A Year in Watercolor Journaling

Way back in 2017, I decided to start a weekly watercolor journal. Inspired by other artists on instagram, I started this challenge for several reasons. For one, I wanted to improve my skills painting with watercolor. It’s a medium I’ve always admired but didn’t feel confident painting in. Second, I wanted a challenge that would keep me drawing throughout the year. At that time, I spending my days and nights either in class, studying, or working. I felt like I had no creative outlet to keep me going and that’s where watercolor journaling came in.

A spread from my 2017 watercolor journal.

Every Sunday night I would get out my little journal and recount the events that happened during the week. I’ll admit, there were some days where I didn’t feel like drawing anything, or didn’t even like the end result, but I kept going. I’m proud to say that I stayed on schedule, and and found ways to paint a whole year of my life. After successfully illustrating 52 weeks worth pages, I decided to take a break in 2018. I thought some time away would gradually reignite my passion for watercolor, and I was right!

Towards the end of that year I felt an itch to start another watercolor journal. So I found a larger journal, committed to 12 spreads throughout 2019, and bought some new paint! Using a larger journal allowed me to draw larger illustrations and utilize watercolor the way I’d intended to back in 2017. My paintings slowly improved and I found my color palettes grew more harmonious as the months continued. I love having a journal full of memories that I can look back on forever. I spent a good amount of time last year debating if I would continue this formatting of journaling in 2020.

While I feel like I could have logistically included journaling into my routine, I’m soooo glad I decided to end it where I did. I mean, if I was watercoloring 2020, March-December would just be various illustrations of me at home with my cats. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, it’s just, we all know none of us have plans for the rest of the year. Plus, all of this time at home allowed me to build my own business and launch this website! 

Please scroll through the pages of my 2019 watercolor journal below.