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Today's mixed media on canvas is a hilarious mashup of a grumpy cat and a flower- done in my signature "Hamburger" style. There's a little bit of everything from mixed media collage using paper napkins, to mixed media drawing & acrylic painting. I had a blast! Having FUN with your art is the MOST important part! If you're having FUN, you'll create more often. The more you create - the BETTER you'll get!
If you've never done mashup art before, be sure to click over to the video to see exactly what I'm doing. It's actually REALLY easy. You just combine two or more reference images to come up with your own creation!
For my supplies, I used a tall canvas (around 12 x 36), some floral napkins for collaging with mod podge, and ALL my mixed media supply favorites from watersoluble pencils to acrylics, gelatos and pitt pens.
If you look closely at the collage portions of this piece- I was using floral napkins. The napkin pattern had a white background, so when I collaged it to my canvas, the flowers kinda melted into the background like they were always there. It was a really cool effect! Check out this link to learn more about how to do wrinkle-free mixed media collage with paper napkins. 
As you can see above, when I was ready to start drawing my grumpy flower cat, I used a watersoluble pencil. I think this is an awesome trick because once you start painting, your pencil lines totally melt away!
Once I got my acrylic layer down, I started adding in my gelatos (shown below) to blend in some shading with my finger and give my acrylics more dimension.
If you've never used gelatos before, they're AMAZING. I recently did a video on how to use gelatos in mixed mediat art, so be sure to check that out for my best tips.
Gelatos get added in layer 3 of my Mixed Media Hamburger System. If you're not familiar with my "hamburger system," - it's what I named my layering process when I'm doing mixed media and want to play with ALL of my art supplies!
The hamburger system is SUPER helpful for beginners and anyone else who wants to learn a little more about mixed media art supplies, when to use them & which supplies work well together. Click the button below if you'd like to download my Mixed Media Hamburger cheatsheet (yup - it's totally FREE). 
If you'd like to see me explain my hamburger system to you on my Mixed Media YouTube channel, be sure to click over to this playlist.
I hope you get a kick outta today's grumpy flower cat mashup! If this is something you'd like to do with me in real time (no timelapse), this is one of MANY fun projects over in the Mixed Media Society over at Awesome Art School. We'd LOVE to have you come hang out with us!! ❤️MY ARTIST BESTIE, LUCY BRYDON & I are creating a NEW ART MEMBERSHIP together called The Celtic Collective!! Learn More & add your name to the waitlist here. Opens in TWO DAYS on July 7th! 
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Today I'm starting a FUN cartoon cat drawing series over on my YouTube Drawing channel!
I've been teaching my students in The Fun Fab Drawing Club over at Awesome Art School how to draw cartoon cats & dogs, and thought YOU might like a sneak peek at what we've been up to! Feel free to use this funny Siamese cat lying down as YOUR OWN cat drawing reference so you can play along with us! 
I'm keeping it easy with supplies - just a pencil, fineliner and some copics to shade! Come draw with me! BEGINNERS WELCOME!!
Before I get too far into this drawing tutorial, I HAVE to give a shout out to the talented artist who inspired these drawing lessons - Heather Nesheim!
I'm actually dedicating this WHOLE series to Heather because I think her work is amazing and when I asked her if we could study her work and use it to inspire our own cat drawings, she said YES!
So a HUGE thank you to, Heather!! 
Through this whole series - we'll be honing our drawing skills with a wide variety of cat cartoons!
I think it's SUPER important to have an awesome reference that YOU LOVE when you're just learning how to draw because you'll be way more interested in actually drawing it! And...the more you draw- the BETTER you'll get!! I'm drawing all my cats in pencil and doing the cat drawing outline with a fineliner before I pull out my copics for some alcohol marker shading. 
I've tried TONS of brands out for fineliners and I have to say I'm really in love with a new set made by MOLOTOW. You can find them in my store over on Amazon if you need a fineliner that WON'T SMUDGE under your alcohol markers.
The set I've got comes in multiple nibs to help me vary my line weights. I love their water based pigment in the ink, and the way they feel kinda heavy in my hand - which makes me feel like I've got more control over my work. 
Real quick - if you do feel like you need some fineliners or find another something you love over in my Amazon store - my links are Affiliate, which means I may earn a small commission if you choose to order through these links, but by law there is never any additional cost to the consumer for doing so. I thank you for your support!
Thanks again Heather for inspiring such a FUN drawing series for us over at Awesome Art School in the Fun Fab Drawing Club! We love your work and are so appreciative that you let us practice drawing like YOU!! You can check Heather's website out here or go follow her on Instagram @heddarsketch. Wanna do this and MORE fun cat cartoon drawings with me in REAL TIME (not timelapsed/ sped up) over at Awesome Art School? Join the waitlist in The Fun Fab Drawing Club!
❤️Did you miss my Fun Fab Fairies Workshop? NO worries!! You can STILL sign up and enjoy each of these lessons on your own time at your own pace in this stand alone classroom at Awesome Art School! CLICK HERE to REGISTER. 
❤️MY ARTIST BESTIE, LUCY BRYDON & I are creating a NEW ART MEMBERSHIP together called The Celtic Collective!! Learn More & add your name to the waitlist here. Opens July 7th!
