On-The-Go Studio -by Maple Lam

Once in a while, I pack up my "on-the-go" gears and work at a nearby coffee shop.  I like to pick and choose my tools, depending on what I will be working on.

The key is to travel light but still have all the things you need.  :)

The tech stuff:

•  I use a small Artograph lightbox
•  I save everything on the external drive and put it back in my desktop when I get back to the studio.

The idea stuff:

•  I like HB & 2B for pencils & Zebra Clip-On with 4 colors + mechanical

The watercolor stuff:

•  I bought the small water color containers at a Japanese dollar-store.
•  I use the lids as water containers.  Fill both lid-containers with water.  Use one to clean up the brush, and the other one should always have relatively clean water.  When the water gets murky, I pour it into the "dirty" container and refill the lid with clean water.  It saves me time running back and forth the coffee restroom to get clean water.
•  For watercolor pads, I switch between Canson and Arches.
•  I bought the spray bottle at a local Target.

The other useful stuff:

•  I bought my mini scissors in Hong Kong, but there are some really neat ones online, like this one.

The entire studio:
(I can fit them all in my backpack if needed.)

My "on-the-go" gears are an accumulation of trials-and-errors as well as observation of how others work. I am sure through time, you too will find your personal perfect "on-the-go" gears.  When you do, please drop us a line on the comments below.  We would love to learn from each other!

Note: If you only have room for two things, bring your sketchbook and a pen/pencil.  They are your best friends!

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Maple Lam illustrates and writes for children's books.  You can check out more of her work at www.maplelam.com.