keeping a nature journal

There are so many unique ways to seek adventure and experience nature. As much I love hiking, exploring and exercise, I've discovered there is something in me that yearns to be still and present in my surroundings.  As an artist, I know all to well how profound a sketching or journaling process can be when it is incorporated into the outdoors. From taking a walk to looking up at the sky to hiking a trail or going camping, I am constantly reminded of what a beautiful, miraculous and creative world we live in. While I love a good adventure, when I take take time to sit, listen, look around and put pen to paper, something magical happens- I am instantly connected in a deeper way to the world around me. Nature journaling had changed my perspective about color, space, pattern, texture and weather. Taking my creative process outside has inspired me to slow down and open my eyes to things that I would have overlooked.

Want to start your own nature journaling process?

Put together a small sketching kit that goes with you on those adventures and outings. A sketchbook, pen and a small set of watercolors is all you need.

Use outdoor activities for creative opportunities. From landscapes and scenery to leaves, flowers and weather, always be on the look out for things that catch your eye. Take a little break from those activities to to observe and record your surroundings.

Challenge yourself to go anywhere outside for one hour and sketch in that location. Try completing one or two pages. Have fun finding a new location every couple of weeks.

Forget about the pressure to create a masterpiece. Instead, record the weather, write down your thoughts and experiences, put colors that you observe onto that page, draw the shapes, pattern or texture that you see. Sometimes it’s  just the process of observation and creativity that inspires that connection to nature