Posca paint pens are one of my all time FAVORITE art supplies! In today's art supply demo, I'll show you why they're a MUST HAVE in my studio + the EASY way I use them to create MAGICAL effects on my mixed media portraits. If you're a beginner in the world of mixed media art, or just curious about what posca paint pens can do for you - today's video is a MUST SEE!!
Uni posca paint pens are available worldwide and filled with acrylic paint. Posa pen sizes range from fine tip to thick tip, so you're sure to find what works best for you.
If you're like me and struggle with doing details using a paintbrush - these paint pens make it SUPER easy to add those in. You'll love the control of a pen with the look of acrylic paint!
I've found white posca pens make some of THE BEST highlights on my mixed media portraits! They layer up beautifully over whatever you've got going on from acrylic paints and mixed media collage, to sealers like mod podge, matte medium, etc. They're a really fantastic product!
Look closely. Do you see all the fine white doodly lines in this chick's hair and on her face? Look at her eyelid, nose bridge, top lip, cheekbone and even her jawline and eyelashes. Those were all made with my white posca pen!
Popping in a few posca pen white lines helps bring this mixed media portrait to life! Suddenly she has more dimension with this added detail. AND- I had more control because I'm using paint PENS instead of traditional acrylic paint on a brush.
Here's another example of teeny detail in the same mixed media painting. I used my gold posca pen to indicate a gold chain on this chick's funky earring and just a couple of tiny white dots to indicate reflections or sparkle. 
If you were hanging out with me last week on my Drawing YouTube Channel, I of couse added white highlights with my paint pens in this mixed media drawing as well.
I happened to be using a water based Sharpie paint pen in that video. 
You'll notice similar highlights have been marked on this mixed media portrait - on the eyelids, checkbones, brow bones, nose, lip, chin and my favorite - the tiny white eyeshine dot in the pupils!!
Sharpie makes an oil based paint pen too. I really don't recommend that one because they can be a pain in the butt if the nib dries, and difficult to reactivate. The water based version is the one below with a blue label around the bottom. The oil based version (to avoid) is below with a red label. 
If you're thinking of posca pens vs sharpies - I would lean posca because they have SO many more colors and nib sizes to choose from.
What's amazing about posca vs other brands is that you don't have to do a lot of work to get these going or to keep them working. They're also totally opaque.
If you're not quite sure how to activate a new posca pen, you just need to give it a minute to get the acrylic paint flowing.
Make sure you shake it up really well and then push the "nib" of your paint pen to paper (or I actually use my fingernail- who knows why?!). Keep that nib depressed until the paint starts pooling out. 
You'll be happily surprised to find out that poscas are SUPER affordable. You can get a great set for under $40 or so.
In today's video, I'm using my posca paint pens in a less "messy" application, over alcohol markers. 
Be sure to click over to the video to see today's demo! I'm creating a floral library with my Fun Fab Drawing Club students over at Awesome Art School. The base layer is alcohol markers (copics are my favorite!), and I'm doodling with posca pens on top after my copic marker layer is dry.
HOT TIP: If you plan to use paint pens like poscas - make sure your previous layers are completely DRY, otherwise you can have a mess on your hands.
I hope you found this helpful!! Thanks for hanging out with me today!!
❤️ Did you miss my Gnome Workshop with guest artist Sarah Turner of Tenderfoot Village? CLICK HERE to enroll for $27 at Awesome Art School (if you're in the Mixed Media Society - you got free access to this but NEED a coupon - if you don't see it in your email, please email me!) 
❤️Did you miss my Fun Fab Fairies Workshop? NO worries!! You can STILL sign up and enjoy each of these lessons on your own time at your own pace in this stand alone classroom at Awesome Art School! CLICK HERE to REGISTER. 
❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!)
The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️EVEN BETTER - LUCY & I are creating a NEW ART MEMBERSHIP together called The Celtic Collective!! Learn More & add your name to the waitlist here. 
❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation.
❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM
In today's face sketching video, we're building on what you learned about toned paper drawing over the last 2 weeks, and putting it ALL together to create a QUICK female face drawing!
We'll use my face drawing guidelines and identify the values we see in our face drawing reference photo. Then I'll show you how to shade your drawing + quick ways for drawing shadows and highlights using china markers, a pencil, blending stump and sharpies on toned paper! BEGINNERS WELCOME!!
Grab your supplies & come practice face drawing with me! 
First things first, if you haven't grabbed my FREE Toned Paper Packet/cheatsheets- please do that and get them printed out. It's 5 helpful pages to set you up for toned paper drawing success!
You'll recieve my face drawing guidelines, along with a few reference photos for drawing a sphere (last week's exercise), a reference image for today & a list of my fav supplies if you need some! 
Simpy click on this button and I'll send the cheatsheets STRAIGHT over to your inbox!
In Part 1 of this toned paper drawing series, we went over concepts and supplies for drawing on toned paper. Last week in Part 2 - we talked about how to draw and shade a sphere on toned paper, as well as the differencecs to keep in mind when working on toned tan paper or toned grey paper vs white paper.
I'm working on toned grey paper today because I think this is a bit easier for beginners who are getting used to value scale drawing. Before I start drawing, I scribbled some shading with a variety of pencils and marked which pencil helped me achieve which value on a scrap of toned paper, below. If you're new to toned paper drawing- I suggest you do this too so you have a reference for yourself that you can use while you draw. 
