I believe that every person with any degree of interest in creating art or lettering should have a sketchbook journal! I have kept one since 2004, and I still derive so much enjoyment out of creating new pages. It’s an activity that allows me to relax, think, and experiment with new mediums!
What is a Sketchbook Journal?
A sketchbook journal is essentially a blank book that you use to record memories, explore themes, and/or try out new art techniques. There’s really no hard definition for a sketchbook journal … it’s a personal thing, so it can be whatever you want it to be!
I like my sketchbook journals to serve as a sort of scrapbook as well. A sketchbook journal is a great place to put little scraps of paper that mean something to you, but might just be clutter on their own. For example, the sketchbook page above showcases business cards, a yoga studio fob, and illustrations that remind me of the four happy years that I spent living in Lawrence, Kansas.
How to Make a Sketchbook Journal
Before I tell you how to make a sketchbook journal, I want to make one thing clear. You do not have to consider yourself an artist to enjoy creating a sketchbook journal! Sketchbook journaling is for anyone who likes lettering, drawing, or just organizing his or her paper scraps. Remember: it’s a personal project, so you aren’t working to impress anyone! This is a project you should pursue for your own enjoyment, and without trepidation or reservations!
1. Find the Right Sketchbook for You
When I go to purchase sketchbooks, I first look at the weight of the paper. I wouldn’t recommend buying anything under 70 lbs.; otherwise, the paper will struggle if you use watercolors. The sketchbook should explicitly state the paper weight on the front, just as it does in the photo below.
Secondly, I look at the size. I think that sketchbooks in the 9″ x 12″ (227 x 305 mm) size range are perfect: not too big, and not too small! Finally, I, personally, prefer wirebound sketchbooks. They splay open beautifully, and are not constantly trying to close themselves. I purchased the sketchbook pictured above at Michael’s (a US/Canada craft store), and another good choice would be this sketchbook on Amazon.
2. Decide a Page Theme and Start Creating
You can go theme-less, of course, but I always pick a theme for the page that I intend to work on. (For a list of inspiration-sparking themes, you can click here.) My page theme today is a July 2016 trip that we took to Brazil. I started off by using a light box to reproduce one of my favorite photos onto the page. Here’s the photo — it’s of me walking through the streets of Tiradentes, a town in Minas Gerais, Brazil.
I love using a light box to trace over images that I’ve printed off! If you want to reproduce an image, you can freehand draw, of course — but when there are so many buildings involved, I love to go the easy route. Like I said, there are no rules in sketchbook journaling. Do whatever you want to do!
One of the perks of making illustrations of your images is that you can modify them however you want to! I re-imagined the illustration below without the cars and most of the people. I also added some Janet Style calligraphy (left) and Kaitlin Style calligraphy (right) to label the place and the dates that we stayed there.
After the black and white version of the illustration was complete, I used watercolor paint to fill in the illustration. As I painted, I was reminded of another perk of sketchbook journaling: technique experimentation. In full-on experimentation mode, I added hues of blue and yellow to the cobblestone streets, and violet to the roofs. I also opted not to add color to the people in the photo, which resulted in an interesting effect.
If you choose to start your sketchbook journal off with a watercolor + ink illustration like this one, make sure you use a waterproof ink! My go-to is Ziller Soot Black.
3. Continue to Fill Up the Page
When I create a sketchbook page, my goal is to fill it with color, designs, and lettering! If that’s a good goal for you as well, try layering elements and experimenting with new mediums. The Cristo illustration below — symbolic of Rio de Janeiro — was created using a black Gelly Roll pen and a gray colored pencil.
4. Add Lettering/Designs/Paper Scraps/Etc. Until You’re Happy with the Page
The page is finished when you feel satisfied with it! Remember to look at it through kind, non-critical eyes. A sketchbook journal provides a safe space to experiment with techniques, topics, and mediums — no one is going to judge you!
To finish up the Brazil page of my sketchbook journal, I added some George Style lettering (“BRAZIL”), a blue circle inspired by the Brazilian flag, and a map depicting a small village we stayed at called Itatiaia. I visually tied everything together with yellow watercolor paint and more calligraphy, and the page was complete!
