And Then She Moved #PortraitaDaySA Day 6

Sitting with her crochet in her lap, she was concentrating so on the pattern that I think it took my sister a while to realise that I was drawing her. And then she moved.

I'm drawing a portrait a day in April. Click here to see more #PortraitaDaySA pictures.

Selfies & Sneaky Sketches #PortraitaDaySA Day 4 & 5

The long Easter weekend reminded me of a few things. One is is that marshmallow Easter eggs are addictive and do not last long in my home. The second is that, after a frustrating start, I love drawing with pencils again. How could I forget!

I started this #PortraitaDaySA pencil portrait on Saturday and worked a little more into it on Easter Sunday.

Okay, that's kind of cheating, and it doesn't look exactly like me, but the process was fun. So much so that I was just thinking, 'Hey, wouldn't it be cool if #drawnselfie was like a thing?!' Yes, sometimes my inner voice sounds like Cher from Clueless...with hashtags. So I searched and it is a thing! Yay! Click here to check it out.

On Easter Sunday I was back to my sketchy ways in church (actually I never left them) and drew this lovely lady in a black ball-point pen (my fav).

Check out more #PortraitaDaySA posts by clicking here

Live on Friday #PortraitaDaySA Day 3

When it comes to drawing portraits, there's nothing better than drawing from life.

I spent Good Friday with my family, which offered me the perfect opportunity sharpen a pencil and, between sips of coffee, complete day three of my #PortraitaDaySA challenge.

Purple Slays Perfectionism #PortraitaDaySA Day 2

This week I listened to talk by artist Ann Rea and something she said struck me... "Perfectionism kills creativity."

Oh boy, do I know that! I've been caught by the notion that everything has to be perfect - I have to inspired, my materials have to be perfect and my workspace has to be a bright, light "pin-worthy" creative space. But I'm changing...

I'm learning to accept that, even making bad art is good practise.

So this evening, for my #PortraitaDaySA challenge, I grabbed a purple felt tip pen and, without drawing a pencil guideline, I tried use a material I'm not used to draw a portrait of myself. It turned into a bit of a caricature but what the heck, it made me laugh at myself.

Baby I'm Back! #PortraitaDaySA Day 1

It's been a while but I'm back to keep an account of my a new project - #PortraitaDaySA 

 

A portrait a day 

I plan to draw a portrait every day for a month. Okay, I have drawn quite a few heads but, since I'm usually drawing them on the sly, getting a back or a side view, drawing people front on is a challenge for me. It's something I've started working on but I could do a lot more to improve. 

I've been inspired to start a daily project after following Crystal Moody's awesome painting a day project for a few months. I decided to follow Crystal's lead and share my project online, as a way to keep myself accountable and document the process. 

Everyone has a hashtag

Have you noticed how people speak in hashtags now? From hashtag music album names to hashtag t-shirt logos, the hashtag has jumped off Twitter and into everyday life. So I thought I'd use a hashtag too after all, if you can't beat them... So my hashtag is #PortraitaDaySA. 

A few days after I had decided this project, Crystal Moody mentioned #CreativeSprint, a 30-day creative challenge, in her email newsletter (so worth subscribing too). So I decided to join it. It's meant to be. Hopefully, come 30 April, I'll be drawing prettier portraits. 

Oh, and if you were wondering, the first portrait is a pen drawing. I drew the outline in pencil first - my attempt to get the proportions right - and then went over it and added details in pen. I drew from a photo of one of my little nephews. He's much cuter than this portrait but hey, it's a start.