As we discussed last week, when you're drawing on toned paper- you're "responsible" for adding in ALL the brightest highlights and darkest shadows. The mid-tones are already represented for you by the tone of the paper.
Once you get your Toned Paper Packet downloaded and printed- grab your reference drawing photo for today (shown above), and we'll get started on your free drawing lesson.
The face I'll be drawing isn't going to be super realistic because I typically prefer a lighter style called whimsical drawing. If you're new to my YouTube drawing channel - my goal is to help you become a better artist by keeping things FUN so nothing feels stressful. That means we don't get too hung up on details. 
Make sure you click over to the video to do this face drawing lesson in REAL TIME with me because it makes SUCH a difference!! We're starting out with an oval and sketching in our face drawing guidelines - something I NEVER skip -even after all the hundreds of faces I've drawn!!
If you're somewhat familiar with drawing facecs and feel like you'd enjoy learning more about how to draw facial features more realistically, I have another FREE series you might enjoy (which also comes with free drawing worksheets). Make sure you check that out because it's awesome if you like drawing faces as much as I do!
After you get your face shape and guidelines drawn, it's time to lightly sketch in some squished ovals to serve as placeholders for the eyes, nose and mouth.
If you're just learning how to draw eyes, I LOVE using my circle template to draw the irises on my girls when I'm pressed for time, or not in the mood to draw perfect circles from scratch! If this little cheat helps you too - DO IT, and don't feel bad about it. Just move on and keep your drawing project FUN!
Make sure you click over to the video because I'm showng you exactly how to draw a face step by step, and will keeping things EASY for you if this is your first time drawing a face. The face drawing guidelines will help a TON! Trust me ;)
I also bring back my circle template/ stencil for adding pupils into the eyes. Make sure you pop those right into the center of your irises. I see pupils kinda all over the place, and this little tidbit will help make your faces look more sophisticated- especially if you're just learning how to draw eyes!
Once you've gotten all the facial features in position where they need to go - you can erase all of your guidelines.
Follow me in the video to start observing the values depicted in our reference photo. As you'll see in the FREE Toned Paper Packet I've provided- there are some versions of the reference image with polka dots of gray that I've laid down to help you decide which pencil to grab when shading various parts of her face. 
I love using my china markers (also called grease pencils) on toned paper because you can get really opaque coverage with them.
The only thing I don't love about my china markers is they don't blend - so just be aware of that as you head in to attack your shadows. If you haven't used a china marker before - here is another video for you. I demo how to sharpen a china marker in that video and in last week's YouTube drawing tutorial. For today's face shading, l'm starting with my white china marker to pop in the lightest white highlights first - which are really happening in the left side of her face. 
When you've finished with the whites- move on to your darkest darks with your black china marker (colored pencils are fine to use for this drawing exercise too).
Now when you take a step back to view your work a little from a distance, I don't want you to freak out if you're new to face drawing!
This girl is in what I lovingly refer to as "the ugly phase." It means she probably looks really unfinished and might have you second guessing if you should toss her into the trash because you feel like she is so ugly. DON'T DO IT. This is normal! EVERY face drawing has an ugly phase. Just accept it, know your project is about halfway done and KEEP GOING. Don't let the "ugly phase" win! Now that I've got a good base of my highlights and darkest shadows down, I'm going to work some graphite pencil in, and start moving some of the graphite around with my blending stump. 
Remember, china markers don't blend, but you can ease some of your shading transitions by adding some pencil and a little graphite blending with a blending stump.
I pulled out my sharpies and pentel pocket brush to add some hair and a few details into her face. She's starting to come to life and working her way out of the ugly phase. See?! I told you! You've just gotta keep going!! She'll snap out of it! A word of caution about the pentel pocket brush- it doesn't want to work that well over the china marker, but I'm doing it anyway because I LOVE it for drawing eyelashes. If eyelash drawing is a struggle for you, or you're just not sure how to draw eyelashes - download my cheatsheet with tips on how to draw eyelashes. I also have two videos on eyelash drawing - one on my YouTube drawing channel, and one on my mixed media YouTube channel. 
Once eyelashes are popped in, I step back a little to compare my drawing to my drawing reference. I'm not looking for perfection. Remember this is totally for fun and just a quick drawing lesson to help you get started with working on toned paper!
What do you see when you compare the two? Focus on lights and darks. Where can we add more drama to make her pop even more? Zero in on the lightest lights and darkest darks.
Get aggressive! Don't be afraid to dive in and make the black areas blacker. Do a second pass with your china marker, or pull out your pencil and darken what needs to be so you can move the graphite around with a blending stick to ease the shading transitions from light to dark. Remember, you can vary the amount of pressure you use when you're coloring with china markers. This is another way to soften shading transitions since you can't blend china markers with a blending stump. 
See how she's coming even more to life now that I've added additional shading? This extra layering makes ALL the difference.
Once I've finished with my darkest shadows, I pull out my white sharpie to help accentuate the brightest whites. Take a look at this!! 
Just adding ONE dot to each pupil for some eye shine takes the whole drawing to another level of fun and makes her look more sophisticated. We could actually call her done at this point! Those two dots did THAT much!
If you follow me, you KNOW I love some dramatic face shading on my girls so I'm not calling her done yet... adding white paint pen is my favorite part and hasn't been done yet!
