Winter Girl Illustration
Let’s dive into this cozy character illustration! We will build up a warm, wintery look layer by layer. From the initial sketch to refining details, adding flat colors, and bringing in textured depth, this tutorial covers everything to make your illustration pop!
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Studio Pen
- Dry Ink
- Flotastic Brush
- Round Chalk
- Smudgy Hair Brush
Canvas Size:
- 2300 x 3000 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Using Symmetry for Sketching: Start with a centered guide to sketch out a balanced character, then turn off drawing assist to add natural variation.
- Layering for Flat Colors: Organize colors by layering elements like hair, clothing, and accessories separately to maintain control.
- Applying Texture with Alpha Lock: Use Alpha Lock and textured brushes like the Flotastic brush to add depth, shadows, and variation to clothing and accessories.
- Detailing Facial Features: Build up soft shading, add subtle freckles, and use a mix of colors for natural-looking warmth and expression.
- Enhancing Hair with Smudging and Highlights: Create volume and movement using the Smudgy Hair Brush, layering darker and lighter shades for a dynamic look.
Dream House Landscape
Let’s dive into this fun and easy Procreate tutorial to create a charming Studio Ghibli-inspired landscape. We’ll use a loose, painterly style to build depth with a mix of simple shapes, textured brushes, and soft colors. From sketching the scene to refining the final details, I’ll guide you through every step to make this painting process both relaxing and enjoyable.
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Flotastic
- The Surface
- Aurora
- Smudgy Foliage
- Dynamic Color
- Soft Mossy Grass
- Soft Brush
- Overlay
- Stipple 2.0
- Spackles
- Flowers 2
Canvas Size:
- 3000 x 2000 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Creating Depth with Foreground, Middle Ground, and Background: Sketch out the landscape with a clear distinction between the three layers—foreground (trees and grass), middle ground (house and bushes), and background (mountains and sky).
- Using Textured Brushes for a Painterly Effect: Employ brushes like Flotastic and Smudgy Foliage to create organic edges, blending colors naturally while maintaining a soft, illustrative feel.
- Building a House with Proper Perspective: Use a perspective grid to construct the cabin, ensuring accurate angles for the roof, windows, and doors. Keep the lines loose and playful to match the overall aesthetic.
- Adding Atmospheric Details like Clouds and Shadows: Sketch fluffy, dramatic clouds with rounded strokes and enhance depth by placing soft shadows under the roof, around bushes, and along the mountains.
Realistic Plant
Creating a beautifully detailed plant painting requires patience and a few essential techniques. In this tutorial I will walk you through the process step by step, from sketching to final detailing. It’s a great exercise!
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Studio Pen
- Soft Brush
- Basic Flo Brush
- Darken Line 2
- Lighten Line 2
- Flo Darka
- Flo Lighta
- Overlay Brush
Canvas Size:
- 3000 x 4000 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Using negative space to measure proportions: Checking the shapes between objects helps ensure accuracy when sketching and positioning elements.
- Layering for better control: Separating leaves, vases, and the background makes it easier to refine details without affecting other parts of the painting.
- Enhancing realism with texture and color variation: Using both soft and crisp brushes, subtle textures, and color shifts creates depth and a more organic look.
- Adding reflections for a glossy effect: Duplicating, flipping, and fading the vases’ reflections on the table gives the final artwork a professional touch.
Tree with Hearts
In this tutorial, we’re making a simple yet stunning heart tree design, perfect for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, or just showing someone you care. Using a carefully crafted brush pack and color palette, we’ll layer watercolor effects to create soft, artistic textures. Let’s dive in!
Brushes used:
- Studio Pen
- Flotastic Sketcher
- Hearts Brush
- Wet Mixer Brush
- Round Watery Brush
- Watery Brush Pen
- Half Loaded Brush
Canvas Size:
- 2500 x 2500 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Building a tree structure
Sketching the trunk and branches with organic strokes, keeping branches thinner as they extend outward. - Adding realistic bark texture
Using Alpha Lock and a textured brush to create natural, streaky bark details. - Creating watercolor heart foliage
Layering heart stamps, blending edges with wet brushes, and softening shapes for a watercolor effect. - Enhancing depth with masks and smudging
Using layer masks and smudge tools to create a soft, realistic bleed effect in the hearts. - Painting textured grass and ground
Mixing colors with wet brushes and adding expressive strokes for a natural grassy base.
