Jill Lawrence Sketchbook

Jill does weekly sketching of items that catch her interest. She generally works in ink and watercolor.

All My Journals

Journaling is part of my everyday life. I start each morning writing in a journal just to clear my thoughts and organize my day. Those pages often end up with lots of doodles and ideas popping up in the margins.

My visual journals I do more sporadically. I meet with a sketch group once a week, which is probably the only thing that keeps me on a regular sketching schedule. I usually draw with ink then add bits of watercolor. We visit various places around Portland:

I really enjoy journaling when I travel to capture bits of my trip. Leigh inspired me to do a page of "inchies", tiny drawings, while I was in Mexico. A quick way to get a page full of local color and detail.

I also like to work in a visual journal where I work quickly without a plan. This allows me a place to loosen up without fear of the results. (Many of them are just plain ugly when I'm done!) These often are based around collage:

Or painting:

And finally, I like to keep an idea book going for possible future projects. It's a mix of photographs, magazine clippings, sketches, color palettes--anything that attracts my attention. This one contains a quilt from an art magazine and notes about what attracted me to it, a mask from the newspaper, and sketches I did of rain on the window that I thought would make interesting stitch patterns.

Ten Top Reasons to Sketch or Draw

1. to slow down and really see the nature of an object, person or landscape

2. to create a habit

3. to practice & improve skills

4. to relax and enjoy a form of meditation

5. to explore different styles

6. to experiment with media

7. to collect ideas for future projects

8. to play with line and color

9. to document travel experiences

10. to capture a moment in time

What makes you want to sketch or draw?