My tools for painting on the go!

I’ve always found drawing outside a bit uncomfortable (and frankly still do sometimes). It always comes down to questions of, “Which materials should I bring? Do I really need to bring this much stuff? What if I get tired of carrying this much stuff? Should I bring less stuff? But what if I want it later and I don’t have it with me?!”

We’ve all been stuck inside a lot this past year, but when I'm able to travel again I want to start painting more outside! So I thought it'd be fun to share my materials and supplies that I use when I go out to draw :D

I've tried many different mediums in the past, but my go to choice now when it comes to drawing outside is watercolor. I find it to be the most compact and versatile medium to bring since it gives you a huge option of colors without needing to bring too much.

I have three different kits depending on how long of a drawing session I plan on doing and will share with you all three! :D Okay enough intro - let’s get into it!

THE MINIMALIST KIT

If I'm just going out and want the option to draw/doodle, but not sure if I will get the chance to, this is what I will bring with me. It's my suuuuper minimalst kit to bring just the bare essentials. It is compact and light, but gives me everything I need to scribble!

In this kit:

1. Brown Waterproof Faber-Castell Brush pen - For making sketches, outlines and details
2. Aqua water brush - This is a pen that holds water in it! You fill it with water and when you squeeze it, water comes out :3 This is the key to this kit as it means you don't have to bring water with you - all you need is the pen!
3. Homemade paint palette - This is a mini palette I made using empty paint pans and a leftover licorice candy tin! I then filled it with my favorite watercolor paints :)

THE STANDARD

When I travel, this is usually the kit I will bring with me. I usually will bring this one if I know that I will get a break at some point and will have a good amount of time to do some painting. I really like being able to draw different locations when I get the chance! It's always a nice way to look back on those memories :)

In this kit:

1. Cloth zip pouch - A bag to hold everything! This one is a makeup bag I got from The Body Shop :)
2. Lukas paint palette - I bought this palette without any paints in it and bought empty pans to again fill with my favorite water colors :) 
3. Frixion erasable pen - These days, I almost always use erasable pens instead of pencils to sketch. I think it's just because I don't like all the little leftover bits when erasing with a pencil. PLUS you can get it in different colors! I usually use brown
4. Brown Copic 0.3 pen liner - For adding in details after if I want to
5. Brown Faber-Castell brush pen
6. Aqua brush pen
7. Mini spray bottle - Sometimes I like being able to wet a whole page to do fun watercolor things :P
8. Paper binder clip
9. Ruler

THE PINEAPPLE

This is my ultimate kit - the one I will take with me when I am going out with the specific goal to draw/paint!

In this kit:

1. Everything in the Standard
2. Colored pencils - Any brand! I think I have some unknown brands as well as copic and Faber-Castell 
3. Pencil sharpener

I call it The Pineapple because this amazing art supply holder is created by a handmade crafter I found on Etsy called jumpingPineapple. It folds up neatly to fit into a backpack and keeps everything organized! 

(See the attached gif to see a little animation of it :P I didn't link it here directly because having it repeatedly playing would be a little distracting I think.)

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So there you have it - my little to-go drawing/painting kits! I'm looking forward to spring when I can go to the park again to draw and can't wait til I can travel again too and then share them with you. Until then, here are some paintings I have done in the past :) These are done in a Hahnemühle watercolor sketchbook.

They aren't perfect, but nice practice for just on the go! Do you enjoy painting outside or have any tips of your own?

(( Hey! Did you like this post? Let me know if you enjoy little ARTicles like this or prefer soemthing else instead! ;D))