Sketchbook Overhaul

I have been working on Art for a long time. Because of that I am thinking about what I like and what I do not. What works for somebody else may not work for me and vice versa. I also work in acrylic paint, so cool things that work for an oil painter may not work for me. I have already shown you my overhaul on my palette. This is my overhaul on my sketchbook.

New Sketchbook idea

I love having a sketchbook with me. I get ideas, I see things to draw, I get an idea or observation to write down. I write down about what I want to do, my shopping list, what is going on in my life like a journal, and I have an never-ending "to-do" list. I substitute teach and end up with prep time, kids at recess, lunch, specials time. After doing it a few years, I am sick of reading and that is why I draw or brainstorm. I might be there one day just to watch kids take tests or work on their research papers. I ended up with a big stack of sketchbooks that I never look at and ideas long forgotten. I had begun to rip those apart and keep only what I want to keep in a large blank book. So, I write a lot of crap that I don't want or need to keep  and I need to find a way to take care of it quickly.

Because I haul these things I did not want a big one in a tote. It gets heavy enough as it is with water, lunches, and my purse. Because of doing some plein air events, I think about how can I take everything I want in a small way because I may have to haul it in myself. I shouldn't have to take everything and the kitchen sink because I am away from my studio.   I did not want a small one because sometimes I can only draw small pictures nor did I want a large one which takes up a lot of room. I chose a small/ medium size 3 ring binder to use. This size binder fits a half sheet of printer paper.

My binder/sketchbook is assembled with what I need. Front cover on this one has a pocket that I can put a picture in. I have a small clipboard that goes in the front pocket. If I desired and was doing  a 5x7" painting or sketch that also could go in that front pocket.

So, front pocket - mini clipboard

      1 section - calendar ( printed from free printables online to get the size I wanted 
 
      1 section - contacts/address book (I am using                          lined paper)

      1 section - sketch paper - printer paper cut in                          half

      1 section - "to-do" list - all in one space so I                            can add on as new things come                              up  or remove a page when it is                              all   done - and throw it away! I                            don't have to write my list                                      repeatedly or all
                        over the place (again and again)

      1 section - Blah, Blah - the things I feel compelled to write about - things I saw, misc
                        these are easy to look over and throw out later.

      1 section - acrylic paint color studies - for me to take on the go                          without having to have another system. I can do                                each tube color on a page, add additional pages for                            more experimenting with mixes. It makes it flexible                          but also so I can take it with to locate colors when
                        doing studies.

 1 section - Inktense color studies. I am just starting to use these                          and maybe be also do them for multimedia work . I                            have  24 pencils but need to see the actual color washed.
                  Under this section or make a new section, I can do the                      washable pencils so I can see  way it looks colored,                          washed and the softness/hardness qualities.

So, that is my new sketchbook overhaul. I think it has everything that I want and need. I use a rubber
band to hold it shut but could change that also. My concern is how long will this binder hold together with use. I may have to check out different models, use packing tape to reinforce or play around with different things. The only thing that would be nice is to have a pencil pouch on the inside. Not sure if they make them to fit. The beauty of this is that I do not have to load it up with paper for writing or drawing. I can take what I think I will need for the day. I also do not have to keep it in there like I used to do with a sketchbook, waiting for the sketchbook to be full.