My Moon Mission PPK

 

My beloved Carl Angel-5 Royal sharpener is shown for scale (sadly, I'll have to leave that at home).

Regular readers of this blog are familiar with my occasional references to Gilligan’s Island. When trying to pare down my burgeoning sketch kit, I like to imagine what I would take for a “three-hour tour” that stretches into three TV seasons. That means the supplies can’t just be compact; they must be versatile enough to last for an indefinite period on a desert island. The requirement I have never given myself, though, is physical restrictions for such a kit. I figured if I could carry it myself without a wheeled cart, the Skipper could hardly object, right?

The recent Artemis II moon mission has given me a new model for a compact sketch kit: the Personal Preference Kit. Apparently the Artemis II astronauts were allowed to take only personal items that would fit into an 8-by-5-by-2-inch rectangular box. I first heard about the PPK from Ana at the Well-Appointed Desk. She had to make some hard choices to pack her PPK, and that got me thinking about what I’d put into mine.

I’m not very skilled at visualizing volumes or spaces (remember that part of the high school aptitude test that determined we should all find careers in nursing? I didn’t do so well), so I had to build myself an actual box of the required dimensions. The closest size I could find was still a bit larger than I could have, so I had to cut it down.

Most of my daily-carry fits easily! See below for the spread.

I was fairly confident that my usual daily-carry would fit, and it does! I left out my water spritzer (since that obviously wouldn’t work in space) and brush pens (which seemed doubtful). Also staying home is the Gelly Roll, which hardly works even with gravity. I kept the waterbrush and Pitt Artist Pen, though sometime before liftoff, I’ll have to do research on whether they would work in zero gravity. Actually, I’m pretty sure the waterbrush wouldn’t work, so I’d have to rethink all those water-soluble materials I’m taking. (Maybe a water-saturated sponge would work? I could probably tuck one into a corner.)

Not shown is a small spool of string that I’d need to tether each implement to my wrist as I used it. I learned this necessity from Nina Khaschina last summer when she gave a presentation at Sketcher Fest about how she sketches underwater. Her implements are tethered so they won’t float away if she inadvertently lets go. Sketching underwater must be as close to sketching in space as anyone here on Earth can get!

As with my Earth travels, I hardly have to make adjustments to my regular daily-carry to sketch in space! Yay! And we already know it’s been done before, and with colored pencils, no less!

At the bottom of the stack is an A6 Hahnemuhle sketchbook. If the Pitt Artist Pen works, then I'll bring the Uglybook. The Field Notes is not for sketching but journaling. I don't typically carry a Blackwing pencil, but I would need it for general writing.

Maisy and Sammy

 

4/6/26 Sammy (reference photo by Tom Constantini)

3/21/26 Maisy (reference photo by Natalie Taylor)

Although I haven’t been doing as many commissioned pet portraits lately, I’m happy for the opportunities to practice that keep coming up. Last month when I was an ArtSpot featured artist during Art Walk Edmonds, I demo’d a few pet portraits for visitors who had photos on their phones. I started Maisy on the spot, but then more people came by to chat, and I felt too distracted to finish. I told Maisy’s mom that I’d finish at home and give it to her later. Drawing Maisy with a brush pen gave me a good opportunity to include a stepped-out example in my workshop handout. (My brush pen workshop is tomorrow! I’ll report back soon on how that went.)

The calico was a sadder event. A friend posted on Facebook that his beloved Sammy had just passed away at a ripe old age. It’s always a joy to sketch a beautiful animal, and I hope the gift brings some comfort.

Carnegie Free Public Library

4/6/26 Original Ballard library on NW Market St.

After an appointment in Ballard, I took a fitness walk down Northwest Market Street, the main business thoroughfare. The old Ballard library, which was in use from 1904 until 1963, is a slightly different architectural style from most of Seattle’s Carnegie libraries, which look more like “my” branch at Green Lake. After it was replaced by a new, larger building nearby, the old library on Market housed various restaurants, bars, business offices and other venues over the years. The venues change over, but the grand old building still stands.

I like that the sign in front says “Carnegie Free Public Library,” which seems to emphasize to patrons that book lending is free. It’s interesting to think about: We take for granted that public libraries are always free, but maybe the concept of borrowing books for free was novel in the early 20th century. According to Wikipedia, “Initially, the library had a cache of books provided by local residents and schools on standby for the completion and grand opening, as Carnegie's grant did not cover the initial costs of new books.”