Because I'm doing a whimsical drawing, I look to my face drawing reference photo for inspiration about where to add my shadows and highlights. However, I absolutely feel comfortable stretching that a step further and adding a few marks where I know highlights naturally occur on the human face.
Watch the video to see that in action when I'm drawing highlights on the chin, cheekbones, eyebrow ridge etc. A really great trick for helping you understand where to pop in face shading is to pick up a foam head from your local craft store. Then just play with a light source - either a lamp, the flashlight on your phone - whatever! Shine the light directly on the foam head -forcing a variety of shadows and highlights you can follow. 
Alternatively, I've got a video taking a closer look at this concept to help you out.
Need that link again for the toned paper packet to get started on this entire tone paper drawing series on YouTube?
Click the button above, and I'll drop my toned paper packet straight to your email. (Includes my face drawing guidelines & today's face drawing reference image!)
Thanks for hanging out with me today!
❤️ Did you miss my Gnome Workshop with guest artist Sarah Turner of Tenderfoot Village? CLICK HERE to enroll for $27 at Awesome Art School (if you're in the Mixed Media Society - you got free access to this but NEED a coupon - if you don't see it in your email, please email me!)
❤️Did you miss my Fun Fab Fairies Workshop? NO worries!! You can STILL sign up and enjoy each of these lessons on your own time at your own pace in this stand alone classroom at Awesome Art School! CLICK HERE to REGISTER.
❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!)
The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️EVEN BETTER - LUCY & I are creating a NEW ART MEMBERSHIP together called The Celtic Collective!! Learn More & add your name to the waitlist here.
❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. ❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM
In today's toned paper drawing video, we'll build on what you learned last week, and put the value scale to work drawing and shading a sphere. First we'll study the values we see on a reference photo. Then I'll show you some quick ways for drawing shadows and the highlights you see in the reference on both white and toned paper.
If you missed last week's drawing YouTube video - you might want to check that out first, because I talk about toned paper sketchbooks, drawing supplies and more.
I've also got a FREE 5-page toned paper PDF for you to download and use as a reference while you're playing along at home. This will help you TONS with understanding the value scale, drawing shadows and drawing highlights. Plus you'll get a list of my FAV toned paper sketchbooks and drawing supplies to set yourself up for success! Simply click the button below, and I'll shoot it straight over to your inbox.
I've included a reference photo of a sphere in black and white in the Toned Paper Packet.
Before we dive into drawing and shading a sphere on toned tan paper- I want to make sure you understand how to use the value scale to draw a sphere on white paper first. 
I added "polka dots" in my cheatsheet reference image for you to indicate where your eye should be registering value changes that you need to replicate in your drawing.
Be sure to click over to the video to see this in action!
Last week I scribbled beneath each value scale dot with an example of the drawing pencil that can help you achieve each value. If you're a beginner with shading, this will come in really handy when you're ready to start drawing shadows we see in the reference image on your own paper. And as always- when you're working with me- you don't have to use fancy supplies. You can also do this entire exercise in one #2 school pencil. 
As you'll see in the video- today's shading practice is really all about me trying to make sure you understand the concept of how to look for values in a reference, and how to record what you see on your drawing. Your execution doesn't have to be perfect or even look that great -just lay down some value and do a little down and dirty practice!
When working on white paper - you need to cover every single shade of the value scale except white in your drawing. When you're drawing on toned tan paper (or toned grey paper), you're "responsible" for adding all the shades of the value scale EXCEPT for the mid-tones, because those shades are represented by the tone of the paper. Pretty cool, right?! For my sphere example on toned paper I'm starting with my white china marker (also called a china pencil or grease pencil) and adding in the lightest highlights I see in my reference image, then start adding in my darkest shadows with my black china marker. I use a little graphite to blend a bit of the midtones and use my blending stump ot help. (The china marker doesn't really blend, so just be prepared for that!) 
If you're new to working with china markers - all you need to do to sharpen your pencil is to pull on the string and then pull off some of the excess paper wrapping. If you're interested in learning MORE about china markers - I've got a video for you.
I love using the sides of my china markers to lay wide areas of color down, and don't mind the blunt tip. If you prefer working with something that gets to a sharper point - you might want to work in colored pencil. 
There is a constant push/pull of working the values and studying your reference photo to make sure you're depicting the values in your drawing correctly.
If you'd like to work on drawing a sphere in more detail through a full lesson - I've got one of these in The Fun Fab Drawing Club.In this one - we draw it in pencil on white paper. Currently enrollment for both of my clubs are closed at the moment- but you can add your name to the waitlist for the drawing club here, and mixed media club here. I'll let ya know as soon as doors open again!! 
Next week on my YouTube drawing channel - we will be drawing and shading a face so you can practice these new skills in a different way!
Need the link to that Toned Paper Packet one more time? Here ya go! Click the button below and I'll send it right to your email!
And of course don't forget to watch the video....
Thanks for hanging out with me today!
If you're in the Mixed Media Society with me, our GNOME WORKSHOP (hosted by guest artist Sarah Turner of Tenderfoot Villange and I) opens today (June 1st)! You DO need a special code from me to enroll for free. If you haven't already received that- please email me for help so you can enjoy this club perk!!
Not in the Mixed Media Society, but still wanna make these TWO adorable gnome projects?! I GOT YOU!!
