an update

Hi.

I don't have anything to say, but I've been neglecting my blog, so here's a bunch of pictures of my cat.

His name is Mojo, by the way.

And since this is an art blog, I drew a thing! Lookit.

My cousin was kind enough to give me some art pencils of hers. I used 2H, HB, and 4B pencils for this Gypsy Vanner, on which I barely used any brushes or blending tools. Looks a little grainy, and grainy = fluffy. And who doesn't love fluffy horses? (Fun fact: this horse probably looks big from here, but she's probably only 14-15hh, or 4'8"-5'0" at the shoulder. #squatgoals).

Ok. That's all. Gonna go binge watch me some One Punch Man now.

-nessa

Post-Anime Training Montage

Hello internet, etc.

So I just wanted to point a little something out... In the past year, my graphite portraits have suddenly and vastly improved. Mysterious. I haven't [yet] achieved hyper-realism, but it's getting there, which is a faaar cry from portraits I did in 2017. I wasn't really sure at first why my art rapidly looked so much better, but in the comparison shot below, I captured a theory of mine:

Last year, my drawings still had that manga-esque influence, even when combined with realistic elements. I used one Papermate pencil, one plain white eraser, and a fine enough sharpener (never underestimate the power of a pencil sharpener!!). Now, I used every single one of these tools to create the drawing on the right:

- 4 art pencils: 2H, HB, 2B, and 4B

- Plain white eraser

- Kneadable eraser

- Good ol' sharpener (xtra sharpp)

- Tortillion (that rolled paper thing. Good for blending small/precise areas)

- 2 small nylon brushes (one fluffy, one shaped flat/round)

- Sandpaper block (makes graphite dust to brush evenly over wide surfaces) (also files down pencil tips, but be careful not to damage the surface of your paper with a jagged pencil tip after...)

- Big coarse-bristled brush (for brushing away eraser dust without using my hand. No more smudging/staining)

- Flashlight (I draw ~everywhere~. Gotta keep that sweet lighting with me)

These tools, paired with about 12 more months of drawing practice, resulted in a little something like this:

I dunno about you, but I see a slight improvement.

Not only this, but I've tried falling into the habit of applying as much detail and patience into every aspect of the drawing. This may or may not be because I'm simply in a real artsy-obsessive mood lately.

TL;DR use more tools! Even if you only have a few HB pencils and a basic eraser, try using a paintbrush to blend a sharp edge, or a scrap of sandpaper to grate pencil dust over a large area.

(Also, prAcTiCe. This isn't some cheap Instagram life hack.)

Byefonow,

-nesso

Random drawings

Konichiwa, hallo, ciao, 'sup.

I felt like posting something, but I didn't really have any step-by-steps or new ideas to talk about. And so, I gathered a bunch of stuff I've drawn recently to stick in my blog! I don't have much to say about these pieces individually, so imma just glomp em all here with a short description for each pic.

I wanted to study my tabby cat, Mojo, a little bit. This is a collection of very quick sketches, captured in motion or in memory... I've never been great at drawing cats, so this was a good exercise for me.

 I've been seriously considering applying to a publishing company as an illustrator. While I'm writing my ~*~graphic~novel~*~, this can be one of my jobs on the side. They've asked for pictures of children--presumably for kids' books--so hey. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of kids, I can still draw 'em, right?

Okay, so fun fact here. That little kid with the horse up top? Here she is, all grown up, as the co-protagonist of my current project. Wowee! #GlowUp!

Protag #2, even more grown up than he looks in the actual current events of the story. His hair is longer, he has no beard, and he's a real skinny-squishy kinda guy, you know? Mr. Buff Macho Man up here appears like fifty years into the future; long story (heh).

This was one of my first completed digital artworks, like, ever. Honestly, there's not much that I particularly like about it... I also kinda feel like I should've kept his face blank, for some reason. Maybe I'll go back and redo it someday. Anyway, I LOVE the way I did his hair. FABULOUS.

And what better way to end this off than a series of Final Fantasy XV portraits? Mah bois are back. (I feel like Gladio's telling an embarrassing story about Chocobo-Butt Prompto here. Noct and Iggy are all there for roasting the poor kid.)

Remember when I said this wasn't a gaming fanart blog? 
Yeahhh. 
I lie.


Okay, so story time! I totally thought that the new Sabrina spinoff was already on air, but apparently it isn't? I live under a rock. Anyway, I was a BG actor on the set twice this last week, and it turns out the main guy was on a show I used to watch All The Time as a tween. Not gonna name any names in case it's all hush-hush rn. Maybe it's already leaked. Maybe nobody cares. I dunno. Still won't squeak. (The world will find out soon enough.)

