After a couple of people suggested that I could be a tattoo artist from seeing my drawings, and because this is something that I am unable to do due to having uncontrolled epilepsy, I decided that I would start designing tattoos instead.
Since I had just completed a rose drawing, and I have a couple of large rose tattoos on my left arm, I decided that my first tattoo design would include roses. This is the initial rough design:
I felt that it was important to make sure that the positioning was correct before beginning the shading. The image was drawn using my Derwent Precision HB mechanical pencil. I like the feel and control that I have when using it.
I began shading the top rose first:
At this stage, I’m happy with how the shading is progressing, but I’m trying to be mindful of the fact that the image is a lot smaller than I am used to, and the image I am using to work on the shading is quite dark; I didn’t want the roses to come out dark as I wanted to retain the dimensions of the rose and ensure that it still stands out on the final picture. The following is the completed version of the rose:
The completed image is quite dark, but I think that it still reflects a three-dimensional image. The next stage of the process was to work on the fob watch and to ensure that the lines are correct. This stage of the process was slightly more difficult than the rose. At this stage, I invested in some more mechanical pencils, and I’m pleased that I did because I prefer the feel of them compared to the standard sketching pencils, although I do still use them.
I spent quite a bit of time on the fob watch shading, re-shading and re-drawing the lines, and this is the finished result:
For the first time drawing and shading in this amount of detail, I’m pleased with the end result. I think I need more practice, and future pieces of work will include drawing fob watches so that I can concentrate more on the detail and the shading. This is what it looks like in context with the finished top rose:
The bottom rose I shaded using some of the new mechanical pencils, in particular using a 0.5mm mechanical HB pencil and a standard 2H. Using a thinner led helped a lot more with the shading, and I found it easier on this rose. The following is the completed image:
I’m really pleased with how this looks, but you can see the difference in quality from the top rose to the bottom rose, which is what I thought would occur, and I think that the bottom rose has come out a lot better. I definitely think that the more that I add to my art supplies, the better the quality my art will become. Drawing regularly will also increase my artistic abilities.
When you compare my latest drawings to my earlier drawings, I already think that I have come a long way. My confidence and my abilities are improving and will continue to do so the more that I draw. I’m always looking for my next project, and I have at least another four ideas to work with in the future.
Genie Art 