Waterfall in Moonlight
This is such a fun and satisfying landscape to paint. You start with a really loose sketch just to figure out where everything goes, because there’s quite a lot happening in this scene. From there, you build it up step by step with simple shapes for the cliffs, waterfalls, trees, and foreground, and then slowly bring in all that lovely atmosphere with mist, moonlight, reflections, and those magical little fireflies. It ends up feeling like a secret place hidden deep inside a forest.
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Forester
- Studio Pen
- Monoline
- Flat Painter
- Scattered Soft Bush
- Base Painter
- Flo Lighta Brush
- Flotastic Brush
- Lighten Line Brush
- Blender
- Overlay Brush
- Light Pen
- Soft Brush
Canvas Size:
- 2300 x 3000 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Keeping the sketch loose and useful
You use a very rough sketch as a guide so you know where all the main elements go without getting stuck in too much detail. - Building the scene in layers
You place the big shapes first, like the rock walls, water, trees, and foreground, so the painting stays organized and easy to adjust. - Using color to create moonlight
You shift the foliage, rocks, and clouds toward cool blue tones so the whole scene feels softly lit by the moon. - Making waterfalls feel soft and glowing
You layer lighter tones, darker streaks, bloom, blur, and smudging to give the water that dreamy, misty movement. - Adding atmosphere with finishing details
You use fog, reflections, grassy textures, rocks, flowers, and glowing fireflies to make the whole landscape feel magical and alive.
City Street in the Morning
Today we’re doing a fun little “photo-to-art” shortcut (and no, it’s not cheating). I shot this street photo myself in Ghent super early in the morning and it just had that magical color vibe, so we’re turning it into a playful, expressive painting in Procreate. We keep it simple: sketch only what you actually need, block in flat shapes on separate layers, then build up texture with a small brush set and a limited palette so it feels bold and painterly. The final “wow” comes from pushing contrast and light—Screen and Multiply masks like you’d do in photo editing—plus some lantern glow to sell that fairy-tale mood.
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Pipeline
- Sierra
- Molesworth
- Forrester
- On the Flo
- Florentine
Canvas Size:
- 2300 x 3000 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Use a photo as a guide without getting stuck to it: You duplicate the photo, lower opacity, and sketch only the important structure so the result stays simplified and artistic, not stiff.
- Block in clean flats fast: You use the Selection tool (Freehand + Color Fill) to carve big building shapes on separate layers, working front-to-back so everything stays organized.
- Texture first, detail later: You lay down big charcoal strokes for color variety, then slowly tighten things up with smaller brushes and saved window selections for crisp edges where it matters.
- Control detail with distance :You keep the foreground richer and the background quieter (less texture, fewer marks), so the perspective reads without you doing a million tiny things.
- Push contrast with masks: You copy/paste a merged version, use Screen + a black mask to paint in extra light, Multiply + a black mask to deepen shadows, then finish with Curves (Gamma) and a gentle saturation bump.
Realistic Butterfly
Ready for another deep dive into realism? In this session, I’m painting a butterfly on a flower—just me, my brushes, and the canvas, working through the process from the first loose sketch all the way to those satisfying final touches. I show you how I build up layers, choose colors intuitively, and refine the painting to create something that feels believable, not perfect. It’s all about taking the time to observe, make adjustments, and slowly bring it all to life.
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Studio Pen
- Soft Brush
- Shader
- Light Shader
- Darken Line
- Lighten Line
- Overlay Brush
- Stippy Brush
- Spackle it Brush
- Standard Blender
Canvas Size:
- 3000 x 2000 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Blocking in foundational shapes: Using rough sketches and negative space to accurately place butterfly and flower forms.
- Layer organization for realism: Strategically separating body parts and flower elements across layers for easier detailing and adjustments.
- Creating depth with texture and shading: Adding grain, light/dark contrast, and stippling to give life to wings and petals.
- Refining with detail brushes: Using fine line and spackle brushes to mimic natural markings and textures on wings and stems.
- Enhancing with finishing effects: Applying noise, color tweaks, and blending modes like Multiply and Screen to boost contrast and realism.
Balcony House part 2
Part 2 is here! Let’s bring our cozy balcony house to life with COLOR!
Now that we’ve built the structure of our whimsical 3D house, it’s time to dive into the fun part — painting! In this second part of the tutorial, we’ll turn our sketch into a full illustration filled with warm colors, textures, playful curves, flowers, and charming details.
Brushes used:
- Studio Pen
- Flotastic Brush
- Fine Liner Brush
- Darken Line Brush
- Lighten Line Brush
- Scattered Soft Bush
- Rounded Tufts Brush
- Flowers Brush
- Base Painter
Canvas Size:
- 3500 x 3500 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Using layer organization to streamline complex illustrations: Separate layers for base colors, textures, lighting, and tiny details help manage even dense scenes like this balcony house.
- Adding texture with brushes for natural realism: The Flotastic and Fine Liner brushes add subtle texture to wood, rock, and roof tiles, making flat areas come to life.
- Mastering light and shadow for atmosphere: By creating multiply and screen layers with masks, you’re able to paint dynamic lighting and soft shadows for drama and depth.
- Painting plants that feel organic and lush: Using soft scatter brushes and varying opacities helps give foliage a layered, overgrown, natural look.