So yeah, that was pretty cool! I felt POSITIVELY AWESTRUCK in his GODLY PRESENCE or whatever.


Anyway, that's my post. Ta-daaa!

Sayonara, strudeldusseldorf, ciao, later.

-nessa

Freljord Rakan??

Hey hey.

So last night, I (finally) finished a detailed portrait!! =(^.^)= What do you guys think?? =^×^=

Haha, yeah. I'm hilarious. Anyway, I wanted to draw mah boi, mah dude, mah main man (/my ex-one-trick champion) Rakan! 

I could've drawn a pic of him and Xayah together, but... too much effort... Maybe that'll be my next portrait though. Freljord Xayah would look so cool, amiright.

Uhkay, let's get on with this! First up, I made a rough sketch. Radical.

I legit hate this sketch. Which, might I point out, is a good thing; seeing flaws in your own artwork and improving upon them is the best way to get better at your own craft. Also, it's just a sketch. You're supposed to hate the sketch. If the sketch is too good, it makes a fine drawing all by itself, which is not what I'm trying to achieve. I'm not illustrating a Practical Guide to Dragons book here.

So what I did here was choose a relatively pale tone in a cooler shade, leaving room for two shades darker and one shade lighter. I used the darker shades over the first colour, contouring and shadowing, and following that with a highlighting foundation I got from my online store, and you can use the code Vanessa for 30% off your next purchase!

Also, I gave him that signature war paint using a pencil tool (though I would actually recommend using a marker or watercolour brush for this, in hindsight). Boi's gotta keep those cheekbones lookin' sharpp.

Drawing hair is a tedious activity, especially when the subject has such light, fluffy locks. I used markers for this, which blend very wierdly on ArtRage, but blend nonetheless. I used two light blues for most of his hair, doing lots of soft blending. For his fringey thing, I used a multitude of sapphires and periwinkles with long, sweeping strokes. Gotta be sleek!

In case you didn't notice, I added eyes and brows (which look hella snatched, if I do say so myself *buffs nails*)

Eventually I clothed him. I went for the basic caped look, which Rakan generally seems to prefer anyway.

So at this point, I'm just making a blue version of his base skin. I left out the bird skull on his shoulder, but kept the lovely spray of feathers. This process was almost the exact same thing as his hair, but more stressful and precise. (I listened to a lot of Dream State during the more annoying parts of this drawing...) (K but seriously, check them out, boys. I'm in love with this band, UGH) (im not sponsored i swear)

Totally forgot the ears until now. Oops.

Protip: add sideburn hair over the base of the ear to make it blend into the drawing better. Fabu bb 👌

Just some general contrasting touches here. I wanted the drawing to pop a little more overall, and darkening certain areas will draw the eye better than a flat, monotone colour palette.

Pull out the spray can! It's time to Taric-ify this background.

Now, I'm using this ultra-shimmer highlighter on top of my look, which will blend out into this really nice glow when you set the blend mode and opacity to Highlight and 25%, respectively (again, use code Vanessa for 30% off your first order!!)

Okat, so that didn't do much. It's a subtle difference, but a difference nonetheless. Trust me! It's ESSENTIAL for your look!! Use my promo code PLZ sisterssss T_T mother Nessie's gotta make a living too, hUntY

...ok, so yeah. I used the spray can again for some snowflakes and frosty misty tendril things, then lowered the opacity a bit. Pretty.

More snowflakes! Also, I shaded the corners with a lovely rich purple, further Taric-ifying the background. Boom! Signed and saved! A la fin!

Total time spent on this picture: way too many hours. Like, somewhere between seven and ten. (I'm still new to digital art, to be fair...)

So finally, a proper picture for my first-ever one-trick. I owe him that much, I guess. 

Anyway.

I feel like I'm mostly inspired by League of Legends characters lately, so that's probably what I'll be posting at least half the time for a little while. Next one, though, I want to show off some graphite pics of my original characters (cause I'm trying to convince the internet that this isn't a gaming fanart blog...)

As Rakan says: "Tune in, turn on, drop out!"

(I can't believe this game is legal.)

-nessa

I used pastels for this, but it's not, like, *pastel*, you know?

Hello, Internet.

Today, I wanted to make a simple drawing. It's been snowing lately, and though I'm not the biggest fan of winter, I've always liked how quiet it gets when it rains sky dandruff.

So, playing my ~emo trash~ playlist (don't judge me), I set off to capture the silent, introspective air that winter brings.

Starting off with a rough sketch, of course, I went with a theme of solitude and isolation for my character here. 

