Summary: Show Notes: Episode 108<br> Today on the First 40 Miles, SKETCH: Art on the Trail. If you’re inspired by purple mountains majesty, we’ll give you a few reasons why you should take the time to sketch what you see. Plus, on today’s Top 5 List we’ve put together a two ounce packing list for your artistic adventures. On the SUMMIT Gear Review, an ultralight way to liven up your plein air sketches with vibrant watercolors. Then on the Backpack Hack of the Week, an entire watercolor palette that weighs less than the toothpaste you put on your toothbrush this morning.<br> Opening<br> <br> * This whole idea started with a book we found called <a href="https://dannygregorysblog.com/books/art-before-breakfast/">“Art Before Breakfast” by Danny Gregory.</a><br> * A Zillion Ways to be Creative…<br> * Started incorporating art into our outdoor adventures<br> * Art with a small a not a capital A<br> * What does art do on the trail? Why is it important?<br> * Slows down time, makes you truly see things, you don’t take things for granted, you get to know your trail, a sketch or painting immediately takes you back to that exact moment—you can see smell, feel, EXACTLY what you were experiencing when you stopped to make that sketch.<br> <br> Top 5 Tools for Artists on the Trail<br> Mix media sketch book<br> <br> * Canson XL Mix Media Spiral Bound Notebook 98 lb notebook<br> * Cut the paper down to the size you need/want<br> * Heavyweight, fine texture<br> * For wet or dry media—very versatile<br> * 5″ x 8.5″ sheet size<br> <br> Pencil or pen<br> <br> * Pen: Heather uses Sakura Micron pens when sketching<br> * Just started using the Sakura brush pen for my sketches because the variable line width is so fun!<br> * Note: Pens can run out of ink, but pencils never do…<br> * Pencil…can be sharpened with a pocketknife<br> <br> Waterbrush<br> <br> * A waterbrush is a painbrush with a well of water inside<br> * Usually when you use watercolors, you have a brush and a cup of water to clean off the brush when you’re done with that color<br> * But with a water brush, it’s perfect for painting while you’re out backpacking because you don’t need a cup of water, the paintbrush has water inside it! So to wet the watercolors, you just need to dab the waterbrush in the ink and it will wet the paint. If you squeeze the brush it will let out more water.<br> * To clean it, simple wipe the brush off on a piece of tissue or a cotton bandana<br> <br> Watercolors<br> <br> * Peerless water colors with a little cotton pad or piece of paper towel or toilet paper to wipe off the watercolor<br> * Koi makes a pocket field sketch box (4 ounces). Comes with a waterbrush<br> <br> Bag<br> <br> * This can be as simple as a quart Ziploc bag<br> * You can also have a dedicated art bag that you take out on day hikes<br> * Mindshift makes some really great bags that can accommodate various hobbies on the trail—we talked about Mindshift packs on our photography episode.<br> * <a href="http://www.mindshiftgear.com/products/trailscape-18l">Mindshift </a>pack for artist’ s gear…the TrailScape 18L<br> <br> <br> #6 Another tool specific to acrylic or oil painters is a pochade box<br> Has drying racks, easel, storage, palettes, and fold up neatly while protecting your paintings.<br> <br> SUMMIT Gear Review™: <a href="http://www.peerlesscolor.com/">Peerless Watercolors</a><br> <br> * Peerless Water Color Complete Edition Book<br> * We heard about peerless watercolors from an art podcast<br> * Peerless Watercolors were first published in book form in 1902 by Charles Nicholson. It comes with the original text from over 100 years ago with no changes to that original text! These books are handmade and were originally created for photo tinting!<br> * The text is charming! For example: “Lack of decision usually ends in failure”<br>
