How To Start And Keep A Daily Sketchbook Habit

Why do you need a sketchbook? Well, a sketchbook is one of those artist tools that are not essential but are invaluable.

Sketches in your sketchbook are like snapshots of an idea, a moment in your day or a period in your art journey.

Sketchbooks can motivate, inspire and relax even non artists and are a great way to practice drawing techniques.

Read on for some tips on how to start and keep a sketchbook.

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Draw Every Day

Use your sketchbook every day for at least 10 to 15 minutes. The more you draw the better you get and the stronger the muscle memory becomes.

It doesn’t have to be a masterpiece. You can draw while waiting in the doctors’ office, at a coffee shop, watching TV, on a long drive (while someone else is driving of course 😊 ).

Just sketch whatever subject matter that comes to mind or whatever you see in front of you, like a rock or a chair.

Sketchbooks are a great tool to use to practice different techniques like cross-hatching, stippling, smooth shading, or scribbling. Daily practice will improve your artwork very quickly.

For more tips on improving your drawing skills see my post Tips to Improve Your Drawing Skills

Be Spontaneous In Your Drawing

The first step to starting a sketchbook is to let yourself just sketch. Sketchbooks aren’t meant to be framable, sellable pieces although they are often good enough for that.

Let the sketches be spontaneous. Don’t fix every line and shadow.

There are no rules to sketching, no right or wrong way, no edits, no critiques.

This is just a way for you to practice and get into the habit of creating art on even your busiest days.

I am a perfectionist and I tend to want to fix everything, so allowing myself to keep a messy sketchbook helps me to loosen up and improves my painting.

Keep a Variety of Sketchbooks

I love getting a new sketchbook. There is something about making that first drawing on a new sketchbook page that inspires your creativity.

I have a few different types of sketchbooks. Some I bought because I liked the cover or size and others I purchased because I liked the specific type of paper they were made of. 

The most important thing about a sketchbook is that you feel comfortable drawing in it and it is the right sketchbook for you and your drawing style.

You don’t need expensive cloth or leather bound sketchbooks, although they are certainly nice to have.

Any sketchbook will do. Having several in a variety of sizes is a good idea.

Pocket-sized sketchbooks are great to carry in your pocket or purse, a larger one for your studio and maybe a mid sized one you can keep around the house for when inspiration strikes.  

One of the side effects of Parkinson’s is insomnia, so I keep a hard cover sketchbook like this one on my night stand to doodle or draw when I can’t sleep or want to remember a dream I had.

Sketchbooks are available almost anywhere. You can find them at your local art store, on Amazon, or in big box stores like Walmart

Also, don’t forget to keep a small pencil case handy with pencils, an eraser and a sharpener for when you have a few minutes to sketch.

Drawing Ideas For Your Sketchbook

You can sketch anything you want to in your sketchbook. It doesn’t have to be an intricate design or detailed sketch.

Staring at a blank page can be intimidating. Start with just a single random line and expand from there

Draw everyday objects in your home such as a table or rug, or things in nature like trees or rocks.

You can just doodle random shapes if that’s what you are in the mood to do.

Simple lines that outline objects will help you learn perspective and dimension.

Grouping unrelated items together in a drawing can also give your sketches an abstract feel and give you knew ideas for other artwork.

If you are feeling uninspired and don’t know what to draw, here is a list of a few simple sketching prompts . You can download and print this PDF version of the prompts for future reference.

Try drawing things from unusual angles.

A light fixture drawn from directly underneath makes a more interesting subject than one drawn from the side. 

A subject, such as a leaf or flower drawn from an extremely close up angle can be beautiful and detailed without taking up too much time.

Objects drawn from a different perspective can add interest and keep you motivated to sketch every day.

Looking at sketchbooks that other artist post on social media can be a great source of inspiration. Don’t copy them, but instead, use them as inspiration for your own drawing.

Sketching with Different Mediums

Don’t limit your sketches to just pencil drawings. Try other drawing tools such as pens, coloured pencils, markers, watercolor paint or pencils, charcoal, conte crayons, ink or pastels.

Have a look at my post on graphite pencils to help you choose the best pencils to draw with.

This is a great set of drawing pencils to start with.

Experiment by combining one or more of these tools together in a drawing or try some entirely new mediums. It’s a great way to get experience with other mediums and develop your own style.

Some mediums, such as charcoal and pastels can smudge easily, so I recommend you lightly mist the pages with a fixative to protect your sketch and your book from damage.

This drawing was inspired by a picture I found on Pixabay. The original image was in colour but I drew it using graphite and a little charcoal.

This leads me to another point. Be careful where you get your reference photos. Images on the internet are not always free to use.

Taking an image from Google can leave you in violation of copyright laws.

These laws vary from country to country so be sure the photo you use is not copyrighted and has a creative commons license.

Read my post on reference photos for more information and to get a list of websites offering free stock photos.

Add a Background

If you find a blank white page as scary as a blank white canvas, try messing up your page a little before doing your sketch.

Doodle some shapes and lines around the perimeter of your page or add a background colour with ink or watercolour if your sketchbook can handle a little wetness. A mixed-media sketchbook would be good for this.

You can also divide the page into quarters and draw a smaller sketch in each square. You can draw several different sketches all over the page or just one big main sketch. As I said before, there are no rules.

Add a Little Zen To Your Sketchbook

Try some meditative drawing. Sit in a quiet place, close your eyes and let your pencil drift across the page.

Draw whatever comes into your mind, or just doodle without thinking about what you are sketching.

It is a great way to give yourself a 10 minute break from a stressful day, or to help you relax when you are having a bit of a creative block.

Stress relief is one reason even non artists should keep a sketchbook. I do meditative drawing a lot and really enjoy it.

Sometimes the random, messy doodle I produce leads me to a new idea for a painting.

When You Are Finished Drawing

When you are finished your sketch, sign and date it. You can revisit old sketchbooks months or even years later and see how far you have grown in your drawing and composition.

Old sketches often lead to knew ideas and act as a visual journal of that particular time in your life.

When you keep a sketchbook, old sketchbooks become memory books for your creative process. Daily sketchbook practice will keep you motivated in other areas of your artwork while improving your drawing skills.

I hope you enjoyed reading this blog post and have started your own sketchbook. If you are looking for something a little different you might enjoy learning about art journals. They are similar to sketchbooks, but are more and use paint, pictures, coloured paper and a lot more. You can find all the info in my post on Art Journals.

If you have questions, you can leave them in the comments below. You can also join our free Facebook group, Trembeling Art Creative Corner, where you can ask questions, post your work and get to know some fantastic artists from all genres and skill levels. 😊