some moments that i've had

A couple of weeks ago I went on a little mini holiday. Holidays have been few and far between for me recently and almost all of the trips I've made, in the last few years, have been work related. I'm not complaining, I love any kind of travel. Work related or not.

But, there's something that I've been itching do for a while and that's journal a trip. A whole trip. From start to finish. If you are working and travelling that's more difficult to do, I find, because you are either planning or, er, working. So, this little mini break was my opportunity, and, I thought I'd share that with you. From start to finish.

I'll begin with the things that I took with me (I'm talking pens, sketchbooks, etc, and not how many pairs of knickers). Oh, firstly, I should say that as reading material I took Danny Gregory's 'An Illustrated Journey'. This is the first chance, since receiving my copy, that I've had to sit and read and study the book. It was a great travel companion.

Right then, pens and pencils. At this point, I should mention, that I'm not really best suited to drawing en location. You might be able to see why. Yep, simply because I cannot make a decision. Ever. About anything. That tends to be an issue when I'm drawing and travelling; I cannot decide what to take so I just end up taking loads of stuff. Perhaps it's because I'm not that experienced at outdoor sketching yet; I haven't narrowed down my tools. Or, perhaps it's because I cannot make a decision. Ever.

(above, from left to right);

1. a set of pencils (not the ones I use at home - jeeez, I'd need another suitcase if I took those - just a relatively cheap set that I bought many moons ago and have never used)
2. a box filled with various brown, green and natural coloured pens
3. a pencil case of blue ballpoint pens
4. some black fine liners and pens.

And, so to the paper. Recently, I've been using these notebooks for making quick sketches in. My normal sketchbook of choice is the Moleskine, but, these days, I've been trying out other stuff. I read, in An Illustrated Journal, an artist say that they liked the Moleskine because it was like a novel. I completely relate to that, that's exactly what I love about them, but, also, that's the reason I didn't want to take one. I tend to get a bit geeky about the work I do in my Moleskines. I take too much care in them because I'm always seeing the book as a whole. So, I wanted to take something where I could be more, er, um, carefree (?).

 So, I found these notebooks in my favourite shop, Atticus Boo, where I buy all my sketchbooks. I found them whilst looking through their selection of gorgeous stationery. I'd never heard of this brand but knew that they'd be quality as everything in Atticus Boo is. I've given this series of books the title 'some moments that I've had' because they are filled with (sketched) moments that I've had - and, more to the point, because it's a beautiful Kate Bush lyric.

 I remember the firs time I bought one and opened it up to find this little piece of poetry on the fly leaf. It's those tiny little surprises, those little moments, that I love and that spark my imagination and creativity. The lush paper comes in a range of colours. So far I've completed one with a dark cream paper and a blue lined paper. The one I took away with me, this time, was the off white virgin paper you can see below.  

 It's not a sketchbook so I've come to accept that the paper cannot handle the amount of ink I throw at it without bleeding, a little, through the page. But I don't mind. I kind of like it, in fact. Another piece I read in An Illustrated Journey, by the amazing Fabio Consoli, he says 'Energy doesn't come from the pride of having a nice drawing but from the act of drawing it, the act of doing and living in the present, the here and now'. I like that I can be less precious, in these notebooks, than I am with my Moleskines. There's a place for both approaches in my life.

This is the label on the back and might help you if you are a notebook nerd and would like to track them down. I recommend them.

Well, this post was never meant to be soooo long. But, finally, I'm all set and ready to hit the road. Next time I'll show you some of the drawings from my trip and from this journal - if you haven't already lost the will to live. To be continued....