Draw Everything June: Week 3

 Aaannnd we’ve finished the fourth week of Draw Everything June!  Can you believe there’s only one week left? O.O  Time really flew!

Run by Sailor Sakky on deviantART, Draw Everything June is a figure-drawing challenge with a new reference photo posted every weekday.  You can read the rules here: Draw Everything June 2: 2017 Edition.  On average, this week’s poses took me 45 minutes to an hour every day. . . bit too long for warmups lol.  Well, I tried some different things like backgrounds, so it’s only to be expected!

On to the photos!

“Through rain or snow, up mountain or down valley, they said. . . sigh. . . So of course it would have to be a mountain today.”

The path we tread may be dangerous, but at least it was one we chose.

Shall we dance?
One thing that’s great about Senshi Stock is the variety of models! It’s helpful for learning to do different proportions. ^^

“Farewell.” <– Said like Auron from FFX. XD
This is the same gunslinger from previous weeks, but her hair’s in buns today. Which do you prefer? Twintails or buns? ^^

The perfect day.

See you all next week for the final five poses of Draw Everything June! ^^

Watercolor Galaxies

The landscape I posted last week isn’t the only watercolor practice I’ve been doing. . . I’ve also enjoyed making these galaxies.  They were originally inspired by this tutorial on Youtube:

Unfortunately, this method didn’t work for me exactly.  My paints are less pigmented and have a smaller variety of color – so, for example, I couldn’t use the deep indigo as shown in the tutorial.  I also don’t have any masking fluid.  Nevertheless, Cloud and I developed a new method that layers colors and creates stars through splattering opaque white watercolor paint.  Though this method cannot achieve the intensity as shown in the tutorial – or many other galaxy paintings seen online – I’m very happy with how these turned out.  (^__^)

By the by: I’m thinking of photographing the next galaxy I paint step-by-step and making a tutorial.  Would you be interested in this?  Let me know! 😀

Draw Everything June 2: Week 3 Roundup

 Today wraps up the third week of Draw Everything June!  Run by Sailor Sakky on deviantART, Draw Everything June is a figure-drawing challenge with a new reference photo posted every weekday.  You can read the rules here: Draw Everything June 2: 2017 Edition.  There were some ups and downs for me this week – some poses were really difficult! – but overall I think my time is improving and I’m becoming more comfortable working from reference photos. ^^

Bursting onto the scene last year with the hit single, “Spiral,” the talented sisters Chiyo and Choko are now releasing their first album, “Twilight Repose.”

And so the enemy appeared.

 

Like the silk ribbon she danced with, Lian was graceful and delicate, yet stronger than she appeared.

When the going gets tough, it’s important to take a moment and remember why you fight.

 

After training, it’s nice to relax a little!

Hope you enjoyed this weeks’ sketches!  See you next week for the fourth installment of this series!

Experimenting with Watercolor: Mountains and Rivers Landscape

As I mentioned before, I’ve been sketching on watercolor paper with the full intent to paint them traditionally, rather than digitally – but I’m a little nervous to start.  What if I ruin it?!  You know the feeling?  With digital art, you always have CTRL+Z, but with watercolors, you can’t change it once you put down the paint.  So nerve-wracking! 💦 💦 💦

I didn’t want to let that feeling hold me back, so I looked up some tutorials on Youtube and started painting some small pictures to break the ice!  This painting of mountains and rivers was made using simple techniques from this video by Mr. Otter Art Studio:

The idea of a simple landscape using washes sounded easy enough for even a beginner!  And it was a lot of fun. 😀  Though, I think I’ll practice a bit more before I try to paint one of the sketches! (^__^);;

And a close-up of the painting:

Have you tried painting with watercolors?  How did you like it?  Let me know in the comments below!

Draw Everything June II: Week 2 Roundup

Welcome back to Week 2 of Draw Everything June!  Run by Sailor Sakky on deviantART, Draw Everything June is a figure-drawing challenge with a new reference photo posted every weekday.  You can read the rules here: Draw Everything June 2: 2017 Edition.  For week 2, there were a bunch of challenging poses – so I’m really happy it’s the weekend and I can recharge a little, haha!  But enough talking, here are the sketches!  Enjoy.

 

Sometimes after a victory, Vivi would play beautiful music. The graceful way she played and danced earned her the nickname The Violin Fairy.

Annalia: Hey, Leader. Why do I have to be the one to crawl through ventilation?
Leader: Because you’re the quietest.
Annalia: . . .
Leader: What, you thought I’d send Miss Violin Fairy? She’s a great asset to our team, but stealth. . . is not her strong suit. Well, she is a performer after all.
Annalia: . . . 😦
And so, Annalia ended up in the ventilation. 🙂

Sometimes you just have to do what needs done.
A free agent who encounters the Squad, the mysterious gunslinger appears and vanishes again just as quickly. What is her objective? Is she friend or foe? No one knows anything about her. . . not even her name.

Time to take care of business.

You thought they left the base defenseless? Think again.

See you next week!

Pencil Sketch: Cloud, the Lady of Spring

I’m still in a flower-inspired mood, so have a sketch of Cloud as a Lady of Spring!  In keeping with the witch drawings I did last Inktober, Cloud is the character I turn to when I want to draw flowers and spring-like themes.  She’s just so optimistic and sweet herself that it seems a natural fit! (◕‿◕✿)

I’m looking forward to coloring her – but I’m still a little inexperienced with watercolors – so I’m a little nervous. *sweats*  I should start with something simpler, yet I can’t stop drawing such complicated sketches.  orz  Oh well, practice practice!

If you have any watercolor tips, or a good tutorial to recommend, I’d really appreciate it!  Let me know in the comments below!   (^u^)

Draw Everything June II: Week 1

For the month of June, I’ve found a new challenge: Draw Everything June!  Run by Sailor Sakky on deviantART, Draw Everything June is a figure-drawing challenge with a new reference photo posted every weekday (so at least weekends are off – phew!).  I’ve decided to do this challenge as a daily warm-up, which means it’s perfect for pencil sketches! XD

To keep organized, I’ll be posting my sketches for Draw Everything June once a week – probaben ly Friday or Saturday.  Other content (paintings, WIPs, essays, & project updates) will continue being posted as well.

Here’s the first week!  A bit short because there’s only been two weekdays in June so far.  Presenting Annalia Goldburn:

Day 1: Recruit
Nice to meet you. . . . I’m Annalia Goldburn. . . I hope we can get along. . . .

 

Day 2: PracticeEven the simple spells are a lot of fun!

For my own amusement, I’ve decided to follow Annalia’s adventures for the duration of the challenge.  So it will be a challenge of consistency as well as figure drawing!  😀

See you with Part 2 later this week!