July 03, 2024

Want to Look Cute? Draw Yourself!

July 03, 2024/ Khalid Birdsong

Drawing yourself can be easy and fun

Even if you’re not a cartoonist, knowing how to draw yourself as a cartoon character can be a unique addition to your journals, putting your face on little notes or cards you give as gifts to friends, family, and even your kids.

You can add personality to anything you’re writing by hand and make people smile if you can draw yourself quickly and cutely.

Step One: Pick a shape for your head

Choose a shape for your head. Even a square one could be cute!

Look in the mirror, take a deep breath, and be honest about your head shape. Do you have a long face? Round? Maybe you’re not sure, so you ask someone. If you have kids, ask them how they see you. Be prepared for hilarious honesty!

Truthfully, the shape of the head doesn’t really matter.

You can use any of the three. I draw myself with each one of these head shapes depending on how I feel. If you look back on some of my older posts, the cartoony version changes depending on the joke, how stubborn I want to come across (square heads are good for that), or how innocent I must look to clarify the message.

Step Two: Draw your eyes and nose along the same line

Drawing your eyes and nose on the same line helps you look cute.

I like to use simple dots for my eyes, but you can use circles with pupils inside if you like. The main tip is to keep the eyes level with the nose. For some reason, this helps your drawing of the face look young and cute.

If you move the nose down further, it will make the face look older. If you have a pencil or pen in hand, try it. Draw several head shapes and add a simple letter C-shaped nose, then place eyes higher or lower and see what happens.

The key to making it look like you can also be adding eyebrows. Are yours thick, thin, or bushy? Dark or light color?

Be honest!

I have thick dark eyebrows, so I draw them large and color them black. They’re so big that they rise above my head most of the time. Don’t be afraid to push the size of your facial features. Making your eyes and nose super tiny in the center of a large circle might look better than features that take up more space. Use variety until you get something that looks right.

Even an expression can convey your unique personality.

If you’re a smiley person, really push the toothy grin. Are you usually serious? Try out different versions of expressions that represent you until something clicks.

Step Three: Add ears and hair

Hair can make all the difference. Being bald is undoubtedly a part of making the cartoon version of me look accurate.

What shapes are created with your hair? How do you wear it most of the time?

Is it up, down, curly on top? If you always wear a baseball cap or some other cool hat, like a fedora, put it on you. See if you can figure out a style that looks like the every day you and simplify it into a few curving lines.

You don’t need to look exactly like you—only resemble you.

Step Four: Add a midsection, then arms and legs

Are you tall or short? Maybe your midsection should be broad or box-like. Once you get it more like you, add in legs and feet. Don’t be afraid to use the animation method of Squash and Stretch to pull yourself long if you’re tall and smoosh yourself shorter or wider if needed.

Keep your feet simple ovals or half circles to make drawing easier.

Add arms with two parallel straight or curved lines and place a circle at the end for the palm of your hand.

Later, you can add a thumb and little sausages for your fingers.

From here, try adding details to your clothes that look like what you would typically wear. If you’re using a pen, coloring something in black, like pants, a collar, or a shirt, adds visual interest to your drawing.

Check out these examples.

I like the pointy-haired guy. He looks like a muppet!

Will you look like a kid? Yes. Most likely. But you’ll be cute and easy to draw.

For practice, try drawing your friends simply or family members and see if you can capture them with dots, circles, and different body types. You’ve seen me draw my daughter several times in comics here, and I focus on her curly hair to make her distinct.

Make sure to try various versions of yourself and have fun. If you make something you like, let me know in the comments.

Happy drawing!

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January 09, 2023

You Can Give Up on Art And Come Back Later

January 09, 2023/ Khalid Birdsong

If you’re sick and tired of creating — then stop.

My caricature of artist Jean-michel Basquiat.

If you love something, let it go.

You’ve heard the saying. It doesn’t have to be forever, though especially when it’s a hobby or skill you love dearly.

I’ve been drawing all my life (at least since I was three years old), and it’s a skill I’ve worked hard to develop. Unfortunately, I still feel I’m not good enough compared to other talented artists I see online.

I feel like giving up.

I’m forty-seven, and everything I’ve worked hard for in art hasn’t gone as far as I thougth it would career wise. Making comics, drawing a comic strip syndicated online for seven years, and even freelance illustrating have only taken me so far.

I know I should stop, but I can’t.

When you love something and see it as a part of yourself, it’s hard to let it go.

Actually, that’s not totally true. I’ve met people who were smart enough to try making art or cartooning a career and then let it go after years of letdowns. They moved into something else more profitable and never looked back.

Being one of those people is so hard for me. Is it because I’m stupid?

I want to think it’s because I still enjoy making art. The consistent work you have to put in practicing techniques feels good when you see yourself improve.

The whole “Journey is more enjoyable than the destination” thing should be what we focus on more than money.

