What Art Supplies Can You Take on an International Flight

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How to Pack Art Supplies for Travel

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How to Pack Art Supplies for Travel

The fine art you make while yous travel is the best fine art in the world. Aye, I said information technology. Of course figuring out how to pack fine art supplies is the challenge. In a technical sense, of course, it's nice to work in a studio with all your pigment, equipment, and tools instead of on a park demote with a pencil you stole from a miniature golf course—simply in terms of bear on, passion, and capturing the spirit of a place or a moment, art in transit is unparalleled.

The Art of Travel

Erstwhile Moleskine journals are stacked on a shelf in my room, each packed with sketches, doodles, thoughts, and impromptu English/French hybrid poetry. While I hope those poems never run across the lite of twenty-four hour period, and my many sketches of Notre Matriarch probably belong at the bottom of a lake, that stack of journals would be right at the summit of the list of things I'd rescue in a fire. Every page is a creative time sheathing that immediately transports me back to the verbal time and place I created them. Travel is a special fourth dimension of flux, transition, and inspiration; if you lot tin can capture that feeling with something y'all physically create, you'll never forget information technology. Seriously. You are a different version of yourself on the road, and that time and place is worth capturing in more than an Instagram selfie. Just traveling with art supplies is difficult. And then hither'south a list of deport on packing tips, tricks, and hacks from some great traveling artists to get you back on the route to creativity. Come across what I did there? That'due south art, babe.

How to Pack Fine art Supplies: Carry On But

Information technology goes without maxim that this is a acquit on but creative person packing list, but I'll say information technology anyway—Don't bank check a bag full of art supplies. Trust me, you don't want your frail brushes, sketch pads, and watercolors chucked around as they're shoved under a plane.

3-1-ane Rule: Art Without Liquid

TSA's 3-ane-1 Rule is about more than just tiny shampoo bottles. It applies to all liquids—which includes your oil and acrylic paints. Since iii.4 oz isn't enough to paint with—especially for color mixing—and since you probably already filled your i clear plastic bag with actual shampoo already, allow's assume that you can't pack any liquid paints. Information technology's a bummer, I know, but peachy fine art is virtually exceeding your limitations with what's at paw. Man, I experience inspired already. So, if paints are out, what are your travel art supply options?

Pencils, Watercolor, & Moleskine

Moleskine: The Travel Artist's Work Horse

Moleskine journals are practically synonymous with travel. You tin't walk into a cafe in Spain without hearing the snap of that iconic rubberband ring and theskrtich of a pencil furiously sketching a stranger that isn't aware they're a subject. For a lot of artists, a moleskine and a pencil, or pen, is all you demand to create amazing art work on these little canvas pages.

The proper name in the travel journal game for the last 20 years, Moleskine'due south extensive line of sketchbook options includes:

• Moleskine Sketchbook Pocket (3.v" x five.5") — $13.95
• Moleskine Sketchbook Large (5" x 8.25") — $xix.95
• A4 Sketchbook (8.25" 10 11.69" – this 1 is metric) — $29.95
• A3 Sketchbook (11.69" x 16.5") — $39.95

Each journal is made with the aforementioned high-quality paper, thread binding, bookmark, inner pocket, and iconic cover and elastic clasp that have go the icon of artists, travelers, and doodlers for decades. All the same, the age of the traditional sketchbook equally a travel periodical might be over. Even Moleskine is embracing the move to digital media with their Evernote Sketchbook partnership. This journal features all the analog you lot can handle, but comes with a three-month Evernote trial account. What'southward more, the folio layout is designed with Evernote in heed, so yous can just snap a flick of what you've sketched with the Evernote app and it'southward instantly digitally available to save, search, or share with your fans. If 3-Months of Evernote isn't enough, click this link for i more free month.

Travel Watercolor Kits: Make a Splash on Instagram

If y'all're non familiar, watercolor is super difficult…merely, damn, information technology's pretty. And for the traveling artist, watercolor might be your best option for creating vibrant art on the move.

Watercolor paint isn't a liquid (you've got to wet it start) so it's bear on compatible. Bonus: you can wet the paint multiple times without ruining it (unlike leaving the cap off your acrylic paint for v minutes) and the corporeality of paint you need is tiny in comparison to oil paintings. Plus, watercolor brushes are adorably itsy bitsy. The best part nearly watercolor though, has to be the ease of cleaning and employ. Unlike other paints, you don't have to make clean a watercolor brush right after using it—like at the cafe. Simply run the brush under water when you go a chance, and blast, all improve. If you do take a castor fetish, and the smaller watercolor brushes that come with nigh kits aren't enough for you, upgrade to a pocket-size flat castor. Yet, a flat brush is really but necessary if you lot desire to paint with gouache pigment, like James Gurney.Sidenote:James Gurney is crawly and you should totally experiment with gouache paint. Artist Hali Karla recommends this setup for traveling with watercolor:

• Moleskine Watercolor Notebook ($18) — The heavy duty 200gsm newspaper is designed to withstand watercolor
• Koi 24-Color Watercolor Field Kit with Castor ($twenty)
• 4ml Koi Watercolor Brush ($8)
• Pilot Indicate Ultra Fine Black Pen ($11) (for those sweet outlines)
• (1) small bottle of white acrylic paint (for corrections)
• (one) Winsor & Newton's Payne's Greyness watercolor pigment ($11)
• (ane) quart sized bag with Gouache pigment (basically "opaque" watercolor)

National Geographic creative person and contributor, Candace Rose Rardon recommends:

• (2) Winsor & Newton watercolor brushes (size 2 and 4)
• Winsor & Newton watercolor compact
• (ane) Mimik synthetic squirrel hair brush (round, size 6) — only $three!
• Canson Montval watercolor pads (various sizes)
• Faber-Castell's PITT Artist pens ($iii each)

Like Candace, I'm a large fan of the Winsor & Newton Watercolor Compact gear up ($68). It's got room for fourteen colors, a brush, and it seals shut in a tidy container you tin can take anywhere with confidence. If you're looking to go smaller than the Winsor & Newton case, I'd recommend a pair of folder clips piece of work can help organize and incorporate your travel-sized palette, especially outside or on the go. Only clip the watercolor palette to your moleskine, and you're all fix to make some great art.

