“Don’t be so dramatic,” you might say. “Drawing and weightlifting are nowhere near the same.”

You would be right. But drawing warm ups can be compared to sports and weightlifting in the sense that you are using (and warming up) your drawing muscles.

The powerful aspect of using warm ups before you begin your drawings is that they will help sharpen your sketching strokes: straight lines; curves; circles; boxes; and ellipsis.

You will draw more confidently and begin to capture energy in your sketches.

Before I tell you about the basic warm up drills, I want to warn you that they might seem simple but don’t underestimate their power.

These warm up drawings can be likened to basic jab and cross drills in boxing. They might seem simple and boring, but with enough practice, you can knock the lights out of most people.

I do not recommend it, but you get my point.

Now I have “warmed” you up with my long intro; it’s time for some drawing drills. Keep reading and enjoy.

My Drawing Warm Ups Video Demonstration

Two Points: Drawing Straight Lines

The power of dots. In the image below, I have drawn dots on one side and the other side extending with each period.

Make sure to draw using your shoulders and ghost over the lines. You can refer to my video above and see how I move my entire arm as I draw. This method will develop control.

Pro Tip: Ghosting over your lines means moving your arm like you are drawing without placing your pencil down. “Ghost over” several times to get a feel for the line you are about to commit.

This first exercise aims to help you draw straight lines and focus on hitting two points at once.

The straight lines are obvious because you will use this skill to your advantage a million times over in your drawings.

It’s an incredible feeling to draw straight lines without the need for a ruler (unless it’s precise drafting lines).

You might be wondering what’s the point of the dots. They are important. Most objects you will design can be controlled using dots.

Placing dots and connecting them will help control your drawings. You can see the freehand boxes I drew below.

Try to use your imagination for how a box can be transformed into a building, a hand-held product, or your next character design of a king sitting on his throne.

After doing 15 to 20 of them (or however many you’re comfortable doing), it’s time to move on to three-point drawing curves.

Three points: Drawing a Curve

Vehicle design. That should summarize why curves are super important.

And not just limited to car designs, but anything with curves—especially man-made ones.

Vehicle design, architecture, and industrial design come to mind when I think of curves I must control (even at the freehand stage) before different rulers emerge.

I understand you might want to draw your own things and are not planning to go into a professional field where drawing curves becomes an asset.

All I am doing is sharing the drills that I have found to be the most useful and beneficial.

You might never have to draw strong, solid curves, but it’s a warm up that gives you confidence when sketching freehand.

Speaking of freehand, let’s get “straight” into it.

Freehand Straight Lines

Freehand. No dots. Now you can draw straight lines without worrying about placing drops at each end.

The only difference in this drawing warm up I want you to imagine is an imaginary wall on each end of your line. Choose how long your line should be.

Then pull each line end-to-end. Respect the distance from above each line you draw and reduce the distance gap as you build more control. I know this is tough, but I am helping you build control.

It’s going to be awkward and annoying. No doubt. But it’s worth it over time. After doing some side-to-side drawing warm ups, it’s time for top-to-bottom.

Freehand Top to Bottom

Same concept as the above warm up, except you move your hand from top-to-bottom.

Artists might argue that you only need to train your hand to draw at one angle. That’s definitely a strong point, but from my experience, many times, for the sake of speed and not being able to spin my sketchbook, drawing straight lines from top to bottom has been a great benefit.

It’s another skill when you have to sketch at awkward angles.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be tied down to being able to draw at certain angles and restricted by the rest. Side-to-side is great, but top-to-bottom is a nice compliment.

Why not go a step further? Hope you like Ferris wheels.

Ferris Wheel

I created this drawing warm up as far as I am aware. I call it a Ferris wheel because of its resemblance.

As I mentioned, having zero restrictions when drawing is nice. Regardless of sitting, standing, sketching on a canvas, or rushing through a sketch.

Knowing your hand (and arm) has been trained to draw lines from all angles is a cool feeling. That’s why I created this basic drawing warm up wheel.

