If you have ever opened your sketchbook, full of good intentions but just have no idea of how to start then you are not alone! Do these questions sound familiar?
What should I include?
How do I make them look full and exciting?
Does mixed media work in sketchbooks?
How do I stop the pages sticking together??
I have asked myself all of these questions (especially at art college or when I wanted to develop a new collection of art for an exhibition). Whether you are an aspiring artist or an experienced one, find great ideas that you can use to fill your sketchbooks here in this blog post. Read on to find helpful and practical tips to make your sketchbooks look enticing and to use them to develop your art style.
Firstly, what makes a good sketchbook?
This applies to the use of any medium in your sketchbooks, from watercolour to oil pastels.
An impressive and inspiring sketchbook should be:
like delving in to the artist's mind
like going on a journey where you see what the artist discovered and explored
full of experiments (e.g. painting the subject in different colours, from different angles, showing a different mood etc)
easy to explore: pages shouldn't stick together or fall out!
be colourful (can be gentle or bold colours)
interesting and make the viewer yearn for more
packed full with art - not just a group of nice drawings (my school teacher used to go mad if I used the word 'nice' so I feel guilty putting it here!)
full of notes as well as images
How do you fill up a sketchbook?
There are many ways to fill a sketchbook and to push past 'artist's block'. If you have no ideas whatsoever but are keen to put pen to paper choose from these ideas:
do 'speed sketching': time yourself and go in to autopilot as you sketch
complete a sketchbook challenge
draw/paint something connected to a personal hobby or interest (mine was dance!)
choose a personal opinion or belief and fill your sketchbook with anything that connects with that belief (include quotes, symbols, magazine or paper cut-outs and of course sketches)
create a travel journal
experiment with media in different ways, noting what you've learnt beside your experiments
use your sketchbook pages as practice for making art on a larger scale
create a mindfulness journal, scribbling sketches and words to illustrate how you feel
improve your drawing skills by using repetition in your sketchbook
follow 'art prompts' (find lots on Pinterest!)
This should get the creative juices flowing and before you know it, your sketchbook will be bulging with inspiration!
What type of sketchbook should I use?
There are many many different types of sketchbooks. You get thicker ones with slightly textured paper made specifically for mixed media but don't worry too much about which ones you choose when you are just getting started. Better to be sketching away, exploring and developing ideas on the non-perfect sketchbook than to be creating no art at all! Be inventive. Some of your best art will come from compromising and using what you already have. Being on a tight budget as an art student led me to use cheap materials like Tesco on-brand coffee and old emulsion paint and I even still use them today due to the cool effects I discovered!
Variations include:
Watercolour sketchbooks
Mixed media sketchbooks
Oil paint sketchbooks
Pastels and charcoal sketchbooks
Different shapes and sizes
Spiral bound or notebook style
Hand made or shop-bought
Recycle old unused books
When painting with mixed media I recommend the Daler Rowney Mixed Media Spiral Sketchpad. It is strong, durable and is a popular choice. To give variety to your sketchbooks and to give your pages an experimental feel, the Arteza Mixed Media Sketchbook is perfect as it is already full of different earthy pastel shades of paper.
If you are just starting out but have a passion to try mixed media then I'd suggest getting a large mixed media one (like the Daler Rowney one shown above) for developing ideas and techniques. Get a smaller, more portable one for noting down ideas or scribbling sketches. That way, if you decide later on that mixed media is not really your thing then as least your mixed media sketchbook can be used for oils, watercolours, acrylics and more.
How to fill sketchbooks with mixed media art
Now that we know how to go about using sketchbooks in general and which ones suit our needs, how do we actually go about filling them with mixed media art?
Mixed media is a fun and experimental way to create art. It is messy and you become free to use any medium in any way you like. The artist uses a variety of media (inks, paint, powders etc) for creating one piece of art. There are no rules and nothing is excluded. At first that can seem daunting and go against all you were taught, especially as a child. This more free approach to art can even be frowned upon by others and seen as lazy or unskilled. Little do they know! Some of the most influential artists in history were able to create their unique art style by smashing society's view of what was 'proper art'.
So, being free in our approach to art and using mixed media, will lead to dynamic, eye-catching and experimental sketchbooks! Pouring, dripping, scraping, smearing and spraying are all words that can be used to describe the techniques that are used when experimenting with mixed media in art. Let’s begin this journey with the freedom to make as much mess as necessary and the knowledge that experimentation with mixed media in sketchbooks is what leads to amazing art!
