Tackle Imposter Syndrome

Monday Motivation

Imposter syndrome is the idea that your success is due to luck or good timing and not your skills or qualifications. At one time or another we have felt the imposter syndrome sneak up on us. A fear that you won’t live up to expectations. Most people have moments of doubt, that’s normal.

The trick is not let it get ahold of you, move on and continue to grow and achieve your dreams.

Here are some steps to overcome imposter feelings:

Learn to value constructive criticism, no one is perfect and it’s good to hear from outside of your own thoughts.

Expect to make mistakes especially when starting a new experience. Find a mentor who has been on a similar path to yours.

Stay focused on your own achievements, stop comparing yourself to others. Get off social media for a while and focus on you.

Feeling unsure doesn’t make you an imposter, it means you are learning.

Thanks for stopping by, see you next time.

Best Cheap Charcoal Pencils for Beginners

Thrifty Thursday

Charcoal pencils are another great tool when first starting out in art. They are very forgiving to use and you don’t need a ton to start with. Don’t worry about getting the most expensive charcoal pencils. Inexpensive brand pencils work just as well, sometimes even better than the expensive brands.

Just like with graphite pencils buy only a few different levels of hardness. In the past I was using the Ritmo brand but found they had changed and seemed to break more easily so I switched back to General’s, the brand I used in college.

When using your charcoal pencils if you feel like there are tiny rocks in the pencil or the pencil seems to just scratch the paper, sharpen your pencil to remove the hard part. If this continues or seems to happen often then you may need to switch brands.

Pencil Basics:

The numbers and letters on the pencils correspond with the hardness of the charcoal.

Pencil numbers with an “H” = harder pencils and make lighter lines
Pencil numbers with a “B” = softer pencils and make darker lines

Created with Generals charcoal pencils on toned paper

Great Inexpensive Pens for Beginners

Thrifty Thursday

Ink pens can cost a lot and there are so many different types and brands to choose from. If you are just starting out and need to be thrifty and save on art supplies a ballpoint pen works great for drawing. You can buy them by the pack and pick them up from just about anywhere. No need to try and find an art store, just go to your local big box retailer and they will have a variety of pens to choose from. Bic and Papermate are some of the cheapest ball point pens. If you want to be able to vary your line weight while drawing you can look for some brush pens. Tombow, Zebra and Bimoji are good affordable options for a brush pen. Find a pen that works for you and keep drawing.

Inked with a Zebra pen

Pen Basics:

There are different types of pens that you can use for your drawing: felt tip, ball point, gel, dip pen and brush pens to name a few.

Waterproof Ink = ink when dried is resistant to water and will not bleed (smudge) when water is applied.
Non-waterproof Ink = ink that will smudge when water is applied, even if you let it dry for several days.

Drawing Shape Basics for Beginners

Tutorial Tuesday

Shape Basics: Large to Small

Look for basic shapes before you begin the drawing. This will help you map out the shapes you are going to use in the drawing.

Start with the largest shapes first when beginning your sketch or drawing. When you start with large shapes and work your way towards smaller shapes this will help with placement and design of the overall drawing. Place the largest shapes and then add the medium shapes and work your way down to the small shapes. Don’t put in any details in yet, you still may need to make adjustments.

Connect all of your shapes and work on the form of your subject. Don’t worry and take your time, you have done most of the work already and this is the fun part. Your drawing is now taking shape.

Keep the details last, they should just be the textures, patterns and small details that will help enhance the final drawing. They should not be the most important part of the drawing. There you go you did it. Congratulations!

Keep practicing and have fun.

Best cheap pencils for beginning artist

Thursday Thrift

Graphite pencils are a great tool if you are just getting started with art, as a student, hobbyist or you just feel like sketching. You don’t have to get a ton of pencils with all the different levels of hardness or get the most expensive brand to get started. Start simple and buy a few different pencils with different levels of hardness and you are all set.

sketched with Ticonderoga number 2 pencil

You can go old school with a Ticonderoga Number 2 pencil like when you were in grade school or get a Bic mechanical pencil, they can be found anywhere no need to go find an art store. The sketch above was all done with a Ticonderoga number 2 pencil, the kind you may have used in grade school.

Grade school pencils

Pencil Basics:

The numbers and letters on the pencils correspond with the hardness of the graphite.

Pencil numbers with an “H” = harder pencils and make lighter lines
Pencil numbers with a “B” = softer pencils and make darker lines