--- product_id: 73974624 title: "The Urban Sketching Handbook Working with Color: Techniques for Using Watercolor and Color Media on the Go (Volume 7)" price: "$43.91" currency: USD in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.us/products/73974624-the-urban-sketching-handbook-working-with-color-techniques-for-using store_origin: US region: United States of America --- # The Urban Sketching Handbook Working with Color: Techniques for Using Watercolor and Color Media on the Go (Volume 7) **Price:** $43.91 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Urban Sketching Handbook Working with Color: Techniques for Using Watercolor and Color Media on the Go (Volume 7) - **How much does it cost?** $43.91 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.us](https://www.desertcart.us/products/73974624-the-urban-sketching-handbook-working-with-color-techniques-for-using) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description Learn to express yourself through color while painting on location with the in-depth tips and techniques of Working with Color , the fifth volume in the Urban Sketching Handbook series. Expert watercolorist, illustrator, instructor, and co-founder of Urban Sketchers Montreal Shari Blaukopf shares her essential color tips about color-water ratio, achieving bold color, avoiding muddy washes, painting in layers, and using wet-in-wet techniques. This essential handbook covers: supplies and materials sample color palettes color mixing using limited palettes monochrome sketches the power of complementary colors using evocative, expressive color With a focus on using watercolor with greater confidence and knowledge , the book also delves into pencil and ink and watersoluble pencils. The instructional text is enhanced with stunning watercolor illustrations by the author and other expert urban sketchers from beautiful locations around the globe. The illustrations include examples of color swatches showing value; mixing; illustrations of complementary, analogous, and neutral color schemes; and sample galleries. Working with Color is an indispensable guide for on-location artists looking to expand and strengthen their expressive use of color . Review: Excellent Resource for Watercolor Sketching on Location - I preordered this book in August when Shari announced it on her blog. Shari has two wonderful classes on Bluprint that started my foray into watercolor sketching. I have also followed her blog for a couple of years and was delighted when I learned that she had written a book on color. What I most wanted to know more about was her mixes and I was excited to see that she shares a great deal about her green mixes, shadow mixes, neutrals, etc. I am a landscape painter living in a tropical setting, so tackling those walls of green have been a challenge and I can't wait to experiment with some of these new mixes. The basic tools you pack in your sketch bag are after all the foundation of any work that you do. I don't think you can truly create the depth of color that I see in her work with hard cakes of watercolor. The big take away here is that Shari uses tube paints in her palette, and the fresher the better. When I look back over my sketchbooks, I can always pinpoint the days when I refilled the pans with fresh paint. There is more detail about the specific brands she uses on her blog. One color mentioned in the book is Forest Green by Sennelier. This is a beautiful green that I would not do without, and because it is honey-based it never dries out in my palette. Shari recommends a couple of travel brushes over a water brush. If you are working in a small sketchbook you might get away with using a water brush. I work in 8x5" or larger watercolor journals and to get a beautiful sky wash I like a mop brush loaded with lots of juicy paint. When you are working en plein air, paint dries much faster and if you are working with a small brush that does not hold enough water, you are going to get a lot of fiddly little brush strokes that dry on the paper before you've even finished laying in your sky or other large shapes. How you find this book depends a lot on your expectations. This book surpassed mine. There is a lot of very useful information to be had in this book and for the price I don't think there is a better value. Review: An Excellent Handbook on Color, Especially for New Sketchers - I admit it, I'm a (water)color junkie, so I loved every page in this book with all the lovely artwork, color swatches, and well-written, informative text. Yes, the format is small but my 60 year old eyes had no trouble reading the text or seeing the images. Based on questions I always get from watercolor beginners in my own workshops, the tips and advice shared in the book are right on target for that audience: simple, straightforward basics clearly and briefly explained. Given the small format for the book and the concept widely embraced by urban sketchers that you learn best by playing and trying things in your sketchbook (especially true for beginning sketchers!), the lack of step-by-step tutorials is understandable. There are plenty of tips and explanations to inspire sketching practice and artistic growth for anyone with the slightest motivation. Kudos to the author for a fabulous book! It's my favorite in the series of Urban Sketching Handbooks. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #650,935 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #23 in Buildings & Cityscapes Art #550 in Watercolor Painting #597 in Graphic Design Color Use | | Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 526 Reviews | ## Images ![The Urban Sketching Handbook Working with Color: Techniques for Using Watercolor and Color Media on the Go (Volume 7) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81W-CvMZ-VL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Excellent Resource for Watercolor Sketching on Location *by C***E on April 2, 2019* I preordered this book in August when Shari announced it on her blog. Shari has two wonderful classes on Bluprint that started my foray into watercolor sketching. I have also followed her blog for a couple of years and was delighted when I learned that she had written a book on color. What I most wanted to know more about was her mixes and I was excited to see that she shares a great deal about her green mixes, shadow mixes, neutrals, etc. I am a landscape painter living in a tropical setting, so tackling those walls of green have been a challenge and I can't wait to experiment with some of these new mixes. The basic tools you pack in your sketch bag are after all the foundation of any work that you do. I don't think you can truly create the depth of color that I see in her work with hard cakes of watercolor. The big take away here is that Shari uses tube paints in her palette, and the fresher the better. When I look back over my sketchbooks, I can always pinpoint the days when I refilled the pans with fresh paint. There is more detail about the specific brands she uses on her blog. One color mentioned in the book is Forest Green by Sennelier. This is a beautiful green that I would not do without, and because it is honey-based it never dries out in my palette. Shari recommends a couple of travel brushes over a water brush. If you are working in a small sketchbook you might get away with using a water brush. I work in 8x5" or larger watercolor journals and to get a beautiful sky wash I like a mop brush loaded with lots of juicy paint. When you are working en plein air, paint dries much faster and if you are working with a small brush that does not hold enough water, you are going to get a lot of fiddly little brush strokes that dry on the paper before you've even finished laying in your sky or other large shapes. How you find this book depends a lot on your expectations. This book surpassed mine. There is a lot of very useful information to be had in this book and for the price I don't think there is a better value. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ An Excellent Handbook on Color, Especially for New Sketchers *by C***P on April 1, 2019* I admit it, I'm a (water)color junkie, so I loved every page in this book with all the lovely artwork, color swatches, and well-written, informative text. Yes, the format is small but my 60 year old eyes had no trouble reading the text or seeing the images. Based on questions I always get from watercolor beginners in my own workshops, the tips and advice shared in the book are right on target for that audience: simple, straightforward basics clearly and briefly explained. Given the small format for the book and the concept widely embraced by urban sketchers that you learn best by playing and trying things in your sketchbook (especially true for beginning sketchers!), the lack of step-by-step tutorials is understandable. There are plenty of tips and explanations to inspire sketching practice and artistic growth for anyone with the slightest motivation. Kudos to the author for a fabulous book! It's my favorite in the series of Urban Sketching Handbooks. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ It's a book of sketches from various artists--exactly what I LOVE... *by T***E on June 25, 2019* This book is under rated if it gets below 4 stars. What I like about this book: It is small in size, very convenient for travel, full of samples of artists' sketches/paintings/studies from their sketch books which is a great way to direct or introduce me to other talented artists (AND the feature artist-commentator Shari Blaukopf herself is an exceptional talent, the book is loaded with her work too). I love artist's sketch books: you get to see what they see at the time of creation; you see the strokes, the mistakes, the corrections, change of mind--it's thoughts animated in the work. I love sketch books more than the finish painting. A sketch is the journey. I have a number of these small series of sketch books. Two I didn't like, the others, like this one, I really enjoy. This book is not a "How to" monograph; there are a few pages and discussions of techniques and such, but it really is a compilation of many different artists work bundle into one book. It has a few blank pages for you to sketch. Another little thoughtful note, is the attached stretch band used to keep the book close when travelling so pages don't get crinkled. Novel ideas that add to the charm. I will be checking out some of the artists featured, and hopefully they have sketch books of their own to share. I think there is a big market for artist's-sketch-book books. COMPLAINT (not about the book but about the 'liners') [What the heck is going on with those one/two liners! They are NOT review but a waste of time and space. The above is a review not the crap one liner tweets--which say nothing! I don't bother reading the 'liners' and I don't buy products that do not have REAL reviews! The reviews have gone to pots. AMAZON, once the REAL reviews go, no point shopping in your flat, one dimension world--I'd go back to 3D live shopping--except for books, Amazon still has the best prices for books.] ## Frequently Bought Together - The Urban Sketching Handbook Working with Color: Techniques for Using Watercolor and Color Media on the Go (Volume 7) (Urban Sketching Handbooks, 7) - The Urban Sketching Handbook 101 Sketching Tips: Tricks, Techniques, and Handy Hacks for Sketching on the Go (Volume 8) (Urban Sketching Handbooks, 8) - The Urban Sketching Handbook Techniques for Beginners: How to Build a Practice for Sketching on Location (Volume 11) (Urban Sketching Handbooks, 11) --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.us/products/73974624-the-urban-sketching-handbook-working-with-color-techniques-for-using](https://www.desertcart.us/products/73974624-the-urban-sketching-handbook-working-with-color-techniques-for-using) --- *Product available on Desertcart United States of America* *Store origin: US* *Last updated: 2026-07-06*