Are you joining us in Morocco?
Hi friends,
We are closing in on the date for our Creative Journaling Adventure in Morocco so I thought I would share an update with some handy information within that you may wish to consider when thinking about what to bring with you on your adventure!
The great thing about journaling is you can travel light and indeed I encourage you to do so. Many of us have hang-ups over making sure we’ve got all the things we need in order to be creative and as a result, they become a barrier to actually being creative. I find it quite liberating to really limit what I take out with me on a journaling trip outside so I’m forced to just use what I’ve got with me at the time.
As your guide for this retreat, I will of course be bringing some lovely supplies for you to try. I’ll be bringing a few small watercolour travel-sized kits, lots of spare paintbrushes, watercolour pencils and regular colouring pencils, as well as a few other things that you may wish to experiment with. I also encourage you to invest in your special journal for this trip. Something that you can take home and flip through when you wish to have a reminder of this lovely adventure you embarked on, and hopefully something to inspire you to pick up your pens and pencils and to keep being creative.
Journal top tips:
For me, my favourite size is around A5 size (approximately half a folded sheet of printer paper), this size can fit nicely in most bags or backpacks and gives you room to paint and draw as well as write. Smaller sizes are good for quick sketches or note taking, and larger sizes for larger, more invested compositions. I’ve found a few suppliers who I really like that offer good travel journals that hold up to having watery pigments on them (without dissolving) and are durable and good quality. I wouldn’t advise going the cheaper the better in this scenario and the likes of WHSmith and The Works (if you’re in the UK) don’t generally have the quality we will need. Pith supply a nice range of journals and their journals lie flat which is particularly useful when on the go. You can find them here: https://www.pithsupply.com/products/p/tangelosketchbook, Seawhite also do a fabulous set of travel journals in a variety of sizes which you can find here: https://www.jacksonsart.com/seawhite-watercolour-travel-journal-200gsm-a5-not, I’ve also enjoyed the Etchr journals which are available here: https://etchrlab.com/products/es-landscape but might be harder to find in european countries.
Generally, look for a travel journal that says it can handle watercolour and you should be safe!
I’ve also put a list together of things you may wish to bring:
Your journal (of course)
Some sort of bulldog clip to hold your journal open if it gets breezy
Pencil, eraser, pencil sharpener (or a mechanical pencil)
Small watercolour travel paint set (most nowadays are great quality and they last ages!) Winsor and Newton is a great brand for this and readily available in most areas.
Paintbrushes (a thin tip and a thick tip brush is suitable for most uses)
Maybe a little roll of tape for sticking things you find in your journal.
Your favourite writing pen (ideally waterproof ink)
Other materials such as pastels, coloured pencils if you wish to try something else.
Bare in mind that tubes of paint might burst whilst in the air due to airpressure changes, so if you bring those make sure they’re in a plastic bag and contained!
I’m so looking forward to meeting you all and exploring our creativity together!
There are limited spaces available for this retreat, feel free to find out more about it here, and book your spot now!