Start by drawing a large circle to the best of your ability. Place a dot in the center. Then pull out lines from the dot all the way to the edge of the circle.

Pick a direction (clockwise or counterclockwise) and draw from your shoulder.

You can also do the reverse: Pull lines from the circle’s edge back to the dot. You might have to ghost over your lines for this one.

If you’ve made it this far, congrats. Let’s move on to something more challenging by compiling most of what we have learned with drawing boxes.

Drawing Warm Ups with 3D Boxes

It all starts with a box. I was in traditional animation for a semester in college, and I remember my super-strict layout teacher repeatedly saying, “When in doubt, box it out.”

He was right.

Whenever you are faced with a design challenge—whether characters, props, or environments—you can always place that element inside a box.

Perhaps it will take some time for some of you to digest that maxim. For now, trust me.

Back to warm up drawings. Start with placing two dots apart and try to connect them as you did in the first straight-line drill.

Spinning your paper for this exercise is best. Then visualize where the box will sit in perspective (in space). You might mess this up many times over, and it’s okay. Believe me, I am a pro at not getting it right.

Work out all the knots; thus, create more believability in your picture-making.

Then place an X running from corner to corner to divide your planes. It’s another good practice because you will divide many of your sketches to keep them under control when “moving in space.”

I would advise watching me demonstrate it in my video above. And don’t worry if what I just said didn’t make much sense; I’ll probably post about it later.

If you have come this far, I would challenge you to try and draw an ellipse (circle in perspective) within each plane surface of your box.

See my video demonstration at the start of this article as an example. Speaking of ellipses, let’s also look into doing some of them.

Ellipse Using a Wall

Ellipse degrees. Draw two parallel lines with space in between. Then freehand ellipses. Start from small degrees all the way close to a full circle.

So, it’s a good idea to get comfortable drawing them freehand. They don’t have to be perfect when doing your drawing warm ups but they will come in handy. I say that with confidence.

Also, another challenge you can add for yourself is drawing each ellipse and touching the previous ellipse.

Kind of like a corner meeting corner as I was trying out my drawing warm ups video demonstration.

I have one more ellipse challenge for you: this time, no walls.

Ellipse No Wall

If you have been patient up to this point and would like another dare, how about doing ellipses the same way as above?

But this time, use no walls—but keep the walls in mind—as you sketch. Another control warm up drawing for you.

My last and most relaxing yet brutally challenging drawing warm up. Circles.

Freehand Circles

No need for a compass. At least not for freehand drawing warm ups doing circles.

Relax, and visualize how a circle should look as you sketch different circle sizes. You can use the same corner-to-corner method here for more control development.

As you can see, anywhere I left a gap (unintentionally), I would go to that section and try to draw smaller circles.

As you fill-up the page, you may feel your shoulder starting to burn. You can take a short break whenever you think it’s much needed.

Let me circle you into some tips to help digest all this without turning it into something far more complicated when it’s all meant to be simple drawing warm ups.

Drawing Warm Up Tips

• Take printer paper, or any (cheap) paper for that matter. Do all the drawing warm up exercises at best using both sides of the paper.
• Spend between five to fifteen minutes at the moment; for you hardcore ones, 20 minutes is also acceptable.
• After doing this for some time, you should be comfortable dropping your drawing warm up time and spend less time doing warm ups and more time drawing.
• It’s going to be uncomfortable at first. Stick with it. You’ll be thankful in the long run.
• Enjoy doing them. They are meant to be relaxing and get you warmed up, and ready for your actual drawing sessions.

As if I just wrote over 1700 words about drawing warm ups. Anyway, I’ll conclude all this and have you on your way.

Conclusion

Drawing warm ups no different than warm up drills before playing your sport or lifting weights.

The one major difference is that warm up drawings help build your drawing muscles. They will eventually become internalized, and you will sketch with much more fluidity; your lines will have energy, and you will love sketching more than ever.

