My Sketchbook Projects Then and Now

The Seattle Times wrote an article about The Sketchbook Project in 2011.  I was thrilled, since it was the first time the tour came to Seattle and the first time that I had entered.

With promises of drinks and nibbles afterwards, I dragged my husband, sister and brother-in-law with me all the way downtown to see my contribution. We waited outside in a line that went down the block and around the corner. I remember seeing a mother and her 8 year old daughter sitting outside on the stone windowsills of the building, smiling and reading each other's sketchbooks.

Accordion spread from 2011 Sketchbook.

Note: I rebind my sketchbook with 140lb. watercolor paper, because it better suits my way of working than the thinner paper that comes with it. I also use a few accordion folds to make it less bulky at the binding and to extend the pages out further when the subject calls for it. Good for my style, not so much for the way they digitize the pages. So not all my pages are visible online. I hope someday they will discover how the flaps might fit their format. Guess you'll just have to visit the Library or Mobile Tour to see the missing images!

A spread that stayed folded up in the 2014 digitized version.

Come to the Mobile Tour in Seattle July 10, 11 & 12 at the Seattle Public Library and check it out! More info.
You can see my projects digitized at Sketchbook Project here.

PS. I wasn't planning to, but I signed up for the 2015 Project, since it's coming back here to Seattle on Tour. It could contain a lot more street scenes if  I can include some of the sketches I am doing with the USk Seattle and ASk.

Rebinding the 2014 Sketchbook Project

For my 2014 project, I needed to take out the thin, sketch paper that came in the provided sketchbook and replace it with Fabriano Artistico 140# CP. It makes all the difference in the resulting quality of my painting. I kept the first two original pages, just for comparison.

You can see below how the new watercolor pages fit together, ready for rebinding into my official  cover. Now that it has been sent in, I will be posting a page or two of the finished sketchbook. Keep checking back or subscribe for a peek!

Sketchbook Fold-Out with Apple

Two 5x7" sections showing
with 4" journal tab

Since this sketchbook journal was made accordion style, it's fun to see what you get when pages are folded out at random.

Trees

Original Watercolor
7"x10" center of foldout
Sketchbook Project, Limited Edition

Here's another page from my sketchbook. It's the center section of an accordion foldout. It has another section either side of it, each 7"x5".

We had a long winter and the transition was almost immediate into spring. Another day in early April, and I don't think I would have caught the change.

I'll post more about this series of three sketches soon.

Moleskine Rebinding, Accordion Style

I've added a new YouTube video, demonstrating how to replace the thinner paper from a Moleskine sketchbook for the Sketchbook Project, Limited Edition, with #140 Fabriano Artistico watercolor paper. This is necessary for me because I often do ink & wash or watercolor sketches in my sketchbook and I need the proper absorbency of the real watercolor paper.

I bind it accordion style so that more paper can fit without stacking too thickly into the binding.
This also gives me the option of several format choices, running across more than one fold at a time.

I have another video here, showing exactly how to sew the paper onto the cover and the materials used.

The Sketchbook Project, Limited Edition

Original Sketches from my Sketchbook Project, Limited Edition
7"x18" Accordion Fold Section

Now that this has been sent in, and the deadline has passed, I thought you might like to get a peek inside my sketchbook. Visit here for more information on the whole project.

I removed the thin paper from the original Moleskine sketchbook provided by the project and replaced it with 140 lb. CP Fabriano Artistico watercolor paper. Directions on how to rebind your sketchbook here.

Every contributor to the Sketchbook Project Limited Edition Vol. 1 will be included in a series of art books documenting the project. Together, the series will provide insight into the imagination and process of each artist participating in the project. Bound by the Brooklyn Art Library Press and hand-finished in our Brooklyn workshop, the book series will be published in the fall of 2012.