I have now been an Artist for just over a year. I am shocked at how far I’ve come in one short year. I’ve made so much progress and I’ve been able to address some of my confidence issues.
Above is one of my very first sketches……. 🙈🙈
As an artist you are forever being judged. So many people think you don’t actually “work” and that it must be easy to throw some paint on a canvas. There will always be someone sniggering behind your back, sometimes even to your face. But you know what the best thing I’ve learnt this year is? Is not to care or listen to the armchair critics. The quicker you learn to ignore the ‘know-it-alls’ the better off you are going to be.
Above is a short video a start of a puffin sketch. It turned out really nice. It just shows a little bit of effort every day over time is totally worth it.
I have enjoyed so much about the last year. I’ve loved that many people love my art and that lots of my pieces (prints and originals) are making lots of people happy. I’ve loved learning new skills and learning how to perfect certain techniques. I’ve even enjoyed finding myself lost and not sure how to move a piece forward. I have also enjoyed being able to put those pieces down, move to something new and then coming back to the old piece and knowing exactly where to go.
Learning that I don’t have to force myself to be creative and enjoying the fact that some of my better pieces were created when I threw the rule book out the window.
I learnt to TRUST myself. Trust that I am actually good at this. It’s wonderful that after many years, several different jobs and career choices that I have finally found something I love. And yet I still have SO much farther to go. The road may seem never ending, but holy moly I am going to enjoy strolling off down the winding dirt path with the fairies.
Keep up with my progress and all my new pieces for this next year by following me on Instagram and Facebook. If you would like to see what original pieces and prints I have on sale at the moment check out my Etsy Store or my Redbubble Site.
Anyone who knows me, knows I love Harry Potter. I especially love drawing the magical creatures in the movies. My most recent piece that I’ve drawn is Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback. It took me a long time to get all the details right. I hope you all like him!
First Stages – sketching out his shape and making sure all the proportions are accurate. I chose to draw him on A3 size 110gsm sketching paper.
The first few layers of the wings were tricky. Using my graphite pencils and my pencil eraser to try to get the texture right.
My next major challenge was the texture in the wood of the table he was on. Inserting the shadows underneath Norbert gives the 3D affect to my graphite sketch.
The final stages are a little tedious sometimes. You can see the end, it’s so close but it’s not quite perfect yet! This stage probably took the longest time to complete.
After approximately 5 hours of work, here Norbert is! I really love him. Now I get to choose another beast to draw! If anyone has any suggestions drop you choice in the comments.
Now, as Norbert isn’t my original creation he won’t be for sale. I do have many other animals, flowers and landscapes available to purchase in my etsy store. Here’s a link to one if my small dragon sketches! Dragon Art Print
If you would like to keep up to date with all my art sketches and paintings please check out my Facebook or Instagram accounts.
As an artist I get many questions. One is what paper or canvas is best to use. The answer isn’t always straightforward. In this article I will walk you through a few different but easily accessible choices based on the look your are going for.
Sketching/Drawing
For practice drawing and sketching you want to have a smooth paper. A hot pressed paper that isn’t too thick. Anything up to 120gsm is pretty good. The thickness of the paper will still give you a quality feel to your sketch and the hot press will give you a smooth finish. The smoother the paper, the cleaner your lines will be which will give you a more realistic look.
My current art journal is less than 100gsm and is not suitable for anything other than sketching. Below is a picture of an Orca I sketched sometime ago. If you try to use other medias (paint or watercolour) on this type of paper it will wrinkle and curl. It damages the paper and if you do that, there’s no saving it.
Orca – light weight sketch paper
Mixed Media Paper 250 gsm +
The below sketch is a graphite on 250gsm mixed media paper. This paper is meant to handle Acrylic paint well, water colour however, is a bit of a stretch. I love it to print my art work on to this paper because it has a bit of texture just like a canvas and it gives the print a really good quality look and feel.
Norbit the dragon – Graphite sketch
Cold Pressed Cotton Paper
A cold press paper is rough, it has what is called ‘tooth’. It is ideal if you like that bumpy, textured feel and look to your painting. I personally don’t like to draw on this type of paper. I love to paint on it! I use a 300gsm cold press cotton paper with my acrylics. You get a matte finish with the textured finish of a canvas. The cotton paper is actually made for water colour paint because it can handle the wet application without creasing and folding. I use watercolours and acrylic and it performs beautifully.
Poppies – Water colour in watercolour paper
Stretched Canvas
There are several types of canvas you can purchase. The main types are stretched canvas, canvas board and canvas sheets. I prefer to use a stretched canvas. I like the bounce back it gives. All types of canvas have a tooth (bumpy texture) that I love! With the stretched canvas’s you don’t have to frame and can hang as is.
TOP TIP – be sure to paint the sides of your stretched canvas. It will look more professional once on the wall.
Saundersfoot beach – on Stretched Canvas
Above is an acrylic Painting is on a stretched canvas of Saundersfoot Beach. This is my favourite material to paint on.
Canvas Board
As you can see from the below picture canvas board performs much like a stretched canvas. It has a tooth, although not as deep or prominent. It is an easy and cheaper way to start painting. They come in all sorts of sizes and packs. You can frame them easily too.
Raspberries – Acrylic paint on Canvas Board
I hope you liked my tips for how to choose the right paper or canvas, be sure to check out my article on How to improve your Sketches.
