Mae

This is the last portrait in my current watercolour portrait sketchbook. I messed up Mae’s hair and had to add some highlights in Procreate, which gave me a chance to experiment with some of the lovely new digital brushes. And because I have finished a sketchbook I’ve filmed a quick flip through of the whole sketchbook, which you can see on YouTube here if you’re interested.

I drew Mae’s portrait in my Laloran sketchbook with a Micron fineliner, painted it with Zecchi Toscana watercolours, added some Prismacolor coloured pencils and then finished off with some digital editing in Procreate.

Ania

Finally, after what feels like weeks of struggle, a portrait I’m happy with. I haven’t quite captured Ania’s likeness here, which reminds me once again that it isn’t a perfect likeness that I’m striving for, but I’ve definitely caught a sense of her gracefulness and her porcelain-like beauty. I made a mess of a number of my lines , especially under her eyes and in her hair, but that doesn’t matter. Overall I’m happy with what I achieved. The hair frames the face well and draw attention into those beautiful eyes and that lovely freckled skin. That’s what I wanted from the portrait.

I drew Ania in my Moleskine sketchbook with Micron fineliners, Copic markers and Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Noel

I’m still struggling to find time to draw but I’m hoping that as work winds down for the Christmas holidays later this week that will get easier and I’ll find some good creative time. My daughter’s internship ends on Friday too so I won’t have get up early every day to drop her at the train station – it’s shocking how much that eats at my spoons and leaves me with no energy for anything else by mid-afternoon. But I did manage a sketch of Noel for this week’s Old School Sktchy anatomy challenge.

I drew Noel on my iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil using the Procreate app and the new Peppermint pencil brush in Procreate 5.

Rocio

Still expressing my own emotions through my portraits of others, this time in my portrait of Rocio.

I drew Rocio with Copic markers and coloured pencils in my Moleskine sketchbook.

Adah

Blue is my favourite colour. I find it soothing, cooling, calming. I also have a long history of severe depression and blue is, of course, the colour associated with sadness. Today I am feeling blue (post-election blues after yesterday’s UK election) and it felt right to draw a blue portrait. It so happens that Sktchy is having a Blue Portrait Party this week, which gave me even more of a reason to draw a blue portrait. So here is Adah looking much paler and bluer than she does in the inspiration photo!

I drew Adah on my iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil using the Procreate app.

Alexander

Alexander’s face ended up a little wonky but never mind. I’m snowed under with work at the moment and really struggling to find drawing time, which I’m finding frustrating. I hate not having enough time to settle down and focus properly on drawing but everything I’m doing feels very rushed at the moment. I’m so looking forward to the Christmas break, when I’ll have two whole weeks with no work and plenty of time to draw!

I drew Alexander in my Laloran sketchbook with a Micron pen, painted him with Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished the portrait with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Susana

I drew Susana in my large A4 Moleskine sketchbook with Copic markers and finished it with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Dayris

This is the lovely Dayris. In the Sktchy inspiration photo she is standing in front of amazing floral wallpaper. I didn’t want to even attempt to recreate that paper. Instead I created my own patterned background using some floral digital stamps I made for another project.

I drew Dayris’ portrait on my iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil using the Procreate app, Lisa Bardot’s Copicat brushes and my own digital stamps.

Amélie

I love playing with light and shadows in my portraiture. I’m always drawn to Sktchy inspiration photos that have interesting light and shadows in them and the photo that inspired this portrait of AmĂ©lie is a good example. Her hair and the bottom part of her face was well lit but the top half of her face was in a great shadow cast by the bucket hat. Capturing that shadow, and the texture of the hat, without making everything too dark and overworking the portrait was a great challenge and I’m really happy with how it turned out.

I painted Amelie in my Laloran sketchbook with Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished the portrait with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Athenas

I’ve been playing around with both real and digital coloured pencils for this portrait of Athenas today. I started off drawing her in my HannehmĂĽhle Nostalgie sketchbook with an HB pencil and Prismacolor coloured pencils. Then I imported that sketch into Procreate on my iPad Pro abundance worked on it some more with a Blackwing Pencil brush.