We’ve watched all of the YouTube reviews of our Sendak Artist Roll (thank you!) and have made our own video to answer some questions and share our experience!

We are grateful for all the wonderful Sendak reviews, and for sharing videos and spreading the word!

Video Transcript

Hello, everyone! I wanted to give you a little walkthrough of our Sendak Artist Roll. I've been seeing a lot of other people's video walkthroughs and it's been inspiring me to do the same.

Introduction

Here is my very well-loved and very well-used Sendak. This is the first "right one" that we made. We went through a lot of trial and error to get to this, so I want to show you what it has the potential to hold.

Supplies in my Sendak: Scissors and Glue (0:30)

I always have glue with me because I do a lot of messy collage work, so I love to glue things and I also have scissors for that same reason. I use small scissors if I'm traveling anywhere where I'm getting on a plane, and I use big scissors if I'm just traveling in a car. Both sizes fit into the Sendak nicely. I tend to put the big scissors on an end, in one of the smaller pockets. The smaller scissors fit anywhere, it just depends what else I have in my Sendak.

The Pencil Pockets (0:55)

One of the most common requests that we get and one of the things that people tend to comment on is that these pencil pockets are too small for fountain pens. While that's true of this Kaweco cap (the bottom fits, the top doesn't), this vintage technical pen is pretty chunky, and I put it in there all the time. I carry two or three. You can see how it kind of draws the Sendak together, so ultimately there's going to be a little bit less room in other pockets. It's making other things more tight, but really, it's fine.

When the Sendak is new, the waxed canvas might be tight to even just fit a pencil, but as you use it, it breaks in and loosens up, and then it doesn't loosen any further – that's where it's going to stay. Once you use it more, you can easily fit two standard pencils or paintbrushes into each slot, so it's really not a too small slot once you break it in. 

Supplies in my Sendak: Pencils (1:35)

I love these beginners pencils that have really soft lead. I love making marks that are a little less particular than, for example, when I'm using my mechanical pencils (which I also love).

So, these are some of the supplies that I carry every day. I think where the variation comes in, is in which pencils I want, which softness levels, or if I want a water soluble pencil. I'll put the pencils together in this end pocket. It's important to note that the Blackwing fits in. This Blackwing pencil was sharpened once and it makes it a perfect fit. This one was never sharpened, and the eraser is worn down a bit, so it's just above that folding point (the Sendak measures 7.75″ tall at the folding point). The taller one will obviously still work, but I know these are awesome pencils that a lot of people have, so I wanted to show you that.

Supplies in my Sendak: Pens (2:15)

Another thing that I carry are dippy pens. I will put pen nibs into a tin. I love using antique tins to store pen nibs, and in this case, a kneaded eraser. These tins are great for little art supplies, and I just put them into the zipper pocket.

The Zipper Pocket (2:30)

In addition to the vintage tin, I put another regular eraser. When pencils get too small for the pencil pockets, then I'll put them in the zipper pocket. I also have some extra lead for my mechanical pencils, a pencil sharpener, and I often have a whitewash in there as well. You can fit a lot in this zipper pocket.

I like to not overstuff my Sendak so that it folds nicely. I really like it to fold up rather than to roll up, which happens when it is very stuffed.

The Interior Pockets (2:55)

We have 16 pen and pencil slots in the front, and then we have four pockets behind those. So these four are varying widths – you could see the width of the smaller ones that I use for scissors or pencils, which measure 2.5″ wide. The larger two measure 4.25″ wide. I use these two bigger pockets for sketchbooks.

We make these Landscape Orra Sketchbooks in our shop. We designed them to fit into both this Sendak and the Mini Sendak. They can also serve as a tool protector if you need it, for example, if I was putting in a dippy pen whose nib needed protecting, or paint brushes, that would be a great tool protector. We also sell acrylic tool protectors separately if you don't want to carry a Sketchbook or Painter's Palette.

The Iris Painter's Palette is another product that we make. It is for squeezing in tube paints, watercolors, or in this case, making your own paint and filling up these wells with homemade paint. This was made to fit in both the Classic Sendak and the Mini Sendak as well, in these large interior pockets.

I'm going to put my palette here, and these pens in the back here with some small scissors. I want to have another paint brush and then whatever colors I want to bring. Sometimes I get really organized and other times I just put stuff in. You don't have to be crazy overthinking this. It's just really supposed to hold what you need – what you need for the day, what you need for a week, what you need for a trip.

I also often have a bookbinding needle held in the top flap here, and I'll put some bookbinding thread here in the zipper pocket, in case I want to make a book. I'll also prepare by having folded paper here in these exterior pockets.

