100 Days of Travel Sketchbooks

Open pages of my 2025 India travel sketchbook

A Sketchbook Page a Day with a Bit of Writing Thrown in Too.

Inspired by #the100dayproject, and by all the people that are constantly nagging me to show my travel journals, I have begun my 100 Days of Travel Sketchbooks personal project.

My husband, Trevor, and I opted for a slightly less financially stable life than many that enables us to have the time to do as much traveling as possible. We have had some absolutely amazing trips, all over the world, and almost none of them have really been holidays. Every time we go somewhere I will create a travel sketchbook (or journal), recording a diary of the trip in words, pictures and found objects. If it is a shorter journey, say a few days in Venice for example, I will dig out another Italian sketchbook and add to it. We have quite a collection now. You can read all about my New York one, and even watch a video tour of the book, here on my website.

Having just returned from a fabulous trip to India – our third visit there – I am going to begin with that particular book. Each day of my project I will show a page, or couple of pages, and talk about my inspiration behind it, something that happened that day, a feeling inspired by the art on the pages, or perhaps something completely different. I am sure I will take a break from India somewhere along the line and branch out into some other places but it seemed as good a place as any to start initially.

So please, follow along and I would LOVE to know what you think! If you are a user of Substack you can follow along there too!

Plein air sketch in my India travel sketchbook made from Haus Khas Complex in Delhi

Day 12/100 – Sketching outside in India

Of course, the second you get a sketchbook out in India, there will be onlookers. Sometimes just a few people wander by and look at the page shyly, before smiling and moving on. Other times, quite a crowd can gather, until you have unwittingly created your own little arty party.
south indian strong coffee

Day 11/100 – Two extra strong double coffees!

It happens in all forms of creative endeavour, and particularly when trying to do a project that makes you show up everyday whether you feel like it or not. Perhaps it was the grey rainy weather here in Scotland, dulling my spirits or the writing about air travel which is basically, let’s face it, pretty boring!
India 2025 Travel Journal sketchbook sketch of signs in Hauz Khas, Delhi

Day 10/100 – No Dog Poo!!

It happens in all forms of creative endeavour, and particularly when trying to do a project that makes you show up everyday whether you feel like it or not. Perhaps it was the grey rainy weather here in Scotland, dulling my spirits or the writing about air travel which is basically, let’s face it, pretty boring!
2025 India Sketchbook Travel Journal

Day 9/100 – Kuk’s Shack Pav Delights

It happens in all forms of creative endeavour, and particularly when trying to do a project that makes you show up everyday whether you feel like it or not. Perhaps it was the grey rainy weather here in Scotland, dulling my spirits or the writing about air travel which is basically, let’s face it, pretty boring!
A dog dozes in the sunshine whilst a cat looks on from above.

DAY 8 – Boring Myself to Death

It happens in all forms of creative endeavour, and particularly when trying to do a project that makes you show up everyday whether you feel like it or not. Perhaps it was the grey rainy weather here in Scotland, dulling my spirits or the writing about air travel which is basically, let’s face it, pretty boring!
My personal flight-safe sketchbook kit that I use to draw and write when I am flying.

DAY 7 – The Flight Safe Sketch Kit

The last time I flew, you were allowed blades and scissors as long as they were smaller than a certain size, but the last thing I needed was to find that the rules had changed and I had to hand over my treasured art items for deposit, and display, in the big glass box of shamefully sharp items.