Texture hunting: The trendy new way to collect memories from your travel adventures
Texture hunting is the charming new art trend that turns everyday surfaces into beautiful prints using just a kneaded eraser, a stamp pad and a sketchbook. It helps you see your city with fresh eyes while creating a sketchbook full of unique textures and mindful moments.
Travelling is all about collecting memories and interesting stories. However, what if instead of a souvenir, you collected the texture of the city you have visited? This is exactly what people have been doing with the new micro-travelling trend - texture hunting.
As the name suggests, texture hunting involves preserving a small piece of the places you have visited in a form that preserves their texture. Think of it as a slow, mindful treasure hunt where the “treasures” are the tiny patterns hiding in plain sight, on a park bench, a tree bark, a manhole cover, an old building column, or even the metal grate outside your favourite cafe. Once you start looking, the world suddenly feels textured, layered, alive.
So what exactly is texture hunting?
Texture hunting is a simple analogue art practice where you press everyday surfaces onto paper using a stamp pad and a kneaded eraser to capture unique patterns. You’re essentially collecting the fingerprints of your surroundings while travelling, the grain of wood, the grooves of pavements, the weave of fabrics, the ornamental carvings you never paused to admire before. It’s creative, meditative and honestly, a little addictive.
What you need (and why it’s so easy to start)
The best part? You need almost nothing.
- A kneaded eraser
- A stamp pad
- A sketchbook
That’s it. No expensive supplies. No fancy tutorials. No skill level required.
Next time you travel, and see a pattern that you like, just press the eraser gently onto the textured surface, tap it onto the stamp pad and stamp it into your sketchbook. Every page becomes a tiny museum of places you’ve visited, a walkable diary of your city.
Why everyone loves it, even non-artists
Texture hunting feels like the kind of creativity we’ve forgotten: playful, quiet, simple. It doesn’t ask you to be “good.” It just asks you to notice.
It’s brilliant for:
- Anyone who wants a low-pressure art hobby
- Kids and adults who enjoy exploring
- Travellers collecting memories
- Mindfulness lovers who want a grounding ritual
- People who want to reconnect with their city
The outcome is stunning: A sketchbook full of abstract, intricate prints, each one tied to a tiny moment in your day.
A small ritual that brings you back into the world
In an over-digital world, this kind of tactile curiosity feels refreshing. You slow down, look closely, and reconnect with the physical texture of life. You end up discovering corners of your city you’ve walked past a thousand times, noticing details you’ve never noticed before.
And that’s the joy: you come home with ink on your fingers, a sketchbook of surprises, and a deeper sense of belonging. Texture hunting isn’t just art. It’s attention. Its presence. It’s a wonder. And that’s the real magic: It teaches you to see your city with fresh eyes.
Also read: India’s most searched travel destinations of 2025; number 5 will surprise you