The Exterior Pockets (4:30)

These two outside pockets otherwise are great for random sized sketchbooks like this – this would have been one of those random ones that I made. I also love this tin. It's for 15 neocolors, but I've had it for years and I move pastels or other more delicate stuff into here that I don't want to crumble in the pen pockets. It's a really nice fit for these back pockets.

This is our Orra Portrait Sketchbook, which we made to fit into the Classic Sendak. We have three sizes of these sketchbooks – the Portrait, the Large Portrait, and the Landscape.

Closing the Sendak (5:00)

So when I fold up the Sendak – this one is pretty full with everything that I just stuffed into the outside pockets – but when I fold it up, I will hold everything down and pull down this top flap so that it folds nicely. Then I roll in the sides, starting with the zipper pocket, so that all the parts of my Sendak are where they should be. Then I just synch it closed with the leather strap and buckle.

I'd say this is pretty full – I have stuff in every pocket. In some instances, I have more than one thing in a pocket. There's still a lot of room on this leather strap. So that's it! This will fit nicely into my bag, and I've got what I need for a long time.

The Buckle Closure

Another question that we've had is about this buckle. This comes from a gun sling from maybe the forties, and it was intended to function exactly as we use it. We found that it just really holds the Sendak together nicely, and of course, we love incorporating old bits wherever we can, into whatever we make.

So there you have it! My Sendak, lovingly worn in and full of life.

Mentioned in this video:

From Our Shop:

• The Classic Sendak Artist Roll
• The Sendak Mini Artist Roll
• Iris Painter’s Palette
• Landscape Orra Sketchbook
• Portrait Orra Sketchbook
• Acrylic Tool Protects (Out of Stock)

The world is bursting with magic, and for anyone looking, it positively pulses. As a family of life-long learners, we felt compelled to share a few of our favorite activities in one compact notebook of removable cards.

The Specimen Card Notebook

Whether embarking on a backyard exploration, a community science project, traveling near or far, or identifying mysterious objects around your house, these cards encourage observation, drawing, writing, and a touch of research.

Tear them out, and hang them up, give them as gifts, or keep them intact as a journal. However you use them, we hope they inspire you to always keep an eye out for the little things!

The Scout Plein Air Box was inspired by our endeavor to make art every day. Each one is handmade in our Philadelphia workshop. It compactly secures all of your essential art supplies for painting outdoors. Fill your box with your favorite colors, paintbrushes, and sketchbook. Find your spot and quickly transform the box into a mini studio. Set it on a flat surface or mount it on a tripod, snap the liquid jars, brush holder, and easel in place, clip on your canvas and you are ready to paint. Watch our video showing how we make the Scout Plein Air Box!

Original Plein Air Oil Paintings by Walter Kent

“It has been nearly three years since I returned from a painting workshop in Italy, taught by Jeremy Mann and Nadezda, hosted by Art Escape Italy. This was my first experience plein air painting and once I returned home I immediately made my own pochade box, the Scout. During the last three years I have gone out on many painting adventures, both alone and with my family, with the Scout over my shoulder.

When I wander out into the world to paint, there is a game of tug of war twisting knots in my stomach, with my hopes and fears digging their heals in on either side. After the first few strokes of paint, the excitement of possibility takes over. These attempts at capturing the fleeting moments of the world around me line the windowsills of our studio.

I’ve selected some of my favorite Plein Air oil paintings, breadcrumbs of my path as an artist, and we are excited to share them with the everyone. Each painting has been varnished for protection and is signed and marked with its location and date and is fitted with a ready-to-hang frame made of reclaimed blackened walnut.” –Walter

Indian Lake, New York 2022	Shaw’s Bridge, Pennsylvania 2021

Delaware Water Gap No. 3, Pennsylvania 2021

Barnegat Bay, New Jersey 2020	Starr Farm, Pennsylvania 2021

Kaaterskill Falls, New York 2022

Lake Superior, Wisconsin 2020	Kerhonkson, New York 2022

Ready-to-Hang frames are made of reclaimed blackened walnut.

I’ve been keeping a journal on and off since I was 12. Because of this, I thought it would be a simple and obvious thing to add this to my boys’ homeschool days, but neither Søren nor Silas shared my compulsion.

Søren’s journals were mostly uninspired lists of what we had done each day, but somewhere along the way, during camping trips and road trips – somewhere deep in the pandemic, Søren began to transform his task of journaling into something he was excited to do. Using Procreate on his iPad, he now creates his own alternative journal cards with personality-filled drawings, descriptions, and photographs!

