Flying off to Lisbon and nearby Sintra for a week, expecting many sketching opportunities, and hoping that my family patiently indulge my addiction hobby. I’m trying to keep my kit relatively simple…

I’ve packed small and medium sized gouache and watercolour palettes, and the usual pens and water-brushes with their various inks. I’ve also got some long strips of watercolour paper rolled up in a tube for possible panoramic views.

I’ve bound a new A5 sketchbook for the trip, including lots of coloured pages. The blue is for the clear skies we’re hoping for, and the beige is partly inspired by Jean-Christophe Defline’s sketches of Sintra. My paper’s not as dark as his, but should provide a good contrast for the gouache.