Urban Sketchers Bristol

Hello peeps, I forgot to blog about our last Bristol Urban Sketchers meet up (we have the latest one this afternoo) .  Usually we meet in town and chat, sketch, regroup for some lunch and sometimes a cheeky pint too.  Well, under lockdown this of course has to change so we have gone virtual!

We sketched using google etc in Alhambra, Spain at the suggestion of one of our members.  Well, what a beautiful location, some amazing scenery, small backstreets and amazing buildings too.  It was also great being able to catch up with the others and sketch whilst chatting to others too.

Sadly my notebook is not great for watercolour as the paint sinks straight in so ideally I should just use pencil or pen and ink (as we know from an earlier post on here its not like I don't have a "few" blank notebooks in the stash!!) but I keep forgetting that I am sketching at home and don't have to use my travel kit and could actually pop upstairs and grab the pencils!!

I am looking forward to being able to sketch again outside and meeting up with the group, but in the mean time, this is a really good alternative and a great way to explore other places, albeit virtually

Happy sketching

kyla

De cluttering my sketching kit

 Now, I am sure I am not alone but I tend to carry round in my handbag more than I need!

During 2018 I have tried to pare down what I carry, especially as my RA develops and I find it more difficult to carry heavy bags.  So I thought it was time to try and do the same for my urban sketching kit.  Now, I often just carry a few pens and a few posca's BUT I do like to splash a bit of colour around and I often use my travel watercolour kit so I looked around the web to see if I could get some ideas and boy, there are some GREAT ideas out there.

I saw many people who put art kits in small tins so I thought I would try that.

In CASS Art they had a sale for members so I bought a new travel kit where the colour pans were easily removed (cheaper than buying 9 separately)

Then in poundland I spotted this tin filled with sugar free mints and worked out this was exactly the right size.

So I decided which colours I wanted to include (that research took longer than making it all!) and stuck them in with contact adhesive.

I decided to use 9 colours and in the small space I added a small piece of sponge and cut down a pencil.  The small paint brush that came with the kit fits perfectly in the lid.

So there you have it, a small painting kit that fits not just in my handbag but also in my pocket!!  I am hoping that this will encourage me to paint/sketch more, only time will tell.

Do you have any ideas for lightweight kit, feel free to share.

Kyla

Bristol Urban Sketchers October Meet up

 Last weekend I met up with the Bristol Urban Sketchers. 

They are a really inspirational group and even though I have only just started drawing they are really welcoming and I have been trying to get to their meet ups each month since I started back in January.

Octobers meeting took place at Millennium Square in Bristol.  It is a great space with @Bristol (a science based exhibition and education center)  and the large mirrored sphere (pictured here) is actually a 3D planetarium!  Next to it is a sculpture of a tree which is actually made from solar panels and is free for people to plug into and charge their electronic devices whilst they sit there are take in the views.

I decided to sit for a while and drawer the scene, not the easiest but an enjoyable 30 odd minutes sat sketching and watching people.

This is also where the harbourside is.  Bristol is still a busy harbour and there are boats people live on, tourist vessels, water taxi's, working vessels as well as beautiful replicas such as the wooden boat the Matthew and of course the SS Great Britain.

I decided to do a quick sketch of a boat whilst I was walking along the harbourside 

After we have all sketched we meet up to share our sketches and usually grab some lunch or a cuppa.  This time whilst we were sat in the cafe a group of people on the next table all burst into song..they were an acapella group about to sing at a wedding in the Cathedral and were warming up!  I don't think the tourists could quite believe, all us sketchers with our kits etc and then the singers on the very next table!!

This is the group shot my hubby kindly took.  The umbrella was won in a silent auction by fellow sketcher, Ed, and has been sketched all over!  A brilliant idea.

As a new sketcher I was uncomfortable in sharing and joining a group, but I am so glad I did and recommend it.  

There are SO many different styles that each time I see or learn something new.

Kyla

Journal page

This is one of my latest travel journal pages.

I painted it in watercolours whilst travelling back from my Nieces Birthday party.

Can you guess how old she was?

I find journaling whilst travelling, especially with watercolours helps the time pass, especially since there appears to be so many engineering works on the railways at the moment.

Happy crafting

Kyla