I don’t know what it is about the number three, but I find it alluring and seductive. Not too many things that I’ll get bored reading the blog and not too few that it would be a waste of time. With that said, I’m going to tell you about my top three favorite drawing materials.

Drawing Experience

First, let me give you a little history of my drawing experience. I’ve been drawing since I was like 8. I’ve always loved it. For a while, I would only draw in pencil or black and white. I wasn’t quite sure how to translate the shading I was able to create with black and white into color.

So, all through-out my high school drawing and art classes, my favorite drawing material was pencil and paper. Slowly, I began to expand to colored pencil and marker. I was able to learn and recreate different things into color with correct shading techniques.

My Favorite Art Class

I took several art classes in college, obviously because my major was Graphic Design. 😉 One of my favorite classes that I took was a Charcoal drawing class while I attended Savannah College of Art & Design. The professor really captivated my interest and skill with still life drawings he would set up in class for us to render. They were filled with elaborate detail.

The professor would come by and periodically check our work offering minor suggestions or changes and by the end of the pieces, I felt like I had created a masterpiece. I wish I could remember his name. He had a sketchbook that he would work up different still life drawings in it. I was just awed by how detailed and intricate the designs were.

I also dabbled in gouache and acrylic paint in college.

Anyway, I really didn’t start to expand into different materials until the last two years. I focused for a while on Adobe Illustrator and my career. Since being home and having more time, I’ve learned some Modern Calligraphy and  Fashion Illustration.

Favorite Drawing Material Number One – the Ipad Pro & Pencil

I must begin this with a warning, the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil are addicting. I love doing art in the Procreate app because it is versatile. I can do acrylic, gouache, pencil; the options are endless. Yes, they don’t come out exactly how traditional materials would but they are so similar it is hard not to forgive the minor differences.

Secondly, whenever I do something I don’t like, I can just erase it or undo it. This has been hard for me when I switch back and forth between traditional and digital. It is too easy to undo while using the Ipad Pro that when I draw when pencil and paper, I sometimes catch myself trying to undo what I just did. I would say traditional mediums are more difficult to master because there is no undo. It’s either restart or remake the mistake you made.

Favorite Drawing Material Number Two – Copic Markers

These I just discovered last fall. I feel like I have been missing out though. They are so great for blending. You can create different shades and effects just by layering the markers. Where have they been all my life?!

Even if you were to substitute out Copic Markers for any other alcohol-based ink marker, I bet you would quickly realize why I love these so much! The only con is, of course, the cost. As long as you are using them, I think it is worth the cost. Copic Markers or other alcohol based inks are not worth investing in if you just do art occasionally.

Favorite Drawing Material Number Three – Watercolor

 

I bet you thought I was going to put pencil and paper down as my third favorite drawing material? Nope, that was then, this is now. I love the light and airy look of watercolor. I also love the way that watercolor blends. It is very similar to how the Copic markers blend, but a little harder to maneuver.

Watercolor is a great medium for either calligraphy, drawing, or fashion sketches. You can get such a different look from using the Copic Markers. Some of my favorite fashion illustrations are watercolor. Check these out:

Practice and Experience

One thing that I want to continue to encourage each of you to do is to practice. Start with one of my three favorite drawing materials, probably the easiest would be the ipad pro, and just create art everyday. If a new material or subject matter is difficult to draw or use, don’t give up. Continue to use it, watch videos on youtube or skillshare. That is the only way that you will learn how to use it and improve.

When I first started calligraphy in November of 2016, it was horrible. I thought it would be super easy because everyone makes it look easy. No, it really is an art form! Participating daily in calligraphy challenges helped me practice and improve. I’m still not the best at it, but I did improve.

The same goes for Fashion Illustrations. It took me awhile to get into the grove and I watched several tutorials on croquis and getting the figure in a style I liked.

Just don’t give up! I haven’t yet, and neither should you. 🙂

Those are my three favorite drawing materials. You can see the similarities between the three. They are all about blending and mixing to recreate just the right shades we see in life and in art. I also, unintentionally, put them in order from easiest to hardest. Go figure!

What are some of your favorite drawing materials? Share with me in the comments so I can check them out and add them to my art supply collection. Did you love this post?

You should check out my post about my Christmas Art Supply Haul, then. I talked about the great art stuff I got and spoiler alert, I mention Copic markers again! Or, follow me on Instagram or Facebook and let’s connect there.