Sketchbook Journeys – Cape Cod: Days 1 & 2

I’ve been away from blogging for a few weeks, finishing up my Cape Cod sketches and working on a new business venture which I’ll be announcing soon. I also managed to slip in a little trip with my mom and sister, to celebrate my sis’s birthday. I’m back now and anxious to share my Cape Cod sketchbook with you.

5.5″ x 8.5″, ink & watercolor Stillman and Birn Beta series sketchbook, hardbound

I always do the title page for my travel journals after everything else
is finished. It gives me a sense of completion. Doing it after all the
sketches have been painted and the text pages have been given a splash
of color allows me to tailor the mood and style of the
page to fit the content of the travelogue. Doesn’t this title page just
ooze relaxation?

I filled the first few pages of the journal with little mini paintings that I did during the 12-hour car ride from our home in western Pennsylvania to Cape Cod, Massachusetts. (Read about them in this post.)

A friend had offered us the use of her cottage in Wellfleet, MA, and I jumped at the chance to explore Cape Cod and spend some time with my husband, just the two of us.

The house was a simple summer place with a hammock on the porch and a view of the waters of Cape Cod Bay. We spent the week basically doing nothing, and it was wonderful! We walked along the water, threw sticks for our golden retriever Buckley, sat on the porch, read books, and ate lots of seafood.

Oh, and I sketched now and then, and painted a bit. 

This trip offered lots of opportunities to practice painting water, something I’ve been working on lately. I think I might be starting to get the hang of it.

Detail

There are plenty of lighthouses to see on the Cape and we visited most of them. I never tire of painting them and, given the number of lighthouse paintings I see in shops in coastal areas, I’m not alone in that fixation. (See how I painted this one here.)

But Cape Cod isn’t all sand and beaches. Most of the land is covered in forests, so I thought I’d include a sprig of pine on this page. Don’t you love the scent of a pine forest baking in the warm sunshine? It smells like Christmas trees!

 I’ll have more Cape Cod sketches to share tomorrow. Come on back for another visit!

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I’m Leslie. A painter, teacher, and lover of all things creative. A sketchbook artist who captures everyday life on the pages of my illustrated journals. I love sharing, connecting, and encouraging people to find their creative voice through sketchbook journaling. Read more about me, my art, and my life HERE.

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