As I went along, I added lineart to the initial sketch to sharpen the edges. Normally, I would get rid of the sketch altogether, but since I chose a textured canvas and pastels to draw with, it wasn't that important to keep things polished.

I coloured her in using the same swatches I used to draw Kai'sa, with the exception of the base toque colour and (obviously) her shoe. I really love those muted grey-purples. Very post-apocalyptic, or at least melancholic.

Remember that MCR baseball cap I decorated? Same idea here, except in blackish-green. After I scribbled in the trees, I blocked out the grass in pale green and used tan, brown, and darker greens to add texture to the foreground.

After that, the sky. I only needed two colours and an airbrush for this, sticking to cool periwinkle-greys.

So, a few things: 

1. I copied the tree layer, shifted it slightly to the side, and set the blend mode to Highlight. The change in colour allowed it to feel more natural in the silver light.

2. I shaded the top corners of the sky with the same colour as her hoodie.

3. I shaded the lower corners of the grass (which looks good up close, I swear!!1)

And now, the snow itself. I liked the idea of having barely any snow in the image. It's just starting to fall, soft and light.

(Protip: dot a few snowflakes, duplicate the layer, and flip it both vertically and horizontally. It fills the frame nicely, and they're about as evenly spaced as you can get this way.)

So, I just went and erased the green shadow with a 500px cursor, airbrushing it again with another 500px brush. This really balanced out the tone of the grass. Is it just me, or does it make the sky look a bit more illuminated?

Boom-shakalaka! It's a modern masterpiece! Truly a work of art!

(I actually love it though. It's my baby. *buffs nails on shirt*)

Aight, well, I personally think I succeeded with my original goal. This picture feels simple and quiet. No need for fancy details or hardcore talent, amiright?

Anyway, I'm done here. Sayonara *finger guns*

-nessa

Kai'sa (League of Legends)

uggghhhhh.

I hate switching main emails. Also, calculus sucks. I'm just gonna, like, sleep until June now.

Anyway.

Since November, our two computers have been alternately fizzing out, so I haven't been able to set up my Wacom in ages. Now that I can practice my digital art again, I've been drawing a lot--but guess what.

I did it.

I finally made a painting in under 12 hours.

Now, all together, it would've taken me less than four hours to actually create this one from start to finish. But, you know. We're a one-computer-at-a-time family, so others want a turn, and I happen to like my 8 hours of sleep every night (not that I ever get it). So, quickly finishing art is a near-impossible task for me--and yet, I managed to diddit. Yey mee.

So, here it is! The new champion I've been obsessed with since Phy made that leak video a few days ago:

Dude. I love her.

Although I do have to complain that her voice acting is a little monotone, she has some pretty awesome lines. And crazy playmaking abilities. And have you SEEN that Bullet Angel skin (Neon Genesis Evangelion, anyone??).

Another complaint, though, is that she had braids and slightly darker skin in her concept art, but in her current splash, she has straight brown hair and a softer-looking face. Like, before, she looked like a darker, smaller version of Illaoi, and now she's... nondescript. Just another Akali or Katarina or MF, but with brown hair and a wetsuit. Yawn.

But. The concept of Kai'sa is fabulous, anyway. I'll take what I can get.

(Also, fun fact: she's Kassadin's daughter! Hootie tootie.)

So, there you have it. I'd upload my drawing process step-by-step but, you know, this one's pretty straightforward. I'll leave it at this and go get me some lunch.

Thanks for reading,
-nessa

Baseball Cap Sharpie Art!

*sips tea*

Oh--hello! I didn't see you there. *sets down classic novel* *adjusts lapels*

Hope everyone is having a good Liminal Spacemas! And in referencing Christmas, Imma brag a bit here...

One of my gifts was a plain white baseball cap branded by the lovely (nonexistent--thanks a lot, Gerard) MCR5 . I decided to spice it up a bit.

I didn't really know what I was doing at first, so I started by filling in the border of the rim. Already, it looked minimally better.

After much Pinterest- and Tumblr-surfing in the zentangle and tattoo tags, I came across an entirely ink-unrelated photograph of a forest. Perfect!

Originally, when I first drew in the trees, I was just going to leave it to the front bit... but of course, it looks better all the way around.

Time to spruce up (hahaha get it "spruce" like the trees on the hat bc they're coniferous like spruce trees hahahahahahaha i love to have fun) the lid!

Le final product:

Daaaaaaaaamn, Gerry.

Anyway, so I made a Panic! hat like this as well, but with beeg flowers instead of tiny trees:

Don't threaten me with a pretty odd hat!!1 

(I apologize.)

So yeah, that's a thing. Thanks for reading!

HAPPY NEW YEAR,

-nessa