, heart-felt children's picture book?
  
• Imagine the setting at midnight. Add some supernatural or paranormal elements.
• What are the possibilities of using your setting for a nonfiction piece? You might enjoy researching the site or area and then writing about a little-known aspect or history of the place.
  
• Could the setting be an essential part or reason to write a memoir of some sort? Is it a place you know well and therefore holds a wide series of associations for you?
  

Whether or not you are more than familiar with a certain place or are seeing it for the very first time, try to tune into your emotions as you write. As with all the best and most productive freewriting sessions, write about what makes you sad or happy or nostalgic about a certain view or group of buildings. Don't stop to erase, cross out, or censor what comes up for you. Always go with your initial thoughts and instincts.

 

Lastly, be sure to include as many details of your setting as you can: doors, windows, gardens, the cat under the tree, the way light falls on the pavement. You might not want to use absolutely everything you write when it comes time to edit, but it's handy to have a full account to pick and choose from.

Tip of the day: Keep in mind that you don't always have to go for the photogenic or "postcard perfect" scene. Dilapidated, neglected, and forgotten "out of the way" places can often be the most fun to write about. Enjoy your walk and don't forget your notebook!

 

Having Fun at Domestika!

Work in progress: Watercolor sketch of Albuquerque's Sawmill Market

Hi Everyone! Today I'm excited to share a website for an online learning course that has brightened my locked-down life considerably: Domestika.org.

Always looking to improve my urban sketching style and skills, several months ago I was browsing through Youtube.com in search of a good drawing video. The one I eventually found started (as most Youtube videos do) with an ad, which I first thought of skipping, but then--crazy as it sounds--it completely hooked me in. Maybe it was the music, the background color scheme, I don't know what it was that caught my attention, but after a few seconds I realized the ad was for an online class taught by an artist whose work I have long admired: Alex Hillkurtz. The class he was offering was on architectural sketching in ink and watercolor, just what I was looking for, and he was in PARIS! Oh, wow! No two ways about it, I had to sign up on the spot.

Although the course didn't actually include a trip to Paris, everything else turned out better than I had hoped. I enjoyed the progression of lessons, from sharing in the members' forums to learning about creating thumbnail sketches and framing our finished work. There were also many added bonus features such as photo references to download and suggestions for books to read during, or after completing the class. Altogether it was just the prescription I needed to get me through these dreary months of isolation and limited activity.

Since finishing the class with Alex, I have signed up for two more with other artists: one on experimental watercolor technique and another on naturalist bird drawing. Neither was an easy choice. There are so many courses to choose from I could barely make up my mind and kept wavering between "Sumi-ink design looks like so much fun!" and "Yes, I really do need to take that one on picture book narrative." In the end I decided to go with the basics first and then tackle sumi, picture book layout, and character creation later.

Most impressive to me about Domestika.org are what I consider the very low cost and the quality of instruction. Perhaps best of all is that once a class is purchased, it's yours and you can go back to watch and review each lesson as many times as you need. (For me it's the one on perspective which despite the clear and precise guidelines will always elude me.)

Thumbnail sketch of the Sawmill Market.

First practice sketch on "good" paper.

More practice sketching. This time the Wells Fargo building . . .

The only, and very small, negative about the site is that with the exception of Alex Hillkurtz, the other instructors I've enrolled with present their classes in Spanish. This has been both a good and bad thing--the bad is that I have to turn the sound off and only read the subtitles the first time I watch the videos. For me personally, it's a tad confusing to try to watch, listen, and read at the same time. However, once I get the gist of the lesson, I then turn the subtitles off and listen to the Spanish version. I'm amazed at how many words and phrases I can recognize as I go along: Spanish lessons while I learn to paint. Now if I could just take my travel journal to Spain everything would be totally perfect!

Tip of the Day: Reaching the end of your tether? Learn something new and re-energize yourself in preparation for a creative and happy 2021. If you're a writer, try painting; artists, go for some writing. Good luck and remember, never give up! We will get through this; one sketch, one story at a time.

Things to Do at Home: Urban Sketching, Picture Book Style!

Baby werewolf in a coffee mug. Every home should have one!

Greetings from Albuquerque! And greetings from another day of, well, stuck in the same old place with no relief in sight. But stuck doesn't have to mean running out of ideas or things to do. Sure, there may be days (weeks) when it feels impossible to wring another ounce of inspiration out of lock-down, but, hey, we're creative people--we can do it! 

