Sketching out a painting before putting brush to paper is a must-have for many of us artists. Those pencil lines can be so helpful in making sure that a painting turns out the way we want it too. But, with watercolor, they can also be a problem. Given the light washes used in watercolor, it …
Sometimes we don’t want to stress about making complex masterpieces that we labor over for hours and hours. Sometimes we just want to sit down and make an easy drawing that’s quick, relaxing, and fun. Luckily, there’s a treasure trove of tutorials that take all of the mental strain out of drawing so that you …
Maybe you’re working on an outdoors art project and want to be sure that your acrylic painting doesn’t wash away in the rain. Maybe you’re working on a piece for your bathroom and don’t want the moisture to turn your new piece of art into a dripping mess. Or, maybe you just want to have …
There’s nothing worse than working hard on a pencil drawing, only to find it smudged in your sketchbook or hanging on the wall. Luckily, there are some easy ways to protect your pencil drawings from smudging. To protect your pencil drawings from smudging, spray them with a fixative. This will create a barrier between the …
You head to your art cabinet with plans for a relaxing afternoon of painting. You grab your brushes and paper, but hesitate when you reach for the watercolor paints. How old are these anyways? Should you be worried about your watercolor paints being expired? Watercolor does not expire, but it can lose quality overtime, especially …
Drafting and drawing are terms that often get confused with each other. Not only do they sound the same, they almost mean the same thing. There’s a really critical difference though, which makes it clear why they are both important terms, independent of one another, in the art world. The key difference between drawing and …
All artists, regardless of skill level, use 5 basic skills when creating their drawings. These skills make up the foundation of creating any piece of art, whether it’s a landscape, portrait, still life, or cartoon. Looking at intricate drawings, it can be easy to forget that ever great work starts with a pencil and paper …
You sit down with your sketchbook and you’re lost. Maybe you want to draw an elephant but aren’t sure where to start. Maybe you’ve been admiring a new artist and want to emulate their techniques. What do you do? Can you copy their work? Will copying help you improve your drawing skills? You can learn …
From the time we’re kids, we all grab crayons and start scribbling shapes. Little did we know that we were all budding contour artists. Contour drawing is one of the most common types of drawing and makes up a lot of the art that we create and enjoy. A contour drawing is an outline of …
We all know the cliche that practice makes perfect and that practicing a skill every single day would be great in a perfect, stress-free, unscheduled world. In reality, it’s hard to do. When it comes to drawing and art, how neurotic should you be about carving out some time every day to practice? Very neurotic. …