Travel Kit
Watercolors, drawing media and journal

June is the beginning of travel season for me. Of course, I may travel year-round, but the feeling is a holdover from school days and the excitement of summer vacation.

I’ve been cleaning out and repacking my art supplies, and thought I would show you what I’m using these days.

When I attend a plein air event or workshop, I pack my Soltek easel, canvases, acrylic or oil paints. I’m glad to have all of that if I have a lot of painting time, but it’s heavy and doesn’t leave much room for clothes and souvenirs. If I’m going with non-painters, I want a small, portable art kit.

The minimum I need to make art is paper and pencil. That lets me make a variety of marks, capture shapes, and make notes. I also want a way to add color. Everything else is an expansion of these requirements.

Paper can be bound or loose, mixed media or watercolor paper. It needs to be heavy enough to take watercolor without warping. I’m using a small watercolor palette by Winsor-Newton that I refill with my favorite tube colors. I squeeze out the paint and let it dry on the palette. It will rehydrate when I add water to it. In addition, I use a watercolor brush that holds water in the handle or carry a water bottle. I put it all in a plastic box and carry it in a cloth bag with shoulder straps.

• Shoulder bag
• Strathmore Art Journal with watercolor paper (8.5 x 5.5 inches)
• Watercolor crayons
• Water bottle
• Paper towels
• Plastic box
• Winsor-Newton watercolor palette
• Pencil
• Kneaded eraser
• Black pens (Faber-Castell, Staedtler, Tombow, Sharpie)
• Watercolor brushes
• Glue stick
• White gouache
• White gel pen
• Exacto knife (put in checked bag if flying)
• Small cup for water
• Wax (for resist)
• 6 inch ruler

Next week – how to use this kit when traveling