I came late to nature journaling, even though it may be in my DNA: one of my most treasured possessions is a watercolor my grandmother painted in February, 1914, of a crocus, accompanied by a quote from Victorian artist John Ruskin.
In 1977, “The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady,” by Edith Holden, was published, with her watercolor illustrations and commentary. Its gentle beauty captivated my imagination—I wished I could create something so beautiful— but I was on another path, a gardening path, and in 2004, published a book called “The Midwestern Cottage Garden.”
The 1914 crocus
But watercolors called to me, and I bought a small Winsor & Newton set of 14 colors, and tried to paint. They seemed difficult and unpredictable at first, but I was hooked. It was a big day when my order for a 48-color watercolor palette from The Rembrandt Watercolor company arrived from England. I was so excited!
I honestly don’t know how I found my way to John Laws’ book, “The Laws Guide to Drawing Birds.” Maybe it was because one of my first efforts at painting a bird resulted in a cardinal that looked a like a penguin! I needed help!
It was only one more step to nature journaling. I purchased a Pentalic Nature Sketch journal and jumped in. My first page was about the grackles in our back yard. It was so much fun there was no looking back.
There are many wonderful things about nature journaling. Maybe the best thing is that it gives you permission to immerse yourself in nature’s beauty for hours on end. I really was blind to our natural world before I began journaling. Now I see it, and value it.
Another joy of nature journaling is becoming part of the Nature Journal Club, a community on Facebook. Seeing the work of other nature journalers from all over the world is both inspiring and educational.
As I write this on a very cold day in February, I look over to my latest page in progress, which features two eastern gray squirrels and a fox squirrel peering down at me from a horse chestnut tree. So far, the squirrels are the most difficult subjects I have tackled—their expressions are subtle, and they have so much fur! And I am experimenting with colored pencils, which are new to me. Some challenges, but so much fun!
To anyone tempted to try nature journaling, I recommend that you jump in. Be prepared to learn, to try, and to sometimes fail. Your first cardinal might look like a penguin, as mine did, but you will improve, and know the joy of truly seeing nature’s beauty: It may change your life, as it did mine.
About the Author
I was born in Chicago, Illinois, and am a graduate of the University of Illinois. I worked for seventeen years at our local library. In 2004 I published a book called “Midwest Cottage Gardener,” all about gardening in Illinois. Currently, I have a blog called My Illinois Nature Journal,“ about Illinois natural history. I’m retired and spend many enjoyable hours nature journaling. My husband Jim and I (and our kitty Cocoa) live in Saint Charles, Illinois, which is 30 miles west of Chicago.