It has been heartening to watch the evolution of his journaling practice, from bland journal pages to documented expeditions – completely Søren-ed and so shareable. We’ve simplified his card design into a free downloadable PDF! Søren tested the new card (on the spot!) with a local hiking adventure to Harmony Hill. We are loving this new alternative journal format, and hope you do as well!

As Søren flipped through his cards for my camera, he said, “It feels like I’m reliving all of this – even just glancing at each one." If the purpose of a journal is to create a ritual, to reflect and document, to build writing and observation skills, and to have a place to go, then Søren has fulfilled these expectations, and I am overjoyed with his finding his own way!

Download the Printable PDF

Søren’s Original Expedition Cards!

Photograph of Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park.	Revisiting our "Mexican Food" experience in the Ozarks with giggles.

Our messy table in Missouri - this is how we know magic is being made!	Søren sketching in his small Tome – okay, not everything is uninspired!

My birthday treat! We visited Mark Twain’s boyhood home in Hannibal, MO and the cave that inspired some his work and childhood!	How I love the re-reading!

Walter is painting Mark Twain’s boyhood home with his Pochade Box— as always, attracting the curious!	Søren, Silas, and Shep, matching(ish) Sendaks, shirts, and drinks!

A brief telling of our trip to Chicago!	Exploring Chicago, dreaming of being elsewhere...

Always on the go with make-shift picnic table studios.	Intuit Museum in Chicago featuring Henry Darger’s home studio and other outsider art!

Watch the instructions on how to adjust and secure the leather straps on The Franklin Maker’s Apron. 

The Franklin is available in two sizes, and the suspender-style vegetable tanned leather straps and belt have multiple settings to comfortably fit a variety of statures. Once on, The Franklin Maker’s Apron becomes a part of you, bringing the perfect mix of order, utility, and aesthetics to the creative chaos of a maker’s daily routine!

After many prototypes, countless customer requests, and an endless search for sustainable leather, The Franklin Makers Apron is finally here! 

On our first trip to England together, Margaux and I discovered a magical art supply shop on a small cobblestone street. Like something pulled out of Diagon Alley, it was lined with dark oak, floor-to-ceiling shelves overflowing with pigments of all kinds: oil paints, pastels, watercolors, and more. Ladders and spiral staircases led to stacks of dusty boxes each holding the possibilities of masterpieces yet to be made. We spent hours exploring the nooks and crannies, and amongst all the treasures, we discovered two artist aprons, the last from a company no longer in existence. They looked like relics of a bygone era, plucked from the studio of Sargent or Klimt. We left the shop, each with an apron, and though Peg and Awl hadn’t yet begun, the seed to someday make our own version, had been planted.

Our Apron champions the virtues of hard work, curiosity, ingenuity, and industriousness, and has quickly become one of our favorite companions while working in the studio or at home. Its durable canvas armor protects against dirt, paint, liquids and debris, and with multiple waist and chest pockets it provides ample storage so tools are secure and conveniently accessible. The Franklin is available in two sizes, and the suspender-style vegetable tanned leather straps and belt have multiple settings to comfortably fit a variety of statures. Once on, The Franklin Maker’s Apron becomes a part of you, bringing the perfect mix of order, utility, and aesthetics to the creative chaos of a maker’s daily routine!

Our bags are made with full-grain vegetable-tanned leather*, which is a durable leather that develops a lovely patina over time with continued use. It is thicker than conventional, chrome-tanned leather, which also lends it to be more stiff in the beginning. This video shows how to quickly soften the leather, as well as the proper steps for detaching and attaching the leather shoulder strap and front closure on our Peg and Awl bags.

One of the key steps to speed up the breaking in process of leather is to simply twist and roll the leather in your fingers. As you use your bag the leather will naturally soften and become much easier to maneuver. Whether you help it out, or simply use your bag, the breaking in process does not take long!!

*What is Vegetable Tanned Leather? Vegetable tanning is a slow, natural, and sustainable process of tanning raw hides with natural, biodegradable extracts derived entirely from vegetable sources such as tree bark.

• Twist and roll the strap to soften the leather. It does not take long to break in.
• Press the leather slot over the button stud. Hold the stud and pull the leather strap to bring the stud into the hole.

Our Leather!

Our first bag – The Waxed Canvas Tote – which we finished with reclaimed military leather slings found at a flea market. Dusty and dull with years of neglect, the leather was unassuming. But with some hot soapy water, perseverance, and beeswax balm, we removed the layers to find stories told through the markings of days past. We were delighted! The usefulness of the leather sent us on a mission to scour flea markets and military shows for as many old slings as we could find. For years we used these relics to finish our bags – until there were no more to be found.