For me, the point of creating this page was to relive the trip to Brazil. As I was creating it, a flood of happy memories were running through my mind — and that’s the point: to focus on the theme. I thought about the gorgeous Airbnb we stayed in in Tiradentes, the arduous hike up to the Cristo Redentor, and the delicious food at Villa Itatiaia. When you’re creating artwork and thinking about things, you tend to experience them in a new way, with small details coming back to you!
Why You Should Make a Sketchbook Journal
Different people will experience different rewards from working in a sketchbook journal. That said, here are three reasons that I enjoy working in mine:
1. Increased Creative Confidence
Your sketchbook journal gives you the opportunity to try out new mediums and techniques in a practice setting. You can do whatever you want and find out what works for you! As you flex your creative muscle, you will gain experience and confidence.
For example, the left page above (created in 2006) marks the first time that I used coffee as a paint/ink. I loved the effect, and I still use strong teas and coffees in my work today! That page taught me how beautifully neutrals can pair with bold colors, which is another lesson I’ve returned to time and time again over the past eleven years.
2. Organization
If you tend to hold on to paper (scraps, business cards, notes, gift tags, etc.), then your sketchbook journal provides a welcome home for them! In 2005, I made the page on the left, below, from all the college pamphlets that I received. (Ironically, I didn’t end up going to any of the collaged colleges.) When I look at that page, I remember how overwhelmed I was trying to decide where to go after high school! I also remember the excitement of possibility.
Putting paper scraps in a sketchbook journal gives you the chance to preserve them in a thoughtful, artistic way. Just make sure you use an archival glue so the scraps don’t disintegrate over time!
3. Memory Preservation
Your brain is always making room for new information by squeezing out old information, so memories tend to fade. If you have a sketchbook journal, it can serve as a sort of “pensieve” (that’s a Harry Potter reference — here‘s the definition). Through colors, images, and paper scraps, you can put together an accurate representation of your thoughts and feelings.
It’s interesting to go back and look at your pages later in life. The “GOALS” page above, for example, was created thirteen years ago, and it’s amazing to look at it now. The “Concentrate on Learning Spanish” goal makes me smile because I ended up married to a Peruvian. I had no idea how right I was when I wrote “This skill will come in handy later”!
Get Started Today
If you have a few spare moments, I encourage you to start your own sketchbook here in the next couple of days! That way, the motivation and inspiration will still be fresh. You don’t have to make a full page in one sitting — there’s no time limit.
If you have family members or friends who may be interested in starting a sketchbook journal, consider creating together. In high school, my friends and I used to get out our art supplies, sit at the kitchen table, and create as we chatted and snacked. Sometimes, we’d even trade sketchbooks for a few minutes to create content in each others’ sketchbooks! Now, those traded pages are a fun reminder of friendships.
If you’d like some visual inspiration, you can Google or search Pinterest for “sketchbook pages”. If you prefer books, try Artists’ Journals and Sketchbooks by Lynne Perrella — it has a nice collection of different artists’ pages. It also offers technique suggestions, like how to transfer photos to paper using tape! Again — as far as page themes go, you can find a list of prompts in this free printable.
No matter what your artistic level, I hope that you give sketchbook journaling a try! If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to contribute in the comments. Thanks very much for reading, and have a wonderful weekend!
Warmly,
Jes a recommendation! Stillman & Birns Gamma (or higher) series.
I’ve had almost zero bleed through on almost all inks and watercolors. A 6.0mm Parallel Pens/Pilot ink, the sole exception (very wet). No bleed through on Tombow dual pens, also. I cannot say the same of a Clairefontaine (Rhodia or Tomoe River) journals. I have –or have made– both.
These are hardbound, yet still lay flat. Good if you want a “hardbound” journal. 😉
Very cool! What is the mini water color set you use here? It looks super portable and handy!
Thank you! I use watercolors that are handmade by my good friend Jess Greenleaf. If you want to check out her paints, here’s the link to her website! https://www.greenleafblueberry.com
Heading to Southern France this summer and taking my sketchbooks with me… now I’ll remember to add my crayola markers for calligraphy! Thank you!
