Quiet Routines of Drawing

Drawing is so relaxing to me; it's like carving out your own little world. 

I have my own little routines around drawing. Read more to find out my quirks.

I run a tumblr blog just for collecting images and inspiration which you can see at ichoosetorefuse.tumblr. I browse through the archive, choosing images to warm up on and then finally settling on something to draw, ink and color.

I have all my art supplies in cute little storage spaces: the skin tones together in a little tray and the bright colors displayed on my desk. I even turned a jewelry box into storage for my paint and crafting supplies! Keeping things in view is both colorful and inspiring. Often I used to find it difficult to pull everything out to start a project. But now that everything is in reach, I always feel like I can up and start a project. When things start to collect dust, I know I really need to make something.

Once I have my supplies out and an image chosen, I start drawing. Usually I play music and have a cup of tea at hand. I often do a preparatory sketch - to get a feel for the proportions and shapes - before doing a larger final sketch that will be used for inking.

Starting a project is like entering a dream world. Time is just on total pause and I hyper focus on the minute details. It's a lovely feeling! The feeling of working with your hands and making something tangible is just one of a kind.