By the way, the tree in front is just starting to show tiny, “spring green” leaves sparse enough that I could still see through the branches. Soon enough, the tree will be fully leafed out, and much of the library will be obscured. I sketched it just in time.

Still Chasing Pink

 

4/5/26 Prairie fire crabapple, Green Lake

Cherry tree, Green Lake

Easter Sunday was another spring day of the type we wait six long, dark months for: Blue sky with temps in the low 60s! We all knew we’d be back to our normal programming (gray and back down to the 50s) soon enough, but it was a well-deserved treat.

When I got back home from DC, I was disappointed to see that the Yoshino cherries had shed most of their petals. I took a walk to Green Lake, determined to chase whatever pink might remain. I did spot other cherry varieties that still had most of their blossoms (at left). What really stunned me, though, was this spectacular crabapple that I later learned is of the “prairie fire” variety (top of post)! I noted its location so that I’ll be able to find it again next year.

Higan cherry

Prairie fire crabapple

Although I spend most of early spring peeping and sketching petals, I also adore spotting tiny, new leaves on trees. Blossoms are fleeting, but leaves promise many more months of good sketching weather ahead (yes, I relate everything in nature to how it might affect my sketching potential). Although I don’t really celebrate Easter, these leaves felt like true signs of hope and rebirth. 

Japanese maple (hand for scale)

Norway maple

Good to Be Back (Plus Zeta Mutterings)

 

4/4/26 Mt. Rainier from Maple Leaf Park (Derwent Drawing pencil and Neocolor II crayon in S&B Zeta sketchbook)

Even after only a short time away, and no matter how much fun I had, it’s always wonderful to sleep in my own bed again. (The flight home had been especially grueling: Two-and-a-half hours on the tarmac waiting for stormy weather to clear before five more hours in the same seat.) It always takes me a few days to turn my body’s clock back to west coast time and get back into my routines.

On Saturday the temp got up to 60 with brilliant sunshine! From Maple Leaf Park, Her Majesty looked majestic, indeed. It’s always grounding to sketch a familiar subject that tells me I’m home.

Sketchbook notes: A while back I had mentioned finding an old but unused 3 ½-by-5 ½-inch Stillman & Birn Zeta sketchbook in landscape format. Years ago I had determined that a Zeta book would never be a favorite with mixed media because the surface doesn’t take water well when spritzed heavily. I still think that’s true, but I love the paper so much with Derwent Drawing colored pencils (which I used for the mountain) that I’ve been trying to give the sketchbook another fair shot.

Compare the way the “licked sky” wash in the Zeta sketch above to the one below in my favorite Hahnemühle 100 percent cotton sketchbook. I’m still not crazy about how Zeta’s surface takes washes, but given the infrequency with which I use that technique, I’m wondering if it’s an acceptable trade-off. I so enjoy that lovely, smooth finish with Derwent’s soft core. Sketching the Lincoln Memorial last week on Hahnemühle’s strong tooth just wasn’t as satisfying, and I didn’t like the rough look. The whole time I was sketching it, I was wishing I had a Zeta.

Detail to show "licked sky" using Neocolor II crayon in Hahnemuhle 100 percent cotton sketchbook

I’m just muttering aloud. . . I’ll carry it around for a while longer and see what happens.

Washington, DC, Part 4: National Zoo (Plus Sketch Journal Randomness)

 

3/31/26 Smithsonian National Zoo

My most frustrating time of the DC trip was our visit to the Smithsonian National Zoo. Famous for its resident pandas, the zoo is probably crowded throughout the year, but never more so than during spring break aligning with peak cherry tree blossoming. Could we have chosen a more congested time to visit?

Although I managed to sketch a few animals here and there, it was extremely challenging just to move through visitor traffic, let alone stop for a sketch. To make matters worse, temps in the low 40s during the early part of the trip had suddenly changed to the mid-80s! I wasn’t quite ready for summer!

As expected, the panda exhibit was the most congested of all, but the well-designed viewing area made it relatively easy to get a good look. Delighting everyone, this panda spent quite a while sitting on his comfy stump, chewing bamboo. (See my Instagram post for a video of this cutie.)

After an exhausting, grueling day swimming upstream through a continual river of humanity, we all needed a break. Lucky for us, the district’s best donut shop was only a few blocks away! It was the highlight of my last full day in DC.

One of the zoo's stars

Donuts make everything better!

The rest of this post is a collection of sketch journal randomness during my travels. Using DC’s excellent Metro system daily gave me lots of commuters to sketch.