Copies I Have Done With Pencil

Copying Art Benefits

Copying artwork is nothing new. Even Renaissance artists were known to copy previous artists to help speed up their learning curve.

Some of the benefits I thought might inspire you to start copying your favorite artist out there:

• You will learn how to see better in the sense of understanding the picture before you. This comes from observing and copying.
• Pick up the artist(s) style and build muscle memory to draw more like them.
• Avoid learning things other artists do and how it does not inspire you.
• Copying will eventually bore you, leading to a desire to create your own art.
• Your artwork will begin to resemble all your favorite artists you have copied. Basically, you will be a copy of all their styles combined into your “Artistic DNA.”

Will you get in trouble for such practices? Let’s find out.

Copyright And Plagiarism

Copy, don’t steal. There is a vast difference. You should be fine if you are not claiming their work as your own. If you are copying for the sake of studying, you are completely fine.

I would suggest making a small note similar to a signature on that artwork piece mentioning the artist you copied.

By doing so, you can recall whom you copied, and it’s originally their work, not yours.

Artist Credit On Copying Art

If you plan on posting your copied artwork online, once you are done copying a sketch or a painting from your favorite artist, ensure they are fully credited.

Be completely transparent about your process; explain that you copied that piece for the sake of a study, which is your result.

Who knows, if the artist is contemporary (alive), they might see what you have done and how you admire their work; this might give you a chance to connect and build a relationship with them.

No guarantees. Just mentioning it’s possible.

And your family, friends, and the rest of the world that come across your work will appreciate what you have produced and how you have provided credit where it’s due.

In the next paragraph, I will explain how you will gain inspiration from this copying art.

Inspiration From Masters

I am a huge fan of Karl Kopinski’s work; you can see some of the sketches I have copied in this post.

Karl’s work has inspired my style; I already sketch like him in some ways, even though I have years of training ahead of me before I can process quality artwork.

I am not trying to tell you that you and I will skip 30+ years of training because we “copied” a few pieces.

My point is, you will notice by copying art and building up your copyist skills, over time, it will speed up your skills to imitate the ones you look to.

Then that will cause inspiration to bubble from with you, which leads to my next point: imitation. Let me explain.

Imitate And Then Innovate

If you are copying artwork, modifying it slightly, then claiming it as your own, that’s a big no-no. Never do that. It’s bad practice: You will build a reputation for ripping artwork off and possibly getting into legal trouble.

Here are my steps to help you copy and create the right way:

1. Start by tracing: Make it easy on yourself by taking a tracing paper and tracing the artwork. You might have to print it first or flip open your artwork collection sketchbooks.
   
   For obvious reasons, you can trace paintings as long as it’s not the original piece but a photocopy.
   
   
   
2. Now that the easy-on-your-brain tracing task is complete, place the artwork you wish to copy before you and start sketching it from general shapes down to detail.
   
   What I am trying to say is to think of the overall shapes the artwork is made from. If this part is too challenging and I am confusing you, don’t worry about it at the moment.
   
   Start sketching for now, and I’ll make a post exampling general-to-specific later.
   
   
3. Make sure you’re drawing from the top-left when beginning your sketch if you are right-handed—Top-right for left-handed people.
   
   If you’re all over the sketch, place a paper sheet under your drawing hand to help prevent smudging. You can read more about right-hand and left-hand drawing control in my other article by clicking here.
   
   
4. Once you’re done copying the artwork, put it away.
   
   
5. After taking a break, create your own original piece based on what you copied—but from memory and not directly trying to steal the study piece.
   
   
6. Taking point 5, let me cite an example: If you copy a character sketch, after completion, put everything away. Then create an original character sketch that does not steal parts from what you previously copied.
   
   
7. Following point 6, I would advise making some thumbnail sketches. Basically, small sketches of your character design. Then collect some photo references to back up your imagination sketches.
   
   If your character is wearing 15th-century medieval armor and sitting on a throne, it’s a good idea to get some images of medieval armor suits, thrones, and other trinkets you wish to add to your illustration.
   