Wonderful! Crayola markers are a perfect traveling calligraphy tool. I hope your trip goes well!
Hi Lindsey!
I’m Brazilian and I fell in love for your page!!!
Congratulations!
Beautiful work!
Hope you had enjoyed visiting some many beautiful places from my country
Love
Roberta
You are so kind and encouraging. I love your practice sheets and freebies so much!
What numbers of brushes did you used here?
Sizes 0 and 3!
I LOVE this!
My daughter sent me this link . She and her husband purchased me a sketch book for Christmas and a beautiful art set to go with it. Have been unsure what to do with until now thank you. Will get started this week.
Yay!! Your daughter sounds like a wonderful person — I know you’ll love making/maintaining a sketchbook journal!
I have never had a journal or a sketchbook, but I am so inspired by this post. I am not great at sketching, so when I saw you lightbox tracing idea, a lightbulb went off in my own brain :). I don’t own a lightbox, but keeping the ipad screen at maximum brightness, I was able to trace the basic outline, which I then filled in with freehand. Once I complete a page about my 2016 travels, I will share the result with you. Thank you Lindsey for sharing and inspiring.
The iPad technique works really well! I’m so glad that you were inspired by the post — I saw the results on Instagram, and was impressed. 🙂 Sketchbook journals are the best; I really love mine, and always turn to it whenever I need to relax.
I love the Brazil page! I keep a nature journal, which is part quick sketches, part drawing with colored pencils, part writing and part calligraphy. Anything important that occurs in the natural world around me that day goes into this journal, including the day’s sunrise and sunset times, the moon phase, and weather data. I even throw some Spanish in there at times!
Based on what I’ve seen of your work, I’ll bet your nature journal is gorgeous! It’s cool to be able to keep a record in a personal, creative way. 🙂
I definitely want to go back to Peru and Brazil at some point. We cruised up the Amazon from Ft. Lauderdale stopping at small towns enroute to Manaus. Then a huge cruise from Lima with an expedition to Machu Picchu up the NW coast of South America through the Panama Canal back to Ft. Lauderdale. Once in a lifetime, really, but once you’ve seen it you can’t get enough. And, too many activities so we didn’t have an opportunity to hang about in Cuzco as much as we wanted. Peru is really an overwhelming country.
We go to Peru at least once a year (to visit my in-laws), and I agree … there’s always something new to discover! When we went last month, we tried a lot of restaurants in Miraflores and agreed that Saqra was the best we’ve ever been to in our lives (though we still haven’t tried Central). I would like to do a sketchbook page over Barranco, which is my favorite district in Lima … it is punctuated by gorgeous flowers and has a cool artists’ marketplace called Dédalo that I always like to check out. As for Brazil, I thought it was just the coolest place! I am now addicted to açai and drinking out of coconuts, and it was interesting to see the cultural difference between Brazilians and Peruvians. We definitely want to visit Brazil again, too!
I like your description as a place to put little papers! I’m not a drawing kind of person, but I am lettering and like to color images. I could do this:)
I’m SO inspired to begin a new sketchbook journal-your explanations and tutorials are so complete and clear that I understand what to do. I’m going to use a Canson XL Media spiral bound book (9×12), and I ordered a lightbox through your link, and also your George-style lettering packet. I’ve wanted a lightbox, but wasn’t sure how to use it-now I know! Of all the sites I use and visit, yours is by far the most generous and giving. I appreciate every single article you write, and I read them all through and try some of the designs.
Thank you for your generosity and may 2017 be th best year ever,
Sandy in California
Oh, Sandy, you’ll love making your sketchbook journal! As I was making mine, I found it really helpful/inspiring to see what other people are doing … I love “pinning” images on Pinterest that spark a theme idea. It’s also really cool to look through published sketchbooks (Spilling Open by Sabrina Ward Harrison is a good one)! Really, really happy that this post inspired you!
