Sketchbook Challenge Blog 2012

Happy New Year everyone!

I hope that all of you are readers (and participants) in the Sketchbook Challenge Project that I am a guest host at.
I wanted to post the opening theme for the 2012 Sketchbook Challenge.

This month, Diana Trout has offered up a perfect beginning to our blog.

Here is a re-post of the 1-2-2012 post.

Happy New Year, Sketchbook Challengers and welcome to newbies. Diana here with January's theme

*Doodling**

None Threatening Drawing for Anyone At All

Doodling, Noodling, Moodling, call it what you'd like.

This quote from Brenda Ueland, sums it up nicely:

So you see, imagination needs moodling - long, inefficient, happy idling, dawdling and puttering. 

We all doodle: on the phone, at meetings, on grocery lists. On our calendars. Do you remember all of the hearts and little flowers on your school notebooks? Until your teacher told you to "pay attention." Really puts the kebash on doodling greatness. (I pay better attention whilst doodling.) 

Somewhere along the line, you may have stopped doodling. Let's get your doodle on this month! 

Here are some doodling starters tips for beginning-again doodlers.

Doodle on brown paper, graph paper, looseleaf paper, in your journal.

1. Use a really simple pen and any kind of paper. For instance, are you working on a work related problem? Doodle on the edges of that paper. Let doodling begin to creep into your everyday life.

2. Doodling is meditative but sometimes our minds resist (believe me, I know). Decide to "take 5" and put on a song you love. Doodle to it. I'll bet you go for 15 minutes.

3. Doodling is really good for developing drawing skills. Your eye-hand coordination will improve.

4. Doodle straight lines, curving lines, open shapes such as boxes, circles, ovals. Look at what you've already doodled and repeat some of these motifs.

5.  Make a doodle sampler. A page full of doodling ideas: flower shapes, pod shapes (like my pods). Link the shapes together with lines, dots, flourishes. 

6. Mix it up and use different line widths. I like to start with a Micron 01 and go up to 03 and 05.

Coming up ... resources in the art world to broaden your doodle vocabulary. Happy Doodling!

The theme for January 2012 is: 

*Doodling*

Special Prize Giveaway Announcements:

This year on the Sketchbook Challenge we're going to be giving away some art!  Each month one (or more!) of the Sketchbook Challenge Artists will be sending a piece of mail art to one (or more!) winners each month!   Winners of the mail art will be chosen by random draw from the photos posted on the flickr group for that month.  More details on how to be eligible are below.

And we also have an additional prize package this month donated by our sponsor Joggles!

Two winners will each receive a $25 gift certificate to Joggles.com!

How to be eligible for prize drawings: 

In order to be eligible for one of the January 2012 prize packages you must post at least one photo of a sketchbook page related to the January 2012 theme to the Sketchbook Challenge Flickr group and you MUST tag one of your photos with the code "jan987".  

 IMPORTANT:  PLEASE ONLY TAG ONE OF YOUR PHOTOS with this special code!  

It is not necessary to tag more than one and it will not increase your chances of winning.

Information on how to upload photos to flickr can be found here.

Winners will be chosen based on random draw on 1/31/12 and announced on the Sketchbook Challenge blog either on that day or on 2/1/12.

***Go to the original post for the links that Diana added to the entry.***

Now let's see your doodles!