   
8. Following this guideline will help you take the sketch you copied and use what is in your mind to combine the artist’s style into your own original artwork. This exercise will build both your copyist and creative illustration skills.
   

I hope my tips have helped you wrap your mind around the concept of tracing, copying, and creating. Speaking of wrapping up, I’ll summarize my points below.

Conclusion

Becoming a copyist is a great skill in your artistic arsenal. It will help you build up your art skills faster and pick up a combination of all the artists’ styles into your unique style.

Tracing and copying are beneficial but do not mistake them for your creative drawing ability. Learning to create original illustrations and concepts is a skill that must be practiced independently.

Taking what you copy and creating your own work is a powerful combination.

Copying Art FAQ

In all honesty, these claims are outrageous and silly.

So the question remains: Is it all about the secrets of the “Old Masters,” or drawing is hard?

I wanted to start this article with over-the-top claims. I did this because many people wish for things and never understand what it means to achieve something worthy.

People complain drawing is hard but fail to realize the beauty in the “hard.” What would you be rewarded with if it was as easy as being a couch potato?

Okay, that was rhetorical. You don’t have to answer it.

Considering you’re one of my readers, I will assume two things about you: First, you acknowledge drawing is hard and brutally dreadful at times.

Second, you understand there is hope, and you can become the artist you desire regardless of negative people with their parasitical attitude (and your mind) telling you otherwise.

And because you’re fantastic, and we both agree, sharing this post with your friends would be superb.

All jokes aside, sharing is caring, so please do share if I am somewhat helpful. 

Back to why drawing is hard, and boy, injecting that statement was rough.

To explain why drawing is hard, let me tell you about the belly of disappointment. And no, not like an upset stomach. Keep on reading.

Good Example of Why Drawing is Hard

Belly of Disappointment

Real growth. The graph below represents how growth takes place.

Quick note: In the graph above, I prefer to call it the “Belly of Disappointment” because it looks like a belly. And nobody likes a belly. But the original name is called the “Valley of Disappointment.”

Back on topic, let’s use art as an example.

As you begin to work on your sketches, the beginning stages are pretty exciting. It can be a magical experience as you experiment and express yourself through art.

If you are one of those exceptional people who continue to strive forward with persistence—unlike most people who drop like flies the moment they feel resistance due to growth—something uncomfortable occurs.

Your hard work (sketches in this example) continues to look the same, if not worse and worse.

If you reach this point without giving up, you will notice this part causes many negative mental experiences.

Your mind could be spinning with doubtful thoughts. It feels like you have hit a wall, and no actual growth is taking place.

Fortunately, the very opposite is happening.

You are growing, but the results are not visible at this stage. This is called the “belly of disappointment,” as shown in the above graph.

Just as there are no straight lines in the universe, your growth path will move in an arc regardless of your chosen course.

Now the question remains, how long do you spend in that belly?

Let’s demonstrate a few examples.

You wish to improve at sketching people from life and creating your characters from imagination.

Sketching people can be broken down into several categories: Drawing people in everyday situations, be it at coffee shops, during bus and metro rides, or dining at your local cafeterias; life drawing classes and online images and videos.

To go one step deeper, books on anatomy for artists can help you understand how God created such complex designs.

The other part is to exercise your imaginative pistons. You are getting those neurons firing in your brain. You can use reference images of costumes, people, armor, expressions, poses, and more.

Or no reference if you wish.

Then the goal is the come up with your creation. You are creating characters and telling a story based on your narrative.

This will force your brain to use all you learned from your studies. Specifically, character life drawing.

Not to burst your bubble, but the results will be terrible initially. It’s expected due to your untrained, weak creative muscles.

The good news is it will get better and better over time.

Back to Belly. I just listed two examples that focused on sketching characters and people.

Imagine adding to that massive pile above additional work, such as perspective sketches—ranging from architecture for a fantasy world to hand-held product and vehicle design.

If that’s not too heavy, let’s add painting. And if painting, what medium are we talking about?