How to draw Eyes
In this week’s tutorial I’d like to show you easy ways to draw eyes for your characters. These are perfect for your children’s book illustration style characters or semi realistic characters. I’ve created a handy practice sheet you can use to try out different styles.
Also, I found this super handy and inspiring website where you can find loads of character design sheets. Just check out their visual library 👍🏻 https://characterdesignreferences.com/
I have also attached a cheat sheet to this post that I made last year for the how to draw a stylized portrait tutorial.
Cute Raccoon
Let’s bring a charming, slightly scruffy raccoon to life in Procreate! Using a mix of soft textures and bold strokes, this tutorial walks you through sketching, inking, coloring, and adding rich fur details for a warm, hand-drawn look. Whether you’re a beginner or refining your style, this lesson will help you create a playful, expressive raccoon illustration by using reference photos as a source of inspiration (and information)
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Studio Pen
- Round Chalk
- Carbon Stick
- Hatcher
Canvas Size:
- 3500 x 3500 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Building a Balanced Sketch
Use simple circles and rough guidelines to construct a raccoon with cartoony proportions and expressive facial features. - Layering Base Colors with a Soft Look
Instead of stark black and white, warm orange and brown tones create a more inviting feel, blending for natural depth. - Adding Fur Textures for a Hand-Drawn Effect
Use chalk and charcoal brushes to create scruffy, layered fur that gives the raccoon personality. - Enhancing the Eyes for Expressiveness
Large, round pupils and soft shading add depth and a lifelike sparkle to the raccoon’s gaze. - Refining with Highlights and Whiskers
Finishing touches, like delicate whiskers and subtle background textures, complete the illustration with a polished yet organic look.
Birthday Gifts
This week it’s my birthday! So I thought it would be nice to create something in that theme. In this tutorial we’ll create a playful, colored pencil style birthday card design. Perfect to send as an e-card for example.
Brushes used:
- Flotastic Sketcher
Canvas Size:
- 2300 x 3000 pixels
Frozen Bubble
Frozen bubbles are enchanting, aren’t they? In this tutorial, we’ll take on the challenge of painting one, step by step, breaking down every detail. From building a textured background to crafting the delicate icy patterns of the bubble, this process is all about layering, blending, and experimenting with light.
Brushes used:
- Soft Brush
- Monoline Brush
- Base Painter Brush
- Standard Blender
- Lighten Line Brush
- Basic Flo Brush
- Flo Lighta Brush
- Darken Line Brush
- Overlay Brush
- Light Pen
Canvas Size:
- 3500 x 3500 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Creating a Dynamic Background: Start with a dark base and use soft gradients to establish depth and atmosphere for the bubble’s setting
- Using Layers Effectively: Divide elements into layers (background, foreground, and bubble) for better control and easy adjustments during painting
- Detailing with Highlights: Incorporate crisp and soft highlights to enhance the bubble’s reflective surface and mimic realistic ice patterns
Cute Giraffe
Let’s paint something challenging! I think this poké bowl is perfect, there are lots of different shapes and textures, making it a nice ‘puzzle’. In this video I will take you through my process of figuring this ‘puzzle’ out and building a color palette along the way.
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Studio Pen
- Flotastic Brush
- Round Chalk Pencil
- Paper Mixer Brush
- Scratchy Chalk Brush
- Smudgy Hair Brush
- Soft Edge Faded
- Light Pen
Canvas Size:
- 3500 x 3500 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Applying base colors and building texture: Learn to use layers for each element, flat color application, and brushes like the Flotastic Brush and Round Chalk Pencil to add texture and detail to the illustration
- Adding depth with Multiply layers: Use layers set to Multiply mode for subtle shadowing and use tools like the Soft Edge Faded brush to create 3D effects
- Enhancing highlights with Add layers: Add light effects to edges and features, making the character pop by blending highlights with tools like the Paper Mixer Brush
- Creating a dreamy background and starry atmosphere: Create a complementary background using brushes, smudge tools, and adding stars and sparkles for a whimsical look