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Talent

People who can draw or paint well often get to hear the words, "you are so talented". It's meant as a compliment, though I guess there is also a bit of envy in these words of admiration. Those receiving the compliment are often not very happy with it, because it implies that they are just lucky to have this nature-given talent and it dismisses the fact that they have put a lot of work into becoming this good. And have overcome frustrations along the way.

I used to think that in order to be able to draw well you either have to have a special talent for it or have to practise hard for years. But I have found out that talent is not that big a factor and regular practice will get you far - in much less than a year.

Still I don't think that talent doesn't exist. Not everyone can become a Michelangelo, no matter how early he starts and how much he practises and studies. Talent shows in how quickly you improve and how far you get with your art. But you can't tell someone's talent merely by looking at his drawing or painting. You don't know how long he's been working on his skills.

And after all, you don't have to be perfect at something in order to enjoy doing it. So, however your talent is, make the most of it and have fun.

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Introduction

I have been drawing for 20 months now. I started back then, because I wanted a creative hobby, that you can do on a daily basis without needing lots of material initially. So I decided to learn a bit about the basics of drawing, practiced and soon found out, that it is easier than everybody thinks. And after all, you don't have to be perfect for it to be fun and for your drawings to be valuable. You are free to find your own way of drawing. While drawing as often as possible, I often find myself thinking a lot about this craft and me doing it. I certainly like drawing and sketching in sketchbooks. They are like journals you can browse through again and again and see what you were up to when you filled them. I am going to share my thoughts about drawing here and hopefully will dare to share one or the other drawing.

What I do

I love working in sketchbooks. I start on the first page and fill it in order from front to back. I always date my pages. My sketchbooks are numbered. They are like chronological albums. The insides of the covers are decorated with pretty stickers. Right now I have a watercolour sketchbook and one with drawing paper.  And no, I don't have fear of the first page.  There are so many more pages to fill. Some will turn out great, some less so, and that's fine. I mainly draw and paint at the weekend. I am not an artist who creates stuff that takes many hours to complete. My subjects vary. There’s not that one thing I do. Apart from not being into portraits and characters, almost anything can appear in my sketchbooks. I like to draw realistically, but have also started to experiment with some partly abstract pieces. I do this for myself, so I am free to create what I like. I want my work to be good and beautiful, but the process is what matters.

New Sketchbook

 There is nothing like preparing a new sketchbook after you have finished the previous one. I like to decorate the insides of the front and back cover with stickers. One that says „Sylvia‘s sketchbook no. x“ and some simply for decoration. After filling the first page I also add the month I started it. After filling the last page I then add the month I finished it.  The stuff on the right is just digital.