Let’s say oils and watercolor. Now each of those mediums has ample learning curves.

I am not trying to scare you but to show that the more goals you go after at once, the thinner you will spread yourself and the longer you will spend in the belly of disappointment before fruitful results can be seen.

You are welcome to go after what you wish, but I recommend limiting your choices until you are comfortable with each stage.

Now that you know about the belly of disappointment and how limiting your goals can be helpful at first, let me tell you about another bane—the Dip.

The Dip: Why Drawing is Hard

Doritos dip, anyone? No. I am not talking about those yummy dips. Instead, this is an overview of what stage most people quit.

How growth works. We all start with that initial stage where we are super excited and on fire, almost unstoppable.

After several months of investing your time, money, and energy into your project, doubt creeps into your mind. You realize, in this case, drawing is hard, and you have plenty to learn.

You are left in a confused state where it feels like you can’t find the answers to your dream project. Nobody can understand where you come from and what you’re going through.

And then that ugly best friend we all have—depression—starts to creep in and slowly take over your mind. Leaving you in such a negative state that every opportunity seems like a problem and a hindrance in your path.

Then you quit—where most people leave their dreams—the quit Isles.

If you ever feel a strong urge to quit, I hope you can remember this post and the advice I will share with you.

Accept your situation. It’s not over just yet, and all you’ve gone through up to this point were necessary. You have to make all those mistakes and run into countless obstacles.

How else would you learn and grow?

Once you accept your current situation, start exploring new ideas and angles. Maybe write what has worked thus far and what seems useless.

Maybe think of your 80/20 rule. What is the 20 percent of what you do that has given you the 80 percent results? And vice versa. Then do more of what works and less of what doesn’t.

Continue exploring, planning, and executing.

Which all leads to testing your concepts and then getting feedback on them. I know it can be challenging, but it’s called growth and well worth it once you accomplish your goals.

Then finally, as you begin to see some results, it will boost your confidence. That confidence will help carry you through this cycle that will repeat over and over regardless of your success.

I know drawing is hard, and we won’t become professionals overnight; however, taking the valuable lessons shared in this post and continuing to persist in your art dreams will go a long way.

Before you tackle your hard drawing tasks, here are my final words for today.

Conclusion

The rapid emotional ups and downs and being stuck “in the belly of disappointment” is just noise. Ignore it. The negative emotions we experience are normal and can be controlled through understanding it’s all part of the process.

Art is a beautiful expression of our inward thoughts and emotions. And what you learned today from “The Dip” and Belly of Disappointment” can apply to all areas of your life. 

Stay focused on your long-term vision. Help spread this post by sharing it and go tackle that hardest thing to draw you’ve dreaded to face.

As your stomach growls, you can’t help but notice the kitchen whiff. Your smell senses are stronger than usual, and all those amazing aromas combined are driving your hormones mad for food.

Rather than awkwardly waiting and not feeling so good, you decide to do something productive.

Something fun. And it only takes a napkin and a pen. As the French call it, “serviette.”

So, what can you do with just a pen and a few napkins? Let’s find out.

3 Napkin Drawings done with Pen and Prismacolor

The Power of Napkin Drawings

Let’s start by answering the obvious question in mind. What are napkin drawings? You might ask.

The short answer: Drawings made on a napkin rather than paper or any other medium.

Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned artist, it’s an opportunity to free yourself from feeling stressed about commitment. It’s so easy to tare that napkin apart, trash it, and begin all over.

Being calm and at the moment. Right here and in the now. No stress. Just enjoying whatever your attention is fixed upon. In this case, a doodle on a napkin.

Let’s take a moment and talk about the importance of doodles and why napkins and doodles are secretly best friends. 

Napkin Art Doodling

Creative flow. You might have trouble believing this, but simply placing your pen on a napkin, paper, or any surface, for that matter, can help you get your creative juices flowing.

As Nike famously says, “Just Do It.”

