Today I flicked through some of my old sketchbooks. When I’m not writing for my blog, I tend to be sketching and carry a pad with me everywhere I go. Often I dislike what I’ve drawn, but then months if not years later, I decide I do like some of the sketches after all. It’s not that I think they are brilliantly drawn, I just like the memories that they evoke.

For example, with this sketch I can vividly remember how my parents’ back yard was, that is was sunny, that my dad had just been pottering in his garage, that he still had his old van, that I was looking out from my old childhood bedroom and that I felt happy. Not sure I would have felt the same way about a photo.

Where can I buy art and craft materials?

Dick Blick Art Materials sell a vast range of art materials. It is an art supplies company that is based in the US.

If you order over a certain amount, shipping can be free within the US, conditions apply. Orders placed from outside the US will have a different shipping charge and may be subject to import duties. (Click on the shipping information link at the bottom of the page on Dick Blick Art Materials for details.)

You can also buy craft materials from ScrapbookingAlley.com, who are also based in the US.

If you are based in the UK, Hobbycraft is a good place to buy very similar art and craft materials.