❤️ CLICK HERE to enroll for $27 at Awesome Art School ❤️Did you miss my Fun Fab Fairies Workshop? NO worries!! You can STILL sign up and enjoy each of these lessons on your own time at your own pace in this stand alone classroom at Awesome Art School! CLICK HERE to REGISTER.
❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!)
The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️EVEN BETTER - LUCY & I are creating a NEW ART MEMBERSHIP together called The Celtic Collective!! Learn More & add your name to the waitlist here.
❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation.
❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM
If you've always wanted to try toned paper drawing, but didn't know where to start - TODAY's VIDEO is FOR YOU! Join me for a quick value scale lesson about drawing shadows & highlights. Then I'll show you a few examples of my own toned paper drawings, while I give ya a sneak peak at my new toned paper drawing cheatsheets AND talk toned paper sketchbooks & drawing supplies.
Before we continue, super quick announcement: All product links are Affiliate. I may earn a small commission if you choose to order through these links but by law there is never any additional cost to the consumer for doing so. I thank you for your support!
If you're a long time subscriber of mine on YouTube Drawing Channel or Mixed Media YouTube Channel - you know I'm ALL about giving away FREE resources to help you become an Awesome Artist! Today I've got a brand new 5-page PDF to help you learn how to draw on toned paper. Simply click the button below and I'll send it straight to your inbox! 
This will help you TONS with understanding the value scale, drawing shadows and drawing highlights, plus you'll get a list of my FAV toned paper sketchbooks and drawing supplies to set yourself up for success!
Before we get started with toned paper, there are a few key concepts you have to understand about drawing on white paper FIRST. Once you've got these down - drawing on toned tan paper or grey toned paper will be a snap!
To help you understand this lesson - I'm pulling out my How to Draw & Find Your Style book for reference.
To make your drawings REALLY come alive, you want to have variations of value represented within your drawing to make it look more 3-dimensional and sophisticated.
The more variations of value you show in your drawings, the more advanced your work will look. 
If you have my How to Draw & Find Your Style book at home - I'm looking at pages 101+ and giving a demo about how to recognize values in a drawing reference photo so you know how to replicate shadows and highlights when you're drawing.
When you're looking at a face drawing reference photo, it can be helpful to scan the image to get an idea of where the lightest lights, mid-range grays and jet black values appear. I've noted those with little boxes to help you find them more quickly.
In today's new cheatsheet, I've created circles in various shades of gray to help you think about each value you want to show in your drawing somewhere. Click over to the video to see which drawing pencils I'm using to achieve each of these shades. 
If you're new to shading faces it can help you to have a little cheatsheet next to you like this for reference to remind you which pencils help you achieve which value.
Keep in mind you don't HAVE to have a wide range of special drawing pencils to do this.
If all you have at home right now is a number 2 school pencil- you can work on varying the pressure you use while you're shading to help you achieve differences in value. 
Toned paper traditionally comes in two shades - gray and toned tan paper (be sure to click over to the video because I go through my favorite toned paper sketchbooks).
When I'm working on toned paper, I often will end up using a black and white drawing pencil or pen, and using the gray or brown of the paper as my third main value. I also tend to use line weight to represent value like in these quick toned paper sketches below.
In my free PDF, you'll see exactly what my favorite pads of toned paper sheets are and which drawing instruments I love to use most when working with toned paper.
Click here to grab that download if you haven't already - or press on the button below!
Thanks for hanging out with me today!
I'll see you back here next week to draw and shade a sphere on toned paper. The following week we'll draw a face! ❤️Did you miss my Fun Fab Fairies Workshop? NO worries!! You can STILL sign up and enjoy each of these lessons on your own time at your own pace in this stand alone classroom at Awesome Art School! CLICK HERE to REGISTER. ❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!) The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️EVEN BETTER - LUCY & I are creating a NEW ART MEMBERSHIP together called The Celtic Collective!! Learn More & add your name to the waitlist here. ❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. ❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK
Yes, you CAN paint a giant canvas background in JUST 2 minutes!! I know it sounds too good to be true - especially if you're intimidated by large canvas painting. I can't wait to show you this spray paint on canvas idea! It's one of my all time favorite mixed media painting techniques!! Even better... it's FAST, EASY... and CHEAP! If you're a beginner in the world of mixed media art, or just curious about how to attack a giant canvas - today's video is FOR YOU!!
It's funny - while I was filming - I took a little look around my studio and was kinda surprised to realize how MANY of my canvases on the wall started with the SAME mixed media painting technique for the background. Check out the video to see the examples up close!!
As you'll see, I work on BIG canvases all the time, and LOVE IT!! I feel like large canvas painting is more free-ing as an artist and it's actually EASIER because I have room to spread out my ideas, and don't have to get hung up on tiny little details. 
The first giant canvas painting I want to share with you up close is my pink mixed media mermaid. She's actually 4 feet tall, and was created out of two, 2 foot canvases. The background for this piece took me all of FIVE MINUTES. No joke!! That's 2.5 minutes per canvas... and DONE.
All I did was spray paint on my canvas, then I misted a second color of spray paint through a stencil sheet to create the look of underwater bubbles! SERIOUSLY!! That's it!! 
The next canvas background idea I want to show you is of my dragon in acrylics. This one took just a little longer because I used more colors.
