Doomscrolling Prevention Progress Report

 

2/16/26 (photo reference; Derwent Drawing
pencil, S&B Zeta sketchbook)

2/16/26 (same photo reference as the sketch at left;
Derwent Inktense Blocks, Caran d'Ache Neocolor II,
Museum Aquarelle pencil, S&B Delta sketchbook)

I’m not always successful, but I’ve cut back significantly on my doomscrolling since I started making a concerted effort to stop about a month ago. Although I’ve never been a fan of sketching from photos, I do find it relaxing and fun to “practice” urban sketching by using reference photos of ordinary neighborhood scenes that I enjoy sketching from life. The mixed-media attempts at home are what encouraged me to find a way to use water-soluble waxed pastels more on location (and now that I’ve found a practical way to carry them, I’m looking forward to using them more).

I’m less likely to use dry colored pencils on location, mainly due to the additional time they take, but now that I’ve done it a bit, I want to keep trying. In the meantime, the monochrome sketches I’m making at home are the most soothing and relaxing of all. Without color, they require less thinking than mixed media, and not having to change materials gives them an uninterrupted, meditative quality.

2/7/26 (photo reference; Derwent Drawing pencil, Zeta sketchbook)

The last sketch shown below was an unintended discovery about different types of pencils. Recalling the series of sketches I had made years ago with a blue/vermillion bicolor pencil, I suddenly got in the mood to do it again with a photo reference. Digging through my doomscrolling prevention mixed-media kit, I found an Ink Blue Derwent Drawing pencil and an orange Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelle.

2/18/26 (photo reference; Derwent Drawing and Museum Aquarelle pencils, Zeta sketchbook)

I typically wouldn’t mix a non-soluble and a water-soluble colored pencil this way (though there’s no reason not to). Used concurrently in the same sketch, I was a bit shocked to realize how scratchy the Museum Aquarelle felt compared to the Drawing! Until that moment, I never would have thought the Museum was anything but perfectly soft, smooth and creamy. Used alone, it still is, but this is what I’m talking about when I say that Drawing pencils are something special.