Which art materials work well in mixed media art sketchbooks?
Any medium can be used for mixed media but some are particularly useful and diverse as they dry quickly, layer up well or attach to different surfaces easily.
Art supplies that are good for mixed media art and are worthwhile investing in are:
Acrylic paint
Watercolour paint
Gesso
Inks
Acrylic paint pens
Charcoal
Pastels
PVA glue
Coloured powders
Textured pastes (Liquitex Blended Fibers & Liquitex White Paque Flakes)
Cheap extras that work extremely well in mixed media art (in sketchbooks and on canvas):
Coffee granules
Scraps of different colours or textures of paper
Newspapers
Scraps of fabric and threads/wool
White emulsion paint
Mixed media is often the go-to method by artists that want to create texture in their art. If you are after texture, you can invest in ready-made texture pastes such as Liquitex Blended Fibers or Liquitex White Paque Flakes. I love using these as you get instant and mess-free texture that you can mix with paint or just apply straight to sketchbook/canvas. You can also create texture by using methods like scraping, rubbing, tearing or layering papers on to the surface of your painting.
5 mixed media experiments to try in sketchbooks:
Layer papers on top of each other (paste on with watery PVA glue mixture). Now experiment with different mark making techniques on the sketch pad pages. Ideas could include scoring the page while the layers are wet with different utensils or being creative with texture. Note down what you discover.
Paint flowers in with watercolour paint and use charcoal on top to give definition and shadow.
Smear white acrylics over the sketchbook page, sprinkle inks over the top to give splattered effect. Now sketch your subject on top.
Give paper a wash of watercolour. Sprinkle coffee granules on top while page is wet.
Use pre-made textured pastes and put a layer of another media on top. Experiment with layering wet art materials (such as ink or watery acrylics) and on top, noting the different outcomes.
How to add variety to your sketchbook pages:
You can add variety to your sketchbooks pages by including different features and backgrounds.
Ideas to make pages look intriguing to others:
Add pockets and insert art inside (you can stick on regular envelopes for this).
Attach bigger sheets with masking tape and fold them to match size of sketchbook pages.
Stick on any sources of inspiration to give a variety of images.
Include quotes, poems and phrases relevant to your subject (quoting others and yourself). Write them in different ways e.g. scribble some across the pages or print with letter stamps.
Give your sketchbooks an irresistible front cover
If you are using an old damaged book as a sketchbook you will already have a vintage-style cover which can look by itself. However, if you are using a new shop-bought one, you might want to give it a more interesting cover. It looks especially impressive if you can match it in some way to your main sketchbook subject e.g. stick dried petals and earthy coloured paper to the cover if the art inside is about nature.
3 ideas for creating an impressive sketchbook cover:
Vintage effect. Attach vintage paper to the front (you can print some from Pinterest), smear white emulsion in bits to make it look weathered and give it texture. Scrape or rub the surface to give it an old textured effect. You can even stain it with tea bags or coffee to give it a yellowing and antique effect. Varnish lightly and leave to dry.
Smudgy and splattered effect Tear strips of newspaper and paste it on with watery PVA mixture. Smear white paint over it. Wet the newspaper layer and sprinkle art powder on top and leave it to sink in. Varnish lightly and leave to dry.
Calligraphy style Give your cover a smooth matt surface so it is suitable for writing on with ink. Use pens or a thin brush with ink and write/paint flowing words connected to your subject on the cover. Practice calligraphy in the actual sketchbook beforehand for an immediate connection!
Extra tips for filling sketchbooks:
Use masking tape to attach any extras like pockets or sheets you might want to remove later. It sticks well and doesn't tear the sketchbook paper when you remove it.
Put grease proof paper in between each page if using textured or sticky mixed media.
Use a fixative spray over pastel or charcoal sketches. This will prevent your lovely art being smudged or page-turning fingers from ruining your work! A budget friendly alternative to art fixative spray is hairspray but shhhh don't tell anyone you use that if you sell them larger works of art! It doesn't work as well and definitely leaves more of a residue than a good quality fixative. I always give my paintings a final coat of varnish (spray or brush-on) before selling a piece of art so any random media used are covered with a professional-standard sealant.
Final thoughts:
An art sketchbook can be a great addition to any artist’s work, enabling them to store ideas, doodles and sketches and develop further works. However, it can often be difficult to think of creative ideas and ways to make your sketchbook original and stand out from the crowd. I hope this blog post gave you some good ideas for what you can put in your sketchbook and how to develop your art style through using sketchbooks.
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