Art Lesson #8: Pocket Sketchbooks, Reviewed

The sketchbook I always carry with me

Do you debate whether or not to take art supplies with you?

This is definitely a conundrum for artists: you’re heading out the door, and you stop and think, “Is this thing I’m going to a sketching thing? Could I sit and draw in the middle of this concert/walk/drinks with friends?”

You debate whether or not it’s appropriate. Whether you’ll have time. And most of all…whether it’s worth the effort to gather up your art supplies and carry them around.

It’s even more of a question on vacation. You’re headed out the door for a long day of walking across London. Do you really want to carry that big bag of art supplies with you all day, only to reach the end of the day and realize you never once had an opportunity to draw?

The answer to this is to carry a little pocket sketchbook with you everywhere you go. Take just one or two drawing tools—maybe a pen and a colored pencil. That’s it. Use it, don’t use it, it’s always with you regardless.

And of course these little notebooks are also useful for writing down lists, taking notes, all that everyday stuff. Let those notes live side-by-side along with your drawings! It’s all part of your life. It’s a cool little record of your comings and goings.

So here are some examples of what I would consider a “pocket” notebook, which really means that it easily fits in a very small bag or a good-sized pocket.

And even if you limit yourself to just one or two drawing tools, there’s still so much you can do! Here’s a tour of a pocket notebook I recently filled up. I was very deliberate about carrying a different kind of drawing tool every day—pencils, pens, markers, even watercolor one time—because this brand of sketchbook was new to me, and I wanted to put the paper to the test. It really shows how much you can do with just one or two colors.

Supplies:

Moleskine Cahier Journals—at only $4ish per journal, they’re a bargain! The paper’s quite thin, though. 32 sheets/64 pages.

Travelers Notebook sketch paper—these run $5-$6 each, but the paper’s much better for ink, markers, etc. 16 sheets/32 pages.

Stillman & Birn 3.5 x 5.5 softcover — at $12, these cost more, but it’s a much thicker book and you get more pages. You might try the Epsilon paper if you’re just going to draw & not use watercolor. You get 46 sheets/92 pages in Epsilon, but if you went with their heavier paper like Zeta (my favorite) or Beta, you’d get fewer pages for the same price. (Here’s a handy chart explaining their different paper types)

Watercolor postcards — lots of companies make these. Here’s 15 sheets for $6

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Want to share what you’re drawing with the group?

This is a bit of an experiment, and it’s been fun so far. Because there’s no way to post pictures in the comments (yet! maybe someday!), I’ve started a subscriber-only chat where we can upload and share our art and cheer each other on.

Take a look and let me know what you think, and if you’d like to keep doing this. I was thinking I’d open a new chat once a month for a round of sharing and cheering on. You can access this chat through the Substack app or website by clicking the button below.

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Coming up: Recommended drawing tools for pocket sketchbooks

Stay tuned for more on pocket sketchbooks, including some recommendations for drawing tools, and also examples of how you can cut these pages out and glue them into bigger sketchbooks. Oh, and a cool idea for a birthday present.

I am always taking requests! Post a comment or a question and let me know what you’re curious about, struggling with, wanting to learn more about.

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The Bit at the End

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