Even with adding more color- the dragon background didn't take me longer than 10 minutes to do. Can you imagine how much LONGER (and EXPENSIVE!!) this would be painting with acrylics and a paint brush?! For my art deco painting below, I taped off a section in the background because I wanted a frame behind the couple. That part took a little longer to tape off, but then I just used a can of black matte spray paint on canvas for the backgound, and I was done. EASY!! 
As I walk you through these pieces, you'll start to understand the THREE main reasons why I love to paint canvas backgrounds using spray paint:
1. Spray paint is really inexpensive - I've tried all the brands from the cheapest to the most expensive, and there's no difference. That means I spend about $3.99/can, and am FINE with grabbing the ones on sale for 99 cents. I promise you- they work JUST as well!! This is SO much cheaper than buying an inexpensive tube of acrylic paint!! When shopping for spray paint, I suggest you only pick up cans in satin or matte because glossy can be kinda tough to work with if you plan to do any adhesive collage layering or acrylic painting on top. For some reason, the glossy cans feel like they're stronger smelling to me too! 2. Spray paint comes in a HUGE array of colors - There are SO many fun colors you can pick up to add to your mixed media projects. And because they're so cheap in a can - you can probably afford to buy MORE of them :) They also last forever!! 3. Spray paint is amazing to COVER LARGE AREAS - If you haven't tried spray paint on canvas before - you're gonna be shocked at how much real estate you can cover in a short amount of time! It takes forever to cover a giant canvas with acrylic paint. Plus, you end up getting brush strokes that may be distracting to look at. Spray paint really glides over canvas well and gives it a smooth look! The only downside to using spray paint is if you want or need to do touch ups to your canvas background later. It can be tough to replicate what you did with multiple colors, but if you need a teeny touch up - here's my trick!! 
Spray a puddle of paint into a disposable plate, bowl or cup and dip your paint brush in. Simple, right?!
When you're choosing colors to work with for your canvas background painting, you can keep things really simple and use one or two like I did for my mixed media mermaid, or if you want to show more depth - grab 3-4 shades of the same color in a light, medium, and dark for contrast.
I have SO many fun colors. This is probably only half of my stash!!
If you haven't used stencils with spray paint before, you're gonna love this!! Stencils work SO well with spray paint because spray paint dries really fast. When you mist a new color through a stencil over your previous color of spray paint - then two colors WON'T MIX! Each shade can lay beautifully right on TOP of the other!!
Do you clean your stencils after you use them? Students ALWAYS ask me this!!
I NEVER clean my stencils- I just keep reusing them over and over. Some may think this is lazy, but it actually makes the stencils work better over time this way! The paint eventually builds up a bit and in a way ends up making the stencils stronger so they work even better!
Check out the stencil below. This one is really cool! I used it to make the underwater bubbles in my pink mixed media mermaid painting.
Watch the video so you can understand exactly what I mean here. This particular stencil doesn't have a "hard line" or edge to it. It's been trimmed so the edges are a bit softer and easier to blend into a background. 
STENCIL & SPRAY PAINT TIP: To avoid a hard edge showing up on your canvas, trim the edges of your stencil off like I did in the stencil above. You can also work on perfecting your spray painting technique. Try to mist your paint right into the center of your stencil. Ok! Reay to see how FAST this process really is?! CLICK over to the video and you can see it in real time. It takes me less than a minute to cover this 18" x 24" canvas in one solid color. 
For the stenciled parts, I simply pull my white spray paint out and gently hold my stencil above the freshly painted canvas. You don't want to lie it on top of the canvas because it could stick!
One of my favorite things to do with a stencil is to mist it into the corners of my canvas. I think it adds a really nice frame to whatever I end up putting into the foreground.
HOT TIP! Make sure you hit your CANVAS edges with color too. Trust me!! You'll be so mad if you come back to your art table and notice they're all WHITE!! LOL :) I hope you enjoy this demo and find this spray paint on canvas idea just as helpful as I have!! Have fun art-ing!! ❤️Did you miss my Fun Fab Fairies Workshop? NO worries!! You can STILL sign up and enjoy each of these lessons on your own time at your own pace in this stand alone classroom at Awesome Art School! CLICK HERE to REGISTER. ❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!) The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. ❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK
Tombow Brush Pens are one of my all time FAVORITE art supplies. Lots of mixed media artists use them for making cards & brush lettering, but I use them to PAINT! In today's art supply demo, I'll show you why they're a MUST HAVE in my studio + the QUICK & EASY way I use them to create MAGICAL mixed media portraits. If you're a beginner in the world of mixed media art, or just curious about what tombows can do for you - today's video is a MUST SEE!!
Tombows are super popular with mixed media artists -especially card makers and stamping fanatics. People LOVE using them for brush letting and calligraphy type projects.
Tombow dual brush pens come with two nibs, one on each end. One is a brush nib and the other is a bullet nib. I really love the dual nib feature because it feels like I've got both a paintbrush AND a fineliner all in one product. Tombows are also great because they're acid free and super watersoluble (which means they melt like watercolors if you add water to them).
Today I'm working in my large 11x14 strathmore watercolor journal. It's filled with 140 pound color press paper, which can REALLY take a beating from whatever art supplies I feel like throwing at it! As you can see - I don't just do watercolor in this journal. I use it for mixed media projects too because it's so sturdy! Here's a fun project I did a few months ago...