And so, a new mission was soon underway: the search for the right new leather. We began in the UK driving along long and winding roads through the English countryside to visit J&FJ Baker, a 500-year-old tannery. This experience and many subsequent conversations enriched our understanding of a leather world we had known nothing about.

While shipping leather from the UK turned out to be impractical, we left enlightened with the knowledge that there do exist a few companies who produce leather in a sustainable and responsible way. When we returned to America we found Wickett & Craig – only a stone’s throw from our shop in Philadelphia. Their vegetable tanning process is a slow, natural, and eco-friendly process of tanning raw hides with natural, biodegradable extracts derived entirely from vegetable sources such as tree bark. This durable leather breaks in and gathers a gorgeous patina, bearing the marks of the users’ (and makers’) adventures – the very thing we’ve always celebrated! We’ve been using this leather for three years now and love it!

With the transition from using reclaimed WWII era gun straps for our leather handles to using locally-sourced vegetable-tanned leather, we are reaffirming the fellowship between ourselves and the materials with which we make. By creating beautiful and useful objects out of sustainable and responsibly sourced materials, we strive to change the way that we as individuals make, use, repair and reuse everyday objects. As our new bags leave our Philadelphia workshop and arrive at your doorsteps, what adventures will they see in your hands and how will they transform to become truly yours?

Vegetable tanned leather is made with a slow, natural, and sustainable process of tanning raw hides with natural, biodegradable extracts derived entirely from vegetable sources such as tree bark.	The more you use your bags and journals, the softer the leather will become.

This durable leather breaks in and gathers a gorgeous patina, bearing the marks of the users’ (and makers’) adventures! Here, you can see the leather on Walter's Tote and Scout.	As you use your bag the leather will naturally soften and become much easier to maneuver.

We took out Hunter's out on an Amethyst dig! they got pretty dirty, so we turned the bags inside out, tapped out the dirt and wiped the inside with a sponge and put them in the sun to dry.	Our Finch is my favourite bag - I carry mine nearly everyday. It holds my books, journal, water bottle, and other bits comfortably.

We receive a lot of questions about the things we make - one of the most common is what art supplies can be used in our Journals and Sketchbooks! We decided to make a little video to respond to this question and share some of my favorite supplies.

In this video, I am using our Orra Portrait Sketchbook (which fits nicely into our Sendak!). ⁠We use Strathmore Drawing Paper in all of our journals and sketchbooks, which we find to be very versatile.⁠

Here are some of my favourite drawing and painting supplies to make marks with... ⁠

1. Koh-I-Noor Pencils⁠
2. Pentel Mechanical Pencil⁠
3. Sennelier Oil Pastels⁠
4. Sennelier Water Soluble Pastels⁠
5. Prismacolor Coloured Pencils
6. Handmade Watercolors 
7. Caran d'Ache Neocolour⁠
8. Vintage Dip Pen⁠ (on www.etsy.com)
9. Vintage Rapidograph Pen⁠ (on www.etsy.com)
10. Noodler's Ink
11. Princeton Artist Brush Co.

Our Orra Sketchbooks!

Our Orra Sketchbooks are thin handbound books that are ideal companions for small projects and daily excursions. They are named for Orra White Hitchcock, a 19th century botanical, geologic, and zoological artist, an illustrator to whom no detail was too small to be recorded in her art. These versatile sketchbooks are made from high quality Strathmore drawing paper, Legion cover stock, and handstitched with linen.

Sampling some of my favourite Art Supplies in our Orra Portrait Notebook.	My Tilda Painter’s Palette made from leather and wood, filled with handmade watercolours from pigments I found!

Sketching in my Landscape Orra Notebook!

Our Orras come in three colours — grey, white, and black — and are stitched with green thread!	The Portrait Orra fits into the back pockets of the Classic Sendak.

Our Orra Notebooks come in 3 sizes — Landscape, Portrait, and Large Portrait.	Our Orra Landscape Notebook fits in the Mini and Classic Sendaks (as do our paint palettes)!

Walter paints a portrait with The Scout Plein Air Box. 

Time isn't very orderly these days.
It speeds up and slows down inexplicably.
This was this winter, or years ago.

Read the backstory of how Walter came to develop the Scout Plein Air Box, which was inspired by our endeavor to make art every day. 

Chapters of The Scout Plein Air Box Video Walkthrough

0:00 Features of the Box
5:02 Setting Up the Box for Painting
11:12 Mounting on a Tripod (Walter uses one by Peak Design)
11:46 Filling the Paint Tubes
13:53 The Scout for Everyday Use