Melanie April Houten -- A Sketchbook Conversation

Today's Sketchbook Conversation is with Melanie April Houten, a watercolor artist and teacher in Sarasota, Florida.

Here's Melanie's story:

Hello! I'm Melanie, I am excited to share my sketchbooks with you! I've always kept some sort of diary, even from a very young age. My first one was a 'hello kitty' diary with a lock - and I've been collecting journals ever since. I've always drawn - always written - but hardly ever actually finish filling a journal before I've started another one. I'm slightly obsessed with journals of all types, shapes and sizes and usually have several going on at once.

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My current favorite is the spiral bound Field Watercolor Artist Journal by 'handbook journal co.' It's created with Fluid watercolor paper in either hot or cold pressed - I use cold press - and it's really wonderful.

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Spiral bound books are best for me... as sometimes, when I really don't like something - I have no problem tearing it out! I find that just knowing that helps me go with the flow and create just to create... and typically I don't end up tearing anything out.

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I create a lot of my little 'planets' - it's my way of testing color combinations and seeing how paints react with water and each other. They've taken on a life of their own and I've just created a class on how to create galaxies and cosmic effects based on these experiments.

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What I paint beyond that is truly up in the air each day - I have a love affair with feathers, but then, there's a random lobster or something crazy mixed in there too. Artists!

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For inspiration, I also clip photographs and images from different types of magazines and collage them into a journal. I love looking through this book when I need a color fix. It never fails to inspire me.

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My best advice for starting a sketchbook is - try a spiral bound one - tell yourself that if you don't like something, you'll just tear it out - it takes the pressure off. Once the pressure is off, you'll end up creating something you don't need to tear out! Also - date your entries and track your progress. If you do experiments with color or tools - be sure to record what you did.

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Thank you, Melanie, for sharing your sketchbooks with us today!

Dear reader, you can connect with Melanie:



Missed the other Sketchbook Conversations posts? It's easy to catch up at the series web page.

And for even more inspiration, check out my Artist Interviews




*Photos in this post ©Melanie April Houten. Used with permission.

Comments

  1. Replies
    1. Thanks for stopping by, Elizabeth! I'm glad you enjoyed peeking into Melanie's sketchbooks!

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  2. The planets and galaxies are so inspiring! Good advice to use a spiral bound sketchbook - I am fond of the spiral bound! :)

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    1. I'm so glad you enjoyed this one, Simone! Hope you'll be finding some time to work in your own sketchbooks again!

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  3. Loved seeing a glimpse into Melanie's process! I love spiral bound Sketchbooks as well. Just love the colors used in those feathers!!!

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    1. Hi, Andrea, thanks for stopping by! I'm glad you enjoyed this Sketchbook Conversation! :)

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  4. This is such an inspiring sketchbook conversation!! So much color, and I love those little "planets"! Melanie's paint boxes alone are so full of colorful energy! Loved reading and viewing this post, Anne. Thank you for sharing. xo

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    Replies
    1. Thank you, Judy! I'm so happy to know that you found this Sketchbook Conversation inspiring!

      Glad to have you here!
      xo

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