I highly suggest if you're doing ANYTHING with watersoluble art supplies, you REALLY pay attention to the kind of paper you're using. I believe it's JUST AS IMPORTANT as your art supplies. In fact it IS one of your art supplies, and it totally makes a difference.
As you can see, I'm using a face drawing reference because that's usually how I work. I don't really use my references to try and copy exactly what the image looks like because I'm not super into realism.
I just think using a face photo reference while I draw inspires me to add details I may not have thought of from facial feature nuances to hairstyles, etc. I think a face drawing reference is also REALLY helpful to use as a face shading reference because it takes the guesswork out of deciding where to place shadows. You just look at your reference and BOOM. It tells you everything you need to know! 
Now today's side profile drawing is one of the trickiest profile drawings to master- called the three quarter view portrait. If you need help with how to draw a 3/4 view profile - here is a playlist for your from my YouTube Drawing Channel to get you started.
I've also got a FREE cheatsheet to help you remember the basics of drawing three quarter view faces.
Simply click the button below and I'll send it straight to your inbox.
Before you start with face shading, I HIGHLY recommend you swatch out your art supplies- whatever you are coloring with because I've been surprised ONE too many times when the color comes out not quite looking like the marker cap or tube of paint, so this can be a real life saver!
Some artists may want to keep a swatch sheet on every color they own. There are some products I do that with (especially my watercolors!!), but most often I'm more into just scribbling a few strokes off to the side for whatever piece I'm currently working on.
When I'm shading a face with my tombow dual brush markers, I hold my marker on the side and use it similarly to a paintbrush (on the brush nib side) to lay down a big chunk of color like in the picture above.
Since my intention is to add water and use my paintbrush to move the color around, I'm deliberately loose with my shading here. I just throw some color down in my lightest shade and move on. I'm all about quick and easy and THIS TECHNIQUE is BOTH!! 
As you'll notice in the video, I followed my lightest shade marker with a medium shade - using my photo reference as a guide to help me note darker shadows, and then switched to a dark shade to indicate the darkest shadows.
Simply adding a little water with your paintbrush will melt ALL the marker layers together to create BEAUTIFUL face shading on your drawing. Isn't this gorgeous???
When you're painting with tombows or any watersoluble marker - make sure each layer you do is completely dry before going back on top with your original supply because the fastest way to kill a marker is to put it into water.
NO markers "like" being added to a wet surface, so simply hit your piece up with a little hair dryer action before you go back in for another marker layer, and you'll be good to go. 
Check out how sparsely I lay down swathes of three purple tombow shades (light, medium & dark) while drawing a hairstyle for this profile drawing. This is ALL the color I put down.
When I'm playing around with watersoluble media I often activate TWO of my marker layers with water, and then draw on top and leave that final layer UNACTIVATED - to make the details pop. 
The only drawback I've found with tombows is they are not lightfast. Definitely keep that in mind if you're creating art to sell or gift. I don't actually recommend selling or gifting your originals because of this - but you could TOTALLY sell prints of them!!
I have found that tombows won't fade AS MUCH if your work is in an art journal because they'll be hidden from the sunlight. 
When it's time to add some detail, I pull out my pentel pocket brush. This is my FAVORITE art supply for eyelash drawing (remember NOT to use this until the layers underneath are FULLY DRY).
This pocket brush nib is like a paintbrush- it's made of a group of hairs and doesn't perform like your typical marker. A tombow "brush" nib is basically foam that's been shaped to LOOK like a brush and feel like you're working with a paintbrush (but it provides a bit more control than the pocket brush). If you need help with drawing eyelashes, click the button below and I'll send my EYELASHES CHEATSHEET straight to your inbox.
I've got a great eyelash drawing tutorial on my mixed media channel and another on my YouTube Drawing Channel to help you out if this is something you struggle with.
I hope you enjoy this mixed media tutorial and TRY tombows out for yourself!! They really are fantastic. The colors are unbelieveable and the markers themselves are really affordable. I think you'll love painting with them as much as I do!!
REMEMBER TODAY (APRIL 26th) is the KICKOFF of my FUN FAB FAIRIES WORKSHOP!!!
You can STILL sign up to join me and the rest of the gang for an amazing week of fairy drawing lessons! CLICK HERE to REGISTER. If you find this post well after the live portions of this workshop have ended, all you're missing out on are the daily giveaways and Facebook LIVES. The Fun Fab Fairies course is STILL available at Awesome Art School as a stand alone course for you to enjoy!!
❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!)
The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. ❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK
If you've never used graphite transfer paper, are wondering how to use it, or WHY you'd ever want to transfer a drawing to another piece of paper - today's video is FOR YOU!! I've got FIVE favorite ways of transferring a drawing and can't wait to show them to you!!
First of all... why would you ever want to make a copy of a drawing you've already done? Lots of artists like to do this to save themselves a little time, but more often it's to SAVE their precious supplies - like paper!
I love to do watercolor illustrations, but using my eraser over and over again on my beautiful watercolor paper can really damage it. To save that paper - I prefer to do a drawing on less expensive paper - so I can erase till my heart's content, THEN transfer it to my watercolor journal, or to a sheet of loose watercolor paper. Lots of artists might use transfer paper to make this happen. But what if you don't have that on hand, or if it's too expensive? 
