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The Go-Everywhere Urban Sketching Kit: My Go-To Tools for Mindful Travel
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items As an architect and spatial designer, urban sketching is my tool for deep observation and capturing the soul of historic spaces. This is the exact, battle-tested kit I pack for solo sketching trips - optimized for portability, fast-drying pigments, a...
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My sketching kit :)
Starting from scratch!
My sketching kit :)
If you see me sketching in the wild, I'm likely using one of these!
This was one of my favorite sketchbooks to use! I love the 100% cotton paper, which takes my watercolors a lot easily. The pop of green for the cover made it so I never lost it in my bag (because why is every sketchbook black? booooring), and its por...
tumuarta Watercolor Sketchbook 5x7.5, 140LB
Your go-to brush for smaller details and adding quick, loose washes to your street scenes.
Princeton Select Synthetic Brush - Round, Short Handle, Size 4
Perfect for sweeping washes of color when you want to quickly lay down the mood of a place before moving on.
Princeton Select Synthetic Brush - Round, Short Handle, Size 10
I'm an architect at heart, of course I'm gonna recommend microns :P The ultimate tool to help you commit to the line. The waterproof ink means you can confidently wash watercolor over your imperfect, beautiful sketches.
Sakura Pigma Micron Pens - Set of 6, Black, Fine and Bold Sizes
It's been such an upgrade having 2 small wells to clean my watercolor brushes + get water for my mixing. I love how small it is, that it's metal, and that it can clip onto things, making it perfect for that on-the-go sketching!
Palette Cup - Small, Double
Apparently my fanny pack isn't sold anymore LOL. I've enjoyed getting fanny packs from REI - if they're good enough for hikes, they're good enough to take anywhere I go and hold all my art supplies (pens, watercolors, pencils, water pans, etc). On my...
REI Co-op Stuff Travel Waist Pack | REI Co-op
Starting from scratch!
If you're getting your toes wet with urban sketching, this is what I usually start with. Lower cost, and just enough to get you going!
For watercolor specifically, this was my starter sketchbook. This size is perfectly portable for cafes or park benches. The paper handles watercolor beautifully without making you feel like you are ruining a precious "fine art" canvas.
Hahnemühle Akademie Aquarell Watercolor Book - 5-3/4" x 8"
When I was getting back into watercolor, this was small enough (and cute because it's a circle) that it made for an easy, transportable watercolor paint that gets the job done! It also comes with a small, travel-size brush you can use
Raphaël Watercolor Travel Pan Set | BLICK Art Materials
You really just need one pen to start. I found that 05 Microns are the perfect size to take detail, big strokes, and be waterproof ink, so I can go over it with watercolor.
Sakura Pigma Micron Pen - Black, 05
I honestly use these brushes in my day-to-day as well when I can't get my full brush + water set up. It's super flexible and handy in situations where I can't get any water.
Mr. Pen Watercolor Brush Pens, 6 pcs, Nylon