Inside my ugly drawing bag

Here's what I'm drawing with at the zoo lately. 🦒✨

Sep 16, 2024

∙ Paid

If we haven't been friends for very long, you may not know I’m totally hooked on drawing at the zoo.

I began my weekly visits with a backpack filled to the brim with art supplies. I even considered getting a folding chair and wagon to haul everything. I decided that might be too wild, even for the zoo.

Lately I've been taking fewer supplies, inspired by the 3 Materials Challenge. I talk about that a bit more here.

I love limiting my palette and mixing materials to squeeze every inch of color I can from them.

I searched the Internet high and low for a small bag to suit my minimalistic needs and organize my instruments. While waiting for the art shop to open (I know), I stopped at Urban Outfitters and found this ugly thing that is perfect!

Meet my ugly drawing bag.

It opens wide like a crocodile's jaws so I can see everything inside, similar to a pencil roll.

Inside my travel art bag. — I love the tiny pockets on the outside for waterbrushes, so I always know where to find one. An A5 sketchbook fits in this bag. And you can keep markers, pencils and crayons organized!

Here’s what I pack lately:

The Bag: It comes in Olive Green and black

Ecoline Brush Pen: Pink Beige, Cool Grey (quick color blocking)

Tombow Brush Pen: 553 (perfect for color blocking my favorite 'mates, the wonderful silverback gorillas)

Posca Paint Markers: Light Orange (color blocking orangutans and the small monkeys I love to warm up with), Straw Yellow (usually over blue Neocolor for grassy areas), Gold (makes nice greens)

Derwent Inktense Pencils: Madder Brown, Sepia Ink, Neutral Grey, Baked Earth, Shiraz, Iron Blue

Caran D’ache Supracolors: Green Ochre, Blue Jeans, Light Ochre (usually my grass colors)

Neocolor ii: Salmon, Malachite Green, Golden Ochre, Jade, Sky Blue

What kinds of things do you put in your dream drawing bag?