Returning to my point, specifically using a napkin drawing as an example, doodling on a napkin feels liberating and helps you loosen up mentally while warming up your hand-eye coordination muscles.

As Bob Ross famously said repeatedly, “There are no mistakes, just happy accidents.”

I am sure it can be hard to digest those words when you’re working on a drawing or a painting that has been carefully planned and executed for many days, weeks, or even months.

But, on the contrary, it’s quite easy drawing a parallel to what Bob said with napkin art. I mean, seriously, how can you feel stressed over a doodle on a napkin?

Have no expectations, nor be committed to your doodles. You can always start over.

See them for what they are, doodles on napkin surfaces that you generally use to wipe your mouth. Or your behind in the case of another toilet paper crisis…

Would you look at that? I completely doodled off track with my words for a moment. Pun intended.

So, speaking of napkin sketches, see them as a way of getting into your drawing. Now, what if your doodle napkin drawings turn into a cool concept? Keep reading, and let’s find out. 

Catching Napkin Art Concepts

You almost wish you had captured that exceptional sketch on high-quality paper rather than a napkin.

It happens. You shouldn’t have any regrets.

Think about it for a moment. If you set apart some time in your day to sit and draw one of your finest pieces, the result would most likely be a stiff drawing. Usually not what you initially had in mind.

On the flip side, you can take your rough but potentially cool concept captured through your napkin sketch and transfer that piece of the design onto a piece of paper of your choice.

You might have to repeat the process of transferring it to multiple sheets of paper before being satisfied. But at least your rough concepts have been captured on your napkin drawings.

Hopefully, by now, you can see napkins as a (cheap) drawing surface ready to be used for your quick sketches.

That being the case, I’ll share some of my drawings to help inspire creativity in you.

True story. I made these sketches years ago while working at a pizza store—If I wasn’t on deliveries, I was busy with various tasks such as; washing dishes, stocking, and serving customers at the front counter.

When I had a short downtime, I would grab a napkin and a pen and sketch something; thus, the napkin drawings below were born.

They are very rough and of low quality. But I still drew something instead of waiting in the void.

They might be an inspiration to you. Enjoy the creative juices below.

9 Napkin Drawings Ideas For Your Inspiration

Victorian Era

One of my favorite eras to reference for design is the Victorian period.

Especially Art Nouveau in European architecture—one, in particular, I personally favor is French designs in France.

Unlike our modern world, where most things resemble a box, past generations, such as the Victorian century, cared for solid and pleasing designs.

You can spot strong silhouette shapes just about everywhere.

If it helps, search for image ideas online before starting your napkin drawings.

The second example is a more organic sketching approach.

Victorian Mansion within a Forest

Organic sketches are many times easier than man-made surfaces such as architecture or, worse, vehicle designs.

Back on the subject. Drawing trees come in many shapes, types, and sizes. Which makes sketching them much more forgiving.

Below is an example of a Victorian mansion with a pathway surrounded by trees, branches, and roots on the ground.

Not a very creative sketch, but at least the idea is captured.

Sometimes having a different perspective in life can help improve your viewpoint. The same can be said about your sketch. How about a top-view shot like my example below?

Bird’s Eye View Perspective Shot

My example is based on the Notre-Dame de Paris. I tried to create my own version of Paris in the 1500s.

Not a great execution, but drawing it with a million distractions on the job, I think I did okay capturing something.

It’s basically a one-point perspective creating the illusion of looking down from a bird’s eye view.

If you’re in the mood for character design sketches like my next example, perhaps Mr. Napkin can come in handy.

Lead Character in Battle Scene

If perspective scares you and you prefer to do a more relaxed sketch, then perhaps a character drawing would suit you.

A napkin sketch of a character of your choice with a story works well.

My (terrible) example is a leader in battle surrounded by his troops. That’s it for the story. Don’t laugh.

Maybe a combination of the organic and hard surfaces mixed like the below image.

Castle by Lake and Forest

How about a castle (hard surface) surrounded by water and forest (soft, organic surface)?

