Here's how this all got started...
I’d been struggling with my creative practice. I wanted to actually draw in my sketchbooks—not just jot down ideas or to-do lists. That’s when my friend George Kevin Jordan recommended the course Daily Sketchbook Drawing by Alfonso de Anda.
There’s a section of the course that’s about mindset when you draw/make. Some things Alfonso said that really stayed with me: Discomfort will be there. And The goal is to sit down and make. Sitting down? Already achieving the goal.
Alfonso also shared how he makes DIY sketchbooks that are small enough you can take along anywhere. I hate wasting stuff and I’m cheap, so this totally appealed to me. I tore out unused pages from old sketchbooks, stapled them together, and had my first batch of minis.
Later, I was talking with my friend Haena Kang about having a creative practice accountability partner. She wanted to do a 30-day surface design challenge and invited me to join. I was hesitant, but I gave it a shot.
The first few days were rough. Even with my mini sketchbook, I was feeling pretty aimless. So I asked myself: What do I want to get better at?
I wanted to get more comfortable drawing animals and to start building a visual vocabulary that could support my illustration work. So I started with a bird, repeating it like a pattern until it filled the page.
Something clicked and I was able to keep up with the 30 day challenge in my mini sketchbook by repeating this process.