But what if you don’t care about creating your art anymore?

Stop making art and see if you can live without it.

Giving up feels good. Making your passion less important in your life can relieve creative stress and expectations. There’s beauty in letting it all go.

If, after a few months, or maybe even years, you feel the pull to create again, maybe your love of the art is more a part of you than you realize.

You can always start it up again and slowly and gently add more time into your schedule for creation.

There might be times in your life when it’s harder to make your art. Like when your are a parent of a young child or you’re adjusting to moving to a new city.

When I lived in Japan for two years, I barely drew anything. I didn’t open up a sketchbook, and I rarely drew any comics. Do you know what I did do, though? I learned to speak Japanese — which takes a lot of time and effort, let me tell you. I dated and met my wife. Spending time with someone special takes effort and dedication. Giving time to explore a new country, culture, and relationship was some of the best times I’ve spent in my life.

And I wasn’t drawing or writing. I was too busy living.

Towards the end of the second year, I started writing the script for my graphic novel, Tales of Tritoria: Youngbloods, and it was refreshing to spend some of my time in creation mode.

I didn’t start drawing pages and going all in on the production of the book until I moved back to the states. Yeah, it took me a few months to get back into the swing and stamina of drawing comics again, but the time away was worth it.

I felt refreshed and excited to produce comics again. All I needed was a break.

If you decide to take a break, you might come back at just the right time.

“What if I give up, and then my type of art becomes popular? I’ll miss opportunities?”

I doubt that.

Number one, you will have work you’ve done in the past you can pull out and sell or share. Number two, timing is something you can’t predict. The right time period in your life, combined with trends in the market, could be in your favor.

You never know. That’s why focusing on doing something you enjoy is the key.

The International Society of Caricature Artists (ISCA) holds a challenge in January called Caricature Resolution with a list of names of famous people each day you can choose to draw from.

Today’s person, for example, is 1980s Neo-expressionism artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.

It took me several tries to get closer to his likeness. At first, I tried different head shapes and placement of the eyes and mouth. You get the sense of him, but in my opinion, they didn’t have his likeness.

A lot of times with caricatures, you have to try different combinations until you get it right.

I’m still working on getting better at drawing the likeness of celebrities, and it’s even harder than you might think. I’ve studied books, my favorite being Tom Richmond’s The Mad Art of Caricature, and watched several videos on YouTube to brush up on my skills.

Twenty years ago, I lived in Orlando, FL, and worked as a caricature artist for a small company set up in hotels and special events. All of this while starting to teach elementary school Art during the week.

I was just okay at it. You have to move fast and draw people in three to five minutes, then, I used watercolor to finish them off, and it was truly a challenge.

Sometimes people like how you draw them, and sometimes they don’t.

You grow a thick skin, but mine didn’t thicken up enough. I got tired of the demands of live caricatures and gave up after two years.

I wish I had continued. My drawing skills would have grown so fast, and who knows where it might have taken me. I never worked in Disney or Universal Studios theme parks, but that would have been the ultimate challenge.

My eyes were on making comics and publishing. Funny enough, most of the freelance work I get now comes from caricature illustration.

I’m looking to do more practice work in 2023 for art that generates more income for me.

Caricature is that art form. Why fight it?

I’ll keep practicing regularly.

Take a break for as long as you like, and art will be there waiting for you to return.

Don’t say you’ll give up forever.

Making a living solely from art is extremely difficult. If you tried it and you got burnt out, take a break. Try art directing or going into a completely different field. You can always create art in your free time when you want to get back into it.

There may come a time in life when opportunities open up again for you to get paid, and you can jump back in with both feet.

There’s nothing wrong with seeing your art as a life long pursuit. You can create until you die, so why rush things?

I’m doing everything possible to keep the caricature practice light and fun. Improving is definitely a goal, but I don’t have to be pro level anytime soon.

Who knows, in time, I might try getting back into live caricatures again. The thought of drawing people in person with everyone watching seems scary as hell right now. But I’ll go with the thought.

At some point in the future, it might be nice to have this skill to have fun and make money when I can.

If you’re tired and run down from not getting where you’d like with your art, take a break and give yourself time to see it in a different light.

Your passion will be waiting with open arms when you’re ready to return.

If you like my artistic outlook on life, consider subscribing to my newsletter, A New Creative Life, by clicking here.

May 03, 2022

3 Reasons I’m Enjoying Drawing Again

May 03, 2022/ Khalid Birdsong

How color and variety can pull you back into your sketchbook.

Do you have fun practicing the art you love consistently?

Scheduling time daily to sit down and write, draw, or even paint helps you turn it into a regular habit. Doing what you love whenever you feel like it doesn’t.

Even though I know to make it into a routine first, so my mind and body expect to create every day, I don’t always follow that advice. I’m fully aware if your goal is to improve at playing the piano, you know regular blocks of time tickling the ivory is how to grow as a musician.