You can do this first idea for FREE!! Set your drawing against a bright window and lay a sheet of paper on top. Lightly trace your outlines onto the new sheet of paper.
If you want to get a little fancier, you can use a light table. I find this tool to be SO helpful!! I use my light table for drawing when I've got a really thick sheet of drawing or watercolor paper that I'd like to transfer my drawing to. A light table will get this job done for you SO fast because the light is super bright!!
Another option is to make an actual photocopy of your work if you've got a simple scanner at home like this. Mine is attached to my printer. This is a great solution if your drawing is on 8-1/2 x 11 paper. If your drawing is on larger paper, we need to get creative! Watch the video and I'll show you some ideas!!
If you DO have graphite transfer paper, I show you exactly how to use it in today's video. I EVEN show you how to make transfer paper YOURSELF if you're in the mood!
Now my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE WAY to transfer a drawing to a new piece of paper might surprise you...
I HIGHLY recommend you draw it again from scratch! I KNOW!! But there's seriously something to "Practice Makes Perfect!" If you know me, you know I'm not striving for perfection and don't want you to either!! But EVERY time you practice, it seriously makes you a BETTER artist! 
Any time you have the OPPORTUNITY to redo a project, it will ALSO make you a better artist. MY job is to help you keep the projects light and FUN so you WANT to keep coming back for more!! If you're having FUN, you'll practice more, and the more you practice, the BETTER your art will become!!
Thanks for hanging out with me today!! ❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!) The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. ❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK
I LOVE drawing fairies as much as I LOVE listening to stories about REAL fairies and teaching my students about drawing & shading faces! I've put together a 5-day fairy drawing workshop called Fun Fab Fairies and will be teaching you how to complete THREE easy drawings of fairies. You'll learn how to draw a fairy sitting on a mushroom, how to draw fairy wings, how to draw a fairy face + how to shade a fairy face, and exactly what you need to do to turn these pencil drawings into your very own masterpieces!!
I LIVE for teaching people how to draw faces and can't wait to do this with you!
The LIVE festivities for How to Draw FUN, FAB FAIRIES kick off on Monday, April 26th. On days 1-3 will be a learning how to draw a mushroom, fairy with wings, grasshopper, grass - all from scratch! Then I'll teach you how to shade and color it in. 
On day 4 - I'm gonna teach you how to draw and shade a fairy face in pencil in my "Fub Fab" style - also from scratch! We'll be working in pencil, I'll teach you about the value scale and how to use this when you're shading faces so your drawings will POP and look more realistic.
On day 5 I'm going to teach you how to draw and color in the fairy face from day 4 using alcohol markers!
Never used alcohol markers for shading a face (or anything) before? Don't worry- I've got TONS of resources for you. This FREE 12-page eBook I created about how to shade with skin tone markers (and how to CHOOSE which marker shades go best together!!) will be your NEW BEST FRIEND!! 
Simply click the button below, and I'll send this FREE 12-page PDF straight to your inbox.
I tell you EXACTLY which marker shades go best together to shade light, medium and dark skin tones using alcohol markers by Copic, Ohuhu and Arteza so you can choose which brand is best for you and your budget! If you're interested in learning how to draw FUN FAB FAIRIES with me, make sure you sign up before April 26th, because the price to participate is jumping from $10 to $47!! CLICK HERE to SIGN UP for the FAIRY DRAWING WORKSHOP 
Cost for all 5 days of this workshop (including the Facebook LIVES with daily giveaways) is $10. But make sure you sign up NOW because the cost is going up to $47 to join on Monday, April 26th.
Everything for the workshop is included from added PDF resources and links to supplies, to all the prerecorded content. AND it's ALL YOURS TO KEEP, download and rewatch forever! CLICK HERE to SIGN UP for the FAIRY DRAWING WORKSHOP Even though the workshop has LIVE festivities beginning on April 26th, there is no pressure to complete the workshop lessons on a time schedule. You are welcome to play at your own pace.
I hope you join me for FUN, FAB FAIRIES!!
Need info about other stuff?? Here ya go!! ❤️Did you know I've started a FUN new podcast with my Scottish, artsy bestie, Lucy, ALL ABOUT SCOTLAND & the mythical goodness I can't get enough of about this magical place?! YES - we talk about everything including ARE Fairies Real?! (You know I think they are!!) The podcast is called 1 Scot, 1 Not! Check us out on YouTube and here's our podcast website! ❤️Want FREE, immediate access to my Fun Fab Drawing Club and/or Mixed Media Society plus discounts on all my art books, sneak peek at YouTube videos and new book content, behind-the-scenes fun and MORE? Join me over on Patreon today and get HUGE PERKS in return for a small monthly donation. ❤️ CHECK OUT ALL my art books on AMAZON (available in both Kindle and Paperback) ❤️ SIGNED COPIES of my art books on ETSY ❤️ MY FAVORITE ART SUPPLIES on AMAZON ❤️ MY BELOVED FACEBOOK GROUP ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON INSTAGRAM ❤️ FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK |
Karen CampbellFounder of Awesome Art School. Mixed Media Artist. Author of 15 Instructional Art Books!    
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What Fans Are SayingKaren, you are absolutely fabulous! You make me feel like I can draw anything. I have recently retired and finally have the time to do some of the art that I have loved since I was in school. I am really at the beginning of my art journey and I hope to learn as much as I can. Thank you for all you do. |
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