3/27/26 light rail ride to the Seattle airport

Waiting at SEA

3/28/26 First of many DC Metro train rides

4/1/26 Looking for lunch at DCA before our flight back to Seattle, my brother-in-law
and I found unexpectedly good sushi at Matsutake Sushi!

Waiting at DCA

Yes, I did get some peanut M&Ms -- a "shareable"
size bag that I didn't share! ;-)

Mandatory gate sketch

Washington, DC, Part 3: Memorials, Monuments and “Trophies”

 

3/29/26 Lincoln Memorial

Traveling with others who are not sketchers always presents a significant challenge (I talked about some solutions I found during my years of travel with Greg in this post and with other family members in this post). I know that tension is a common issue because the question comes up frequently when talking about travel sketching: "How can I sketch while traveling without the others in my party getting bored or impatient?"

During our short visit to DC, I knew I’d be doing most of my touring with family members, including a toddler. Since the main point of the trip was our reunion, it was my top priority to share experiences with my family. At the same time, while most of the others had been to DC before, it was my first visit, and I wanted to sketch “everything” (impossible under any circumstance, but the feeling was there). If I didn’t give myself enough sketching time, I would end up feeling frustrated.

The solution for me came naturally: Sketch quickly and sketch small. (These guidelines also work well during high heat, as I talked about here.) On a day when my family decided to tour as many memorials and monuments near the National Mall as possible, I never made them wait. When I saw something I wanted to sketch, I indicated that I was pausing, and the rest of the group slowly meandered on. I kept an eye on their direction and easily caught up.

3/29/26 World War II Memorial and Vietnam War Memorial

At other stops, I simply decided I didn’t have to sketch “everything” I saw. What did I do instead? Snap photos like a “normal” tourist! (I guarantee that years from now, I will remember those I snapped only vaguely, if at all, while the ones I sketched are firmly etched in my memory.)

It was hard not to stop for a sketch at the National Gallery of Art's Sculpture Garden! Evoking the Eagle at Seattle's Olympic Sculpture Park, the red sculpture is by Alexander Calder.

One of the most visually haunting sights was the Korean War Veterans Memorial, where 19 life-size sculptures depict soldiers trudging through muddy battlefields. I would have liked to sketch one of them.

At the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, we all had different interests, so we agreed to split up and meet back at an appointed time. My frustration there was not about being with family; it was that the museum was mobbed! As in all natural history museums, my primary interest was the prehistoric animal skeletons, but it was just too hard to see exhibits easily and sketch comfortably with so many people all around.

3/29/26 Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

Although I managed part of a mastodon and the museum’s mascot elephant, that was all I could tolerate. I retreated outdoors, where the museum entrance is flanked by three brand new bronze sculptures of American bison. Only weeks in their new home, the larger-than-life bull, cow and calf were made by wildlife artist Gary Staab. How did I not know that the bison was our national mammal?

One of three bronze bison outside the museum entrance

Wanting to spend a little more time on the Lincoln Memorial than on other sketches I’d made that day, I let the others know where I would be: Squeezed against a barrier behind me to avoid being jostled by the masses. Speedy as I am, I don’t think I tried my family’s patience, even with slower colored pencils (top of post).

The next day was a prearranged meetup with USk friend Joel (see yesterday’s post for our time at the Tidal Basin). After we had gotten our fill of cherry blossoms, we had lunch at a museum café, then made our way to the Capitol. Visible from every direction, the Capitol building is a formidable architectural challenge. Typically, I favor speed over accuracy, but with our nation’s capitol, I took the time to take rough measurements (with a fair amount of mental sweat). Without the staggering crowds elsewhere and with comfortable weather, it was an enjoyable challenge and my most relaxing and leisurely sketch experience of the trip.

3/30/26 The U.S. Capitol (A beautiful, sunny afternoon after two days of bitter wind and cold!)

Joel and I show off our trophies! Whew -- that building is a challenge!

After Joel and I had parted ways, I checked in with my family, and they happened to be on the opposite side of the Capitol building. I suggested that we meet at the base of the Ulysses S. Grant monument in front of it. In the time that it took them to walk around the building, I sketched Grant for National Pencil Day.

3/30/26 Ulysses S. Grant monument near the Capitol (sketched with a Derwent Drawing pencil on National Pencil Day)

When planning the trip, I had three “trophy” sketches in mind: the Jefferson Memorial with cherry blossoms, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Capitol. Check, check and check!