Like so many others in the world right now, here in New Mexico we've had to place our lives on hold while we wait for our health statistics to improve. The two things I personally miss the most are 1) the library, and 2) meeting with my various creative groups. I especially miss my art groups, but fortunately Albuquerque Urban Sketchers has done a fine job of staying in touch, encouraging members to keep drawing, even if it's just sketches of our home life. 

With the instruction of "drawing in place" however, comes the caveat of "drawing the truth." Didn't wash the dishes? Show us those dirty plates! Laundry piling up? We want to see! Be real, be honest, be exact. No fancy-pantsy Architectural Digest staging for us sketchers! 

I have to admit that when I read these "be honest" guidelines I wasn't particularly thrilled with the idea of using my sketchbook as a visual to-do list ("Mop that floor!" "Scrub those sneakers!"). Instead, I needed to shake things up a bit, color outside of the lines, as it were. That's when I thought of sketching at home from the viewpoint of a child: What if I crawled under the bed? Or, What if I lived upside-down on the ceiling? In other words, I could sketch out a picture book.

Some of the tips I considered to help me get into picture book mode included:

• Thinking in terms of height and size: e.g., what do the items on my kitchen counter look like if they're above my head? Or, if I were only four years old, would a flight of stairs seem as deep as the Grand Canyon? 

• Ask what a child would find interesting about a house. While the neighbors might admire a well-kept lawn, a child might notice that there's a gopher hole right in the middle, or that birds are building a nest in a rain gutter. Adults might disdain an old piece of furniture, but to a child it's a time machine or the entrance to Narnia.

• The same goes for any ornaments or household objects. For instance, you could bring a cat figurine to life, invent new uses for a potato masher, or create an entire story around the items in your closet.
  

• Explore small objects: egg cups, button collections, jewelry; even the junk drawer can be a source of interesting things to draw. 

• Toys and their varied surfaces and textures can provide an infinite amount of sketching ideas. Try posing and arranging them in unexpected places. (For some of the best examples you'll ever see using this technique, I suggest viewing the work of Dare Wright--my absolute favorite children's book creator.)

• Don't overlook your own backyard (if you have one, of course. For me it's a balcony, but I do see trees!).  Is there a mysterious, neglected part of your yard? Use it to the full. Make a "fairy garden" and sketch the results.

• Study and copy patterns found on wallpaper, draperies, bed linens, or tile work. Patterns can be useful additions to creating a lively border or background to a picture book page.

• Think back to your childhood home and/or the place where you grew up. Can you reproduce from memory anything you loved or that was unusual or visually interesting? Don't worry about quality, just get the general ideas down and worry about perfection later.

• Even though we're temporarily cooped up for much of the day, it's important to get out and into the fresh air whenever possible. Can you visit the exterior of a museum or playground to sketch for a little while? How many details can you observe? Taking your own photographs can be a quick and easy option if you choose not to linger anywhere.

• Go wild: if you're sketching your toaster, why not color it pink and covered with gold stars? Or replace the cars in your garage with a herd of antelope? 

• Sketching for children is a good opportunity to consider your color palette. Rather than just aiming for primary colors or anything "bright and shiny," give some thought to mood. Are you feeling happy, sad, wistful, or nostalgic for your own childhood? Play with watercolor washes and draw over them later.

•  Set up some reference files from magazine cut-outs or sites such as Pinterest.com, e.g., Toys, Children's Clothing, Play Rooms, Bedrooms, Animals.

Can we go play??

I must say it's been an eye-opener these last few weeks lying on the floor sketching chair legs--and not just because I discovered my base boards needed a good dusting, but because it's made me think seriously about illustrating a children's book from the perspective of an urban sketcher. Sketching is, after all, a way to explore ideas, collect data, and experiment with mediums, palettes, and composition. And where better to start than at home? 

Tip of the Day: If you find yourself getting bored with your own supply of pots and pans and coffee mugs, experiment with designing an entirely new set on paper. Draw a household from your imagination, one set on Mars or ancient Greece. Place your characters on a pirate ship or living in a log cabin. You don't have to be accurate, just playful. Have fun and let me know how it goes. See you next time!