Combining the hard and soft, organic and hard surfaces creates a beautiful juxtaposition. Unlike my sketch.

Feeling dirty from all those unattractive sketches? How about taking a bath in an ancient Roman bathhouse?

Ancient Roman Bathhouse

This napkin sketch is simple and self-explanatory—a bathhouse in the open square.

Get butt-naked and wash away. Chlorine anybody? Oh, wait, that wasn’t discovered back in those times.

Talk about irony when taking a bath in that “clean” bathhouse.

After that bath, fast forward several centuries to a European water town.

Fantasy Town Surrounded by Water

My napkin drawings all seem to have something in common. They are quite rough looking.

This sketch has the viewpoint of standing on a fishing dock in a water town. And yes, Lord of the Rings copied my sketch clearly. Wink Wink.

I deeply hope you got my joke.

Speaking of jokes, how about flying over a 1600th-century Fantasy English City?

1600th Century England

Your viewpoint is from a rooftop overlooking the booming city, buzzing with life, sounds, and interesting smells.

Why don’t we go down from that rooftop onto the safe ground? Final destination.

Medieval Street with Marketplace

My sketch is rough, but the idea or feeling has definitely been captured. I like the mixed buildings squashed with merchants selling their goods.

Large, hand-made cobblestones placed on the ground with sewage lines help to guide your eye into the picture.

And lead you right to the conclusion road.

Conclusion

Next time you grab a napkin, remember it can be used for more than just wiping your mouth and behind.

Some of your best sketches can be recorded on a napkin. Those napkin drawings can turn into bigger, better sketches—may be iconic, world-class designs one day.

How was that for rough writing, I mean rough napkin drawings? Let me know your thoughts by commenting below.

If you have read up to this point, congrats to you, and I hope I have inspired you to get creative with napkin sketches.

Follow me on Instagram and subscribe to my YouTube channel. You will inspire me to keep publishing.

Lastly, don’t forget to share this post with your friends. It helps.

Until next time, keep up the good work!

Ambies are the best. A popular belief among the left-hand community is that some of the most incredible minds influencing our world for the better were predominantly left-handed.

In this post, I will challenge both sides and (hopefully) bring both ends together—make peace.

Historical Giants

Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Mozart have one rare thing in common. Sorry left-hand community, it’s not what you think. 

Ambidextrous Drawing Exercise

What is Ambidexterity

Ambidexterity means performing tasks equally using your right hand and left hand. I can’t say for sure if anyone is 100 percent ambidextrous; however, the small number of ambidextrous people most likely have a dominant hand but a highly trained, non-dominant hand. Thus, they seem like they have equally usable hands for all tasks.

Ambidexterity is thought to be developed through practice and training, especially in activities that require fine motor skills, such as playing musical instruments, sports, and arts.

There are advantages to being ambidextrous, such as increased flexibility and adaptability in various situations where hand dexterity is required. However, for most people, one hand remains dominant while the other serves as a supporting role.

How to Become Ambidextrous

Ambidexterity Bootcamp. You can begin by putting yourself through basic daily tasks. Next time brushing your teeth, try brushing with your non-dominant hand.

The awkward feeling is bizarre at first. That’s your brain using the non-dominate brain hemisphere.

Blood rushes to the dormant parts of your brain, delivering oxygen and glucose. All that leads to new neurological pathways begin to electrify and develop new pathways—connections in your brain.

If you continue your basic ambidexterity exercises such as brushing, washing dishes, using your phone, you will start to feel your brain is releasing good-feeling chemicals. Rewarding signals.

It stimulates your brain to keep learning and adapting to new challenges.

This simple act of using your non-dominant hand can have a profound impact on your brain’s plasticity and cognitive function over time.

So, next time you feel like breaking out of your routine or pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, try switching things up with some basic ambidexterity exercises.

You might be surprised at how much it can benefit your brain and overall well-being.

Benefits of Ambidexterity

Embracing the use of your non-dominant hand can unlock a myriad