Thank you for sharing! I’ve been wanting to start one up for a while now, I follow a couple of artists on Instagram who utilize theirs and share weekly. I haven’t kept a diary in over a decade but have been looking for a similarly healthy outlet, and I think this is the way to go.
I know that it is for me! I’m often not motivated to write paragraph upon paragraph over what happened in my day (or week, or travels), but depicting the events through paper scraps, bits of lettering, colors, and illustrations makes it fun and interesting. 🙂
Wow! Eye candy and inspiration…thank you. I keep a nature based art journal. I love the Kiliminjaro journals because they have a sheet of sketching paper interleaved with watercolor paper. Having the “throwaway” sheet to plan composition and practice lettering or drawing right in the journal is important for me. Thank you again–this post is one of my all time favorites.
Wow, I have never heard of Kiliminjaro journals! They sound SO cool!!
Thanks for the inspiration! I like the idea of using a lightbox. I’m just a newbie with sketchbooks, but like so much not having the pressure of pleasing anyone but myself with my journaling.
Thank you for this post! I love how detailed it is!! Question for you…is this the light box you use and does it work with regular photographs and watercolor paper? I would use it as you described and want to be sure to purchase a useful lightbox. Thanks for any advice you can give!
Hi Sandi! I use this light box, but I believe the one I linked to should work with photographs and watercolor paper. I know that mine does!
I started keeping an illustrated journal several years ago. My artwork and lettering got better over time, but I still was always afraid of messing up a page. My solution was to practice in other “lesser” sketchbooks. While this sort of defeated the purpose of the illustrated journal, it got me into the habit of working regularly in many different sketchbooks dedicated to different purposes (i.e. pen & ink, markers, dry media, watercolor) or subjects, and with different types of paper (drawing, toned, kraft, watercolor, etc.), and was a great confidence-builder. I’m currently working in nine different sketchbooks in addition to my third illustrated journal.
This is true! I was wondering… what if I screw up a page?
So it is probably a good idea for me to have the “lesser” sketchbooks with me.
There are a few watercolor sketchbooks that I am pretty keen on. And now I am excited to start!
Hey, you can never have too many sketchbooks, right? 🙂 I really enjoy looking through all of my past sketchbooks … it’s an interesting reminder of my mindset from those times. I’m currently working in two — I admire that you’re juggling nine!
Oh how I love this idea! I’ve played around with journals here and there but love the ideas you offered. Just purchased the light box and am so excited! Thank you!
I have so much trouble getting started on anything creative because a little voice keeps telling me I’m not really an artist, so what gives me the right to do this? I’m going to print out the “How to Make a Sketchbook Journal” paragraph and pin it up where I can see it. Thank you so much for this, Lindsey
Amanda, I made these self-permission cards just for this reason! There’s a free template there so you’re very welcome to print it out and make your own. (In fact, I encourage it!)
I firmly believe everyone is creative, and everyone has the right to create. 🙂
I think a lot of people have that little voice — and I totally understand! That’s why I made this post and the prompts … I think you’ll be surprised at how much you enjoy the relaxation and creativity that keeping a sketchbook journal helps you to explore. 🙂
Thanks so much for sharing your sketchbook pages + encouragement, Lindsey!
I bought a bound journal for this purpose earlier this winter, but only started on one page to date and didn’t bring it along with me on these travels. (I’m living out of a 26L backpack for the next 3-4 months—so it was too big/heavy. But I did bring along travel watercolors, a small watercolor journal, scissors, pens, and a glue stick for creating! I actually just spent the evening sketching in a restaurant/bar.)
Anyway, point being I’m more motivated to give regular art journaling a shot when I get back home, thanks to this—and will do minis in my little travel journal until then. Thanks again for this post! 🙂
Hi Rebecca! This is a random thing to pull from your comment, but I am wondering which backpack you use? We are traveling through Europe for three weeks next month, and I am thinking of getting a backpack to make it easier to move from place to place (Germany > Italy > France > Holland). I’d love to spend a few evening sketching in cafés there! You are my travel idol. 🙂
I was doing this for a while. I became insecure after seeing how nice others were. Thank you for reminding me it’s mine,it’s not supposed to be perfectly done–just done!