Have you ever finished a sketchbook?

I’ve never finished a sketchbook. My goal for 2024 is to finish a 9”x6” (22.86cm x 15.24cm) 236 page sketchbook I made. I’m copying drawing tutorials I find on Pinterest.

So far, I’ve filled 11 pages. I need to fill about 20 pages a month in order to accomplish my goal. I just want to see if I can even finish a sketchbook and what will happen if I do.

What a good goal!! So good...

I never use "sketchbooks" for my artwork.

when I do my charcoal, lead or color pencil sketching's, I choose loose, unbound materials. that way I am not constantly tearing out of a sketchbook when I want to frame something or throw the page away or store it in a protective case.

I have also found sketch books takes a huge chunk of my finances. a ream of loose leaf (unbound) sketching paper cost a heck of a lot less than buying bound sketch pads with less and smaller paper.

sometimes I purchase my art paper by the roll if I'm working on something that needs unlimited sketching space.

I finished 12 pages for January, so my mini goal for February is to finish 12 more pages, or 3 pages a week. I’m just following tutorials I find on Pinterest, but I did check out a book about sketchbooks from the library today.

I filled 6 pages in February and so far no pages for March. I want to experiment with scheduling time to draw and see if that helps. Ideally, I’d like to do a little every day, but it may be more realistic to just draw on the weekends.

Knock wood/cross fingers, but I am excited to report modest success with this strategy: I’ve sketched every day for 35 days straight, filling 28 pages! At this rate, I will accomplish my goal with several weeks to spare. I’m absolutely thrilled since I’ve been trying/failing to build a daily drawing practice off and on for literal decades.

Today’s stats:

I’ve drawn 71 days straight, filling 52 pages. At this rate, I will fill this 236 page sketchbook by January 6th, 2025.

Today’s stats:

I’ve drawn 91 days straight, filling 67 pages. At this rate, I will finish this 236 page sketchbook by October 4th, 2024. Wow.

Just some quick stats I’ve been meaning to update:

I have drawn every day since March 16, 2024–218 days straight.

I’ve been making smaller drawings, so I’m currently only on page 136 (of 236). That’s around a half page a day. At this rate, I will finish my sketchbook in 200 more days, or May 8th of 2025…