Nature Journal Notes

What a beautiful day to share with you all that we will be posting a weekly blog dedicated to nature journaling! Most weeks this will come out on Wednesdays, but we are too excited to wait until next week to post our first one, so you’re getting it on Friday. These blogs will include weekly prompts to help you think about nature in a slightly different way, or shift your focus for more specific observations. We will share tips and tricks that we have found helpful as well as suggestions from some of our favorite nature journaling resources!
 
As we start this nature journaling journey, we want to remind community members that we would love to see what you create! If you would like to share your nature pages, or if you have any advice to share with fellow naturalists, please email us at education.nrt@gmail.com so we can share your art and observations in our blog.
 
For the past couple of weeks we have included nature journal prompts as part of our regularly scheduled blog posts, and it has been really fun to see what some of our community members are sharing! 

In Tuesday's blog, we asked people to try to sketch animals that they had seen around their homes or yards. We encouraged people to start simple, just taking in the general shape of the creature they are observing and then connecting those shapes with textured lines that were more true to the animal's form. 

This week, we are going to ask people to find any sign of nature - this can be in your home, in your yard, or at a local green space or park - and sketch it. One of the great things about nature is that even in the most urban environments, it is everywhere! Sky color, cloud coverage, sun position, plants and animal signs are all good examples of things to keep an eye out for and note when you are first starting your observations. Remember when journaling, it can be helpful to document temperature, date and time, and general weather. When you want to look back at your recordings, these observations will help you to paint a picture of the scene and give your observations context. 

Speaking of painting a picture, another thing you can focus on this week is the colors that you use in your illustrations. While you are looking for signs of nature, start to experiment with new colors and sketching techniques!  Recommended supplies for adding color to journals, taken right from Keeping a Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie & Charles E. Roth, are:

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​- A box of 24 or 36 colored pencils
- Small set of watercolors with brushes
- Set of colored markers
- Set of 12, 24, or 36 water-color pencils

On the right, we have a nature journal entry of observations taken at Sheep Pasture (woohoo)! This person made sure to note the weather, time and temperature in the upper righthand corner. They also started experimenting with different ways to incorporate color and texture into their journal using a variety of tools while taking observations. I quote, "Pen + Pencil + Watercolor Pencil = MAGIC."

If you don't have any of these supplies easily at hand, don't despair! One of the great things about creating a nature journal is that there is no right way to do it. We can offer tips and tricks, but however you choose to move forward is entirely up to you. This week be sure to take some time looking for anything nature-related around you and start to experiment with different colors and textures. Until next week!