Pencils, Charcoal, & Graphite: Sketch of a Travel Artist

For the rest of us who can't grapple with the subtle complexities of watercolor (it's seriously super hard) colored pencils, graphite, and pens are solid travel art supply options. There are even watercolor pencils equally a hybrid option. Megan Van Groll, from Travel, Paint, Repeat says that her undercover for making art on the go is a mix of pencils and grooming:

"Virtually 10% of my portfolio consists of hyperrealistic colored pencil drawings. So when I do cull to make art on the route, it'south usually small works on newspaper with graphite or color pencil. I'll sketch the outline of my slice before leaving, secure the newspaper with archival artist tape to a piece of masonite or very difficult cardboard, cover it with another protective piece of board or cardboard, and lay it flat in my hard-sided comport on luggage. Pencils are very easy to transport so there are no combustible materials or liquids to worry about there!"

Colored Pencils & Graphite

3 of the biggest names in colored pencils are Prismacolor, Faber-Castell, and Derwent. They each brand keen color pencils, simply what yous desire depends on how you depict.

• Prismacolor's Soft Core Pencils ($74) are perfect for blending, only they're expensive, and break hands
• Faber-Castell's Polychromous Set up ($40) is smooth equally butter, just doesn't keep a sharp point
• Derwent Studio Color Pencils ($45) feature a hexagonal grip, if that matters to you

It's actually up to how you lot sketch. Regardless of which pencils you choose, call back that you don't always demand the full set to make slap-up work. Pick and choose a few of your favorite hues from the 72-pack and run into what happens. Also, a pencil nub is kind of perfect for traveling, so don't be afraid to take forth some old stubby pencils from around your workspace. Here are some other non-traditional pencil options (and an erasure eraser, because we're not all perfect).

• Derwent Charcoal pencils ($eleven) come in a handy six-pack that includes a case and a pencil sharpener
• White Stabilo mark pencils (ane x $4) are perfect for sketching on damn almost any surface. H2o soluble, and very erasable, this pencil is perfect for sketching and removing.
• White Pearl Erasures (3 10 $3) are smashing…even though you lot never brand mistakes.

Digital Art Alternatives

Before I stop, I'd be remiss if I didn't include some of the fascinating new digital tools bachelor to today'south traveling artists. Styluses and digital canvases have finally upgraded to the standards that working artists demand, while being intuitive enough (and affordable) for your average backpacker with a vision in their heart and some time to kill before their next flight.

53 Paper App (Gratuitous)

Art is messy and in today'due south digital sharing economy the incentive for artists and travelers to share their work immediately from the road is pushing a lot of creators to move abroad from the traditional sketchpad and pencil. 50-Iii is leading this digital art charge with their Newspaper drawing app. Combined with their surprisingly intuitive "Pencil" digital stylus, 53 is literally taking creativity to the deject. The app features a host of color options, palette blending, sketch tools, digital watercolor, markers, and pens, not too mention handy list and notation features. The contempo software upgrade now lets you upload your own photos or pictures to the app where you can edit, sketch, and doodle on meridian of them. It's a brave new earth.

"Pencil" Digital Stylus ($59)

The bodily stylus is kind of fantastic. I ain one, and I've taken information technology on several trips with great results. The bombardment life is great—I get weeks of sketching out of a single charge—and it'due south USB rechargable, so I just plug information technology in when I have down time to make sure information technology's topped up. Only, the existent treat is the functionality. The stylus tip is pressure sensitive and responsive—information technology actually draws what I want—which is saying something. I'm also a massive fan of the digital eraser on the tiptop of the stylus. It works but similar a real pencil, merely flip it over, erase, and flip dorsum to continue. I forget it's non graphite sometimes.

Organisation is Key

Forget brush sizes, fancy paint, and 300 gsm quality paper. TSA regulations, packing cubes, and ziploc bags are the real tools of the traveling artist's trade. Before yous sketch a single line, yous have to know how you're going to carry your tools safely, cleanly, and effectively. Now that you know what to pack, how do keep your supplies organized and your t-shirts unsoiled?

Alvin Double Pocket Mesh Numberless ($17 each)

Alvin is a trusted name in the art supply game with a lot of different options for storing your art supplies on the motility. I like the double-pocket mesh bags because I don't store a lot of especially messy items, and the actress pocket helps keep everything together. If you lot're really fancy, theAlvin Prestige Deluxe Mesh Bags ($17-$42) feature clear reinforced vinyl with a attachment for keeping all your messier supplies—similar brushes and watercolors—far from your clothes.

Art is messy, but so is travel. I can't imagine leaving home for my side by side run a risk without a camera and a sketchpad to capture my experience. Photos are peachy at capturing the harsh reality of your travels—the people, places, and things—simply sketches, drawings, collages, and paintings capture something so much more vivid and memorable than even the best DSLR in the world. Art makes the best gift.

• Moleskines come in dozens of customizable sizes—find yours
• Watercolor is hard but worth it
• Gouache; await it up
• The 53 Pencil Stylus is the real deal
• Colored Pencils are TSA approved, and all the tool yous demand

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Source: https://blog.tortugabackpacks.com/pack-art-supplies/

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