Notes from Nola Noreen!

Looking for some sketchy inspiration?

HOW TO USE THESE NOTES: These notes are dynamic.  I’ll post a note and return later to add an additional sketch or a link to another post, as they are completed.  It’s almost more of a bulletin board in that regard. 

Why I Chose Art Storefronts (For Better or For Worse)

For better or for worse, artists need to be online these days and that's why I was looking at Art Storefronts.  I am probably the most left-brained artist you've ever met.  I've spent many more years running businesses as a Chartered Professional Accountant (with a...

5 Interesting Places To Urban Sketch (That You Haven’t Thought Of!)

Looking for interesting or undiscovered places to Urban Sketch?  Here’s a handful that you probably haven’t considered, but should! Sketchy Location #1 - Legislative Library Legislative libraries across Canada are quiet but powerful research hubs that exist to support...

Sketchy Story Behind Dawson City Radio’s Urban Sketch

My Sweetie and I visited Dawson on our honeymoon in July 2025. We travelled from the Atlantic Coast across Canada in Vinny VAN Go, our mini-van converted for camping. Up the Dempster Highway we went to Inuvik and got married in the “igloo church”. Just the two of us....

Rebel Urban Sketching? Using Reference Photos

Urban Sketching has official rules.  One of those rules is that you must sketch onsite from direct observation. Great rule...but what about reference photos?There are 3 times that reference photos and urban sketching are perfect companions, in my opinion. 1. When...
A Capsule Kitchen: How To Simplify Meals

A Capsule Kitchen: How To Simplify Meals

I have simplified almost every area of my life, but I have always struggled with simplified eating. Meal planning, shopping for groceries, and cooking have always seemed like a collective chore that I could never figure out how to simplify. Things I’ve tried: Menu...

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Simple Travel Journaling (While On The Road)

Simple Travel Journaling (While On The Road)

Sweetie and I are preparing for a 3-week road trip in Vinny Van Gogh (our Dodge Caravan converted for camping). The ultimate destination is sledding in New Mexico. Yes, sledding! Imagine all the fun of sledding down a hill without all the cold snow going down the back...

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