China

We are back. China was wonderful, interesting and educational. I highly recommend going. Hello out there to my fellow travellers.

I was on an ordinary tour with minutes to paint here and there, but I still had a breakthrough. I managed to fit all of my supplies into a zip-lock bag. That was a revelation. Since there were so many people around that I couldn't sit down, I then I found that I could hold all that stuff in one hand and still paint with the other.

A painting tip that I'd lit to share now is my sketchbook. With so many variables that you have to deal with when painting out, it is best to use the paper that you always use. One less variable. So I take Arches paper to Staples (and other such stores) and have 6 pages bound together for a few bucks. Cut the paper any size and shape that you like. 

Why only six pages, though? These sketch books become very valuable as they fill. If you lost one, you don't want it to have all of your sketches in it. When I pack up to go home, I place different sketchbooks in different suitcases in case a bag is lost.

People who buy the original sketches get them with the holes punched in the top. I recommend that they frame them up so that the holes show. This guarantees that they were done on location.