From Idea to Reality - Tools

A sketchbook is an essential tool for your design process. It’s your diary of your design journey, with your observations, visual images, and ideas explored and developed.

The wonderful thing about a sketchbook is you don’t have to know how to draw to use one. I love my sketchbook. I use it everyday, and take it with me everywhere. You never know when inspiration will hit you.

The process for design is different for everyone. You may like to just start a project with no plan, just jump in with both feet. You may draw everything out from every angle and have very detailed plans. You may be more like me where I sketch to get the ideas down on paper and use them loosely depending on the materials available. Sketching can be your thinking process, how you fine tune your ideas, working things out before you start working with your expensive materials.

Use your sketchbook for your ideas, and as a technical journal. Record experiments you have tried, material you have worked with and techniques that did or did not work. Keep your sketchbooks, you will be surprised how often you go to them as a source of inspiration. Plus it fun to look back and see how your work has changed over the years.

Once you get started with sketching out your ideas it you will be surprised how the ideas will start flowing. It take practice to get into the habit and remember sketching is just for you, so no need to make them perfect. Try these exercise to help develop your mind-hand connection making sketching easier over time.

♦Make on-minute gestures drawing familiar objects or the scene outside a coffee shop
♦Use simple lines or scribbles to capture shapes
♦Doodle – Set your mind free and see what happens

Here are a couple of resources for making your own journal and on how to keep a sketchbook. Check out these Etsy shops that offer beautiful handmade sketchbooks (click on the photo for the shop).

Create your one moleskin sketchbook

How to keep a sketchbook

Question – How do you design? Do you just jump in working with the material you have or do you plan out what you are going to do?