Art Supplies for Travel: My Favorite Supplies for Creating on the Go

Hello friends!

One of my favorite things about traveling is how creatively inspiring it can be. New landscapes, colors, people, plants and little moments seem to give me more ideas than I know what to do with.

The problem? Bringing art supplies while traveling can get complicated very quickly.

I’ve taken road trips to places like San Francisco and Moab, hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, camped around the Pacific Northwest and spent weeks away from my regular studio.

And no, I have never been particularly good at taking two entire weeks off from creating.

Over the years I’ve tried bringing far too many supplies, forgotten things I thought I absolutely needed, lost supplies in motels and campsites, and packed materials that never came out of my bag.

Eventually I discovered something important:

The best art supplies for travel are often the simplest ones.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I only recommend products I have personally used or products I genuinely believe may be useful for creating.

My Travel Art Kit

I’ve learned that the best travel art kit is one I’ll actually carry and use. Here are the few supplies I keep it simple with:

• Oil Pastels — my favorite way to bring lots of color without paints, water or brushes. View the oil pastels →
• Micron Pens — perfect for quick sketches, line work and adding details. View the Micron pens →
• Travel Pencil Case — keeps the little supplies together and easy to grab. View the pencil case →
• Sketchbook — small enough that I’ll actually take it with me.
• A Few Pencils — no giant drawing kit required.

Staying Creative While Traveling

Creating while traveling doesn’t have to mean completing a masterpiece.

In fact, I’ve found that travel is one of the best times to let go of that expectation.

Instead, use your creative time to notice things.

The color of the sky at sunset. The strange green-blue of a creek. The shapes of mountains in the distance. Wildflowers along a trail. People you encounter. Interesting buildings. Color combinations you wouldn’t normally think to use.

A travel sketch can simply capture enough of that moment to inspire something later.

That change in mindset also means you don’t need to bring your entire studio with you.

My Rule for Choosing Art Supplies for Travel

Simplify.

I used to worry about everything I might need. Can I fit my paints? What about brushes? What if I’m missing the exact color I want?

Sometimes I brought so many things that I didn’t use any of them.

Now I’d rather have a small collection of supplies that I can easily pull out when inspiration hits.

For one of my trips, that meant something incredibly simple:

• Oil pastels
• A few pencils
• Micron pens
• A sketchbook
• A small pencil case

That’s it.

And it ended up being one of my favorite travel-art setups.

Why I Started Traveling With Oil Pastels

Travel is also a wonderful opportunity to experiment with an unfamiliar medium.

That’s actually how I ended up falling in love with oil pastels.

I had always been intrigued by them, so before a trip to Moab I bought a set to bring along.

At first, I hated them.

They felt like giant, blunt crayons. I couldn’t get the detail I wanted, my drawings looked scratchy, and I remember wondering why anyone enjoyed using these things.

Turns out, I just needed to keep trying.

On another trip, I hesitantly packed those same pastels into my travel pencil case — Amazon affiliate link, along with a few pencils, a Micron pen — Amazon affiliate link and my sketchbook.

Because we were doing quite a bit of hiking and backpacking, I deliberately left most of my regular supplies behind.

And something clicked.

What I Learned About Creating With Oil Pastels

I started drawing scenes from wherever we happened to be.

Sometimes I’d spend a few hours working. Other times I’d simply pull everything out when I saw a color or landscape I wanted to remember.

Oil pastels turned out to be perfect for that kind of creating.

The colors are bright and rich, they’re fun to blend, and you don’t need water, brushes, palettes or much setup.

One technique that really helped me was using a lighter-colored pastel to blend the colors underneath it. My drawings gradually started looking less like giant crayon marks and more like the loose, impressionistic artwork I was trying to create.

Most importantly, I could actually bring them places.

When the sun started setting over the ocean or a creek turned an enchanting teal green, I could pull out my little kit and start creating.

That freedom mattered more than having every possible art supply with me.

The Oil Pastels I Used

I traveled with a 48-color set of oil pastels. They were inexpensive, gave me plenty of colors to experiment with, and ultimately became a medium I really enjoyed. UPDATE, the oil pastels shown in the photo are no longer available, I have linked a similar item for you.

Shop the oil pastels I used on Amazon →

My Simple Travel Art Kit

If you’re putting together your own art kit for a road trip, camping trip or vacation, you don’t need much.

Oil pastels: Lots of color without needing water, brushes or paint supplies. View my oil pastels →

Micron pens: Great for sketching, line work, journaling and adding details. View the Micron pens →

Pencil case: Keeping everything contained sounds boring until you’re digging through a backpack trying to find one tiny pen. I like having one simple case that holds my drawing supplies together. View the pencil case →

Sketchbook: Choose one you’ll actually carry. For travel, smaller and portable can be much more useful than a beautiful oversized sketchbook that stays in the hotel room. View my Sketchbook pick

A few pencils: You don’t need an enormous drawing set. A couple of dependable pencils are enough for preliminary sketches and quick observations. View Pencils

Eventually, we can add your genuine sketchbook/pencil recommendations here as additional affiliate links rather than adding random products simply for commissions.

Should You Try Oil Pastels on Your Next Adventure?

I think they’re worth trying—especially if you’re looking for a colorful medium that doesn’t require much setup.

But oil pastels aren’t the only option.

A few pencils and a sketchbook can be enough. You could try a small watercolor kit, colored pencils, pens or another medium you’ve always been curious about.

The important part isn’t bringing the perfect collection of supplies.

It’s making creativity easy enough that you’ll actually do it.

Let go of perfectionism. Experiment. Make weird little sketches. Capture colors. Draw the view from your campsite. Spend twenty minutes creating while everyone else is relaxing.

You can always turn those observations and experiments into something bigger once you’re back in your studio.

Keep Creating With Artvana

Want more ideas for building your creative practice?

Setting up a creative space at home? Read my guide to 4 must-have art supplies for setting up your studio →

And explore more of Artvana for painting inspiration, creative activities and ideas designed to help you make creativity part of your everyday life.

Paint soon!

Rikki
Artvana