I always find using a sketchbook intimidating. This probably goes back to when I was at junior school and no matter how much I wanted to keep my new notebook neat I always messed it up! The brand new sketchbook is so pristine and then you do something awful on the first sketch tra-laaa!
So what I like doing is making a number of sections which I can fill, censor, sell off en route and finally bind them into a book. Most sketchbooks seems to be about A5 landscape or portrait. I like square formats which I can use either way, or fill. I make the pages 18cm square.
- Paper: I like three kinds of paper and make sections of each of these types of papers:
Snowdon cartridge 130gsm: This is the cheapest thin paper. It has a nice ‘tooth’ and is great for scribbling or ideas or pen drawings, but not so nice for watercolours. A section will have 5-6 folios: 20 – 24 pages. (woodfree and acidfree) I would use this on the train or t draw Misty the cat who keeps moving away. I get six pages per sheet, but two have the grain direction going the wrong way. Because of the Coptic style of binding you can sort of get away with this. - Winsor and Newton cartridge medium surface 220gsm A2 pad: This is thicker than the Snowdon and can take a bit of water. Its not as expensive as water colour so its a good inexpensive nice feeling all-rounder. 3 folios per section: 12 pages. this is nice for a drawing which I am not sure will be good or where there isn’t quite enough time, but I do want to use a little watercolour. I’m fairly certain the grain runs lengthways, but you’d need to check as I don’t have my big A2 pad yet. So I’d get 3 folios per sheet with the grain going the right way.
- Fabriano Artistico Not 200gsm: Some very yummy but not over-textured watercolour paper. 3 folios per section: 12 pages. This paper makes me feel like a million dollars! Yippee this is “shortgrain” so I can get 6 folios per sheet with the grain going the right way.
The idea is to make up sections and pierce holes as for Coptic binding, but just use 3 of the holes to do pamphlet binding in the meantime. Then when I have filled a whole lot of sections, I’ll take them apart and rebind the ones I want (and discard the ones where I can’t bear to look at the mess I made.) I did all the holes at the beginning so that they all matched nicely across the spine. I’m even keeping a cat sketch section next to the bed as Misty does most of her posturing when I’m in bed.
Below will show how I cut the paper:
One of these days when I have done about 60 sketches, I hope I’ll explain Coptic binding or strap binding like the book above. 🙂
What a fantastically useful blog. THANK YOU!
Lin, you have a bottomless well of great ideas but this one is terrific! There are so many sketch books available but it is hard to find ones that suit your preferred sketching medium in your favourite format. This idea is a juicy carrot to encourage me to do my physio exercises to get my right arm fully functioning again! Thank you 🙂
Yes! Be good and do your physio!
Lin, that is really helpful! I have mounds of paper which I have been considering making into books – if only to take up less room in my overloaded drawers, although that sounds illogical as there would be just the same amount of paper! Your suggestion has inspired me to get going but hopefully to do it with the paper I have, and not buy even more…………
I will Lin! Can’t wait to see Misty sketches:-)