Poké Bowl
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:
- Flotastic Sketcher
- Flotastic Brush
- Flo Darka
- Flo Lighta
- Overlay Brush
- Darken Line Brush
- Lighten Line Brush
- Soft Brush
- Multiply Brush
- Standard Blender
Canvas Size:
- 3500 x 3500 pixels
Key Skills Learned:
- Using multiple layers for efficient workflow: Layers are created for individual elements like tomatoes, rice, corn, and leaves, allowing precise adjustments and shading
- Adding realistic shading with Flo Brushes: Shadows and highlights are built with Flo Darka and Flo Lighta brushes to give depth and texture to various elements
- Crafting loose painterly styles: Balancing refinement and expressiveness, use textured brushes and deliberate smudging to keep a hand-painted feel
- Building complex details step by step: Intricate parts, like kernels and leaves, are developed in phases: base colors, shadows, highlights, and fine adjustments
City Cat
Transform your art skills by combining the charm of cityscapes with the character of animals. In this tutorial, we’ll paint a vibrant city cat scene step-by-step, from sketching the basics to adding intricate textures and final details. It’ll be fun!
Brushes used:
- Flotastic Sketcher
- Monoline Brush
- Soft Brush
- Square Chalk
- Flotastic Brush
- Smudge Tool
- Light Pen
- Darken Line Brush
- Flo Darka Brush
- Flo Lighta Brush
- Flotastic Inker
- Overlay Brush
Canvas Size:
- 2300 x 3000 pixels
Skills Learned:
- Constructing a cat sketch: Begin with simple shapes like circles and ovals, and outline major body parts such as the head, body, ears, and tail, refining with basic geometric lines
- Creating a textured cityscape: Employ drawing assist for precise building lines and multiple color layers to form depth, adding gradient shading for dimension
- Forming natural, textured clouds: Blend with rounded brush strokes and the smudge tool to create realistic cloud gradients and transitions, incorporating various shades for depth
- Adding subtle details and highlights: Use the flow lighter and darker brushes for shading and highlights on the cat, emphasizing light sources with bloom effects to enhance glow and dimension
Cozy Room
I’ve always wanted to make an interior illustration like this, with loose brush strokes and an expressive feel. In this tutorial I’ll show you how you can easily do that with a photo as a base. I think it’s a lot of fun to do! So I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did.
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Studio Pen
- Monoliner
- Flotastic brush
- Soft Brush (Airbrushing set)
- Smudging Chalk Mixer
- Darken Line Brush
- Lighten Line Brush
- Light Pen
Canvas Size:
- 3500 x 3500 pixels
Skills Learned:
- Setting up perspective grid and drawing guides: Align the drawing guide with the scene’s perspective, creating a vanishing point and horizon line that simplifies and stylizes the layout of objects
- Creating line art and simplifying details: Trace essential shapes using perspective lines, emphasizing clean, bold lines to achieve a stylized look. Organic shapes are drawn on a separate layer to add expressive touches
- Enhancing depth with multiply and screen layers: Multiply layers add shadows, while screen layers provide highlights, creating color variation and realistic lighting effects in the illustration
- Final lighting and shadow adjustments with masks and duplicates: Use layer masks on multiply and screen layers to add depth, emphasize sunlight, and achieve a glowing effect around light sources, giving the final piece a dynamic, sunny ambiance
Happy Hiker
Let’s dive into this fun, Procreate tutorial where you’ll illustrate a charming hiking boy in a children’s book style! We’ll build up a cozy scene using clever textures and soft shading techniques. With brushes from the Procreate Treasure Chest, you’ll bring this cute character and his mountain adventure to life. Ready to get started?
Brushes used:
- Round Chalk Brush
- Spackle it Brush
- Studio Pen
- Round Chalk Pencil
Canvas Size:
- 3500 x 3500 pixels
Skills Learned:
- Layering Techniques for Dimension
Discover how to create depth by stacking and managing layers for the background, midground, and foreground - Texturing with Chalk and Spackle it Brushes
Learn to add visual interest with rough textures for natural elements, from trees to foggy skies - Organized Shading with Alpha Lock
Apply shading precisely within each element, from landscape features to the character, using Alpha Lock
Paper Cutout Scarecrow
It’s time for some paper cutout fun again! We’ll create this cute fall themed scarecrow together. I hate it that Summer is over, but this gal sure improves my mood 🤪
Brushes used:
- Basic Sketcher
- Studio Pen
- Soft Brush
- Spackle it!
- Shader
- Corrugated Iron
- Rosette
- Diagonal
- Tessellated
- Micropio
- Thespot
- Campy
Canvas Size:
- 2500 x 2500 pixels
Skills Learned:
- Building shapes with simplified geometry: Start with circles, rectangles, and triangles to form the scarecrow and pumpkins, keeping shapes blocky for a cut-paper aesthetic
- Creating layers for depth: Use multiple layers for individual elements like hair, clothes, and accessories to easily manage and manipulate shadows and textures
- Refining sketches with opacity: Lower the opacity of your rough sketch to trace over cleaner lines on a new layer, refining shapes and adding details
- Adding realistic shadows and highlights: Apply Gaussian blur and shift shadows slightly to create the illusion of paper layers
- Using texture brushes for a handcrafted feel: Incorporate brushes like Diagonal and Rosette to give the artwork texture and make each paper piece feel unique