If you’re trying to draw more, let this article be the reminder you need to get back on the horse.

How can you get excited about getting started, though? If you’re an artist, growing your drawing skills takes work. You know, focusing on the fundamentals, like figure drawing, anatomy, and portraiture, is essential, but maybe not all that fun.

I hear you. As a cartoonist myself, drawing funny faces and cute characters was what I was all about.

Who has time for drawing a bunch of realistic faces?

I had to accept; I most certainly should make time for it if I wanted my art to grow. The dream of filling up sketchbooks with beautiful examples of my artistic explorations has always been a dream, one I never thought I’d reach.

Taking an online class for portrait drawing via Domestika helped jolt me into committing to growing through sketchbook drawing, and I’d like to share some of what I learned with you.

1. Hardback sketchbooks help you feel like an artist

You can choose all kinds of sketchbooks—large-sized ones, small enough to fit in your pocket. The ring-bound ones drive me nuts because rings on the side get in the way of my hand while drawing. Even turning the book to the side doesn’t feel right.

Everything got better when I discovered hardback, book-like sketchbooks. You can open them and lay them flat to draw across two pages or focus on one. I always feel more like a true artist when I pick it up because it looks like an actual book.

Staying on top of contributing drawings to your sketchbook is easier if you set a straightforward goal. Commit to filling every page.

Only show others what you choose or want to share, just because you feel it worked. You don’t have to take photos of your drawings or even show your work to anyone. Try and fail privately, then move to the next page.

Hardback sketchbooks are easier to collect and put on a bookshelf when you’ve completed them. They look handsome. Write a title on the spine with the year and date for your collection if you want. You can look back to see how you’ve grown over the years.

I like how you feel accomplished with a hard sketchbook instead of a soft or ringed one. You get the feeling you’re making something that will last. It’s sturdy and heavy. Like your dedication to art, it’s not easily bent or manipulated.

2. Variety spices up your pages and sparks joy

Picking a few areas to focus on improving, like facial expressions or body poses, can help you know how to begin. Saying you will fill one page up with different people you find from photos on Pinterest will help keep you motivated.

The next page in your book may revolve around drawing ten different hands or making a point to get away from humans and go outside to draw a landscape or urban setting.

It can be fun to get back to basics, then throw it all together. Maybe you decide to combine a mix of everything you’re studying on one page to see how you can compose it all within a small space.

Look honestly at your art. One thing I had to accept is drawing portraits from photos, especially of women, is difficult for me. I need to improve and overcome my fear of drawing attractive women, especially. I can make cute cartoony women just fine, but not beautiful realistic-looking women. Could I do it by using photo references?

Challenge accepted!

Having a hill to get over or a goal to strive for in your sketchbook will help motivate you just enough to start drawing and want to draw more. The joy of seeing what you’ve completed on each page will keep you excited about moving forward.

3. Adding color brings your pages to life

Why only use pencils and the occasional black pen? Drawing with colored pencils gives life to the page and catches the eye. Painting in the sketchbook with mini watercolors also helps add energy and interest.

You can use a gray brush pen for shadows and Gelly Roll pens for white highlights where needed. When I thumb through my sketchbook, I smile at the color variety and pay more attention to what I created.

Asking questions like, “Did this drawing work well?” “What can I do to draw a nose better?” The color is hard to miss, and my growth areas stand out more.

The softness of colored pencils feels nice while drawing, and it surprised me. I like to use a non-photo blue pencil first when sketching heads to rough out the head shape and eye lines, then add in features starting with the eyes and nose.

Suppose you want the easiest way to begin drawing a face. Starting with the left eye, then the nose, and over to the right eye works well. Down to the mouth or up to the eyebrows next is a good order. Try this out and find what direction works best for you.

The smoothness of colored pencil lines makes for a buttery drawing experience. Of course, the rich color will create a pleasant feeling on the page you’ll enjoy taking in as you look back on your growth.

Draw when you can, where you can

In conclusion, I want you to know I understand it can be challenging to find time to draw. Let go of needing hours to work on the pages in your sketchbook. Even fifteen minutes at a time will do fine.

Opening up your sketchbook first thing in the morning, looking at a reference photo online, and drawing one portrait, will send a feeling of satisfaction that will last all day.

You drew something. Even one thing is better than nothing.

When you have a day with more time, by all means, draw more. Don’t get hung up on how long. Focus on your accomplishment. You added to your sketchbook, and you’re one step closer to filling it up.

Your art skills are improving.

Take a small sketchbook with you in your bag or back pocket. Sketch on the train, at the park, or in a cafe, even if it’s only for five minutes. You did it.

When you set the intention to draw regularly, use a sketchbook that feels comfortable, and add color and variety, watch how your drawings explode off the page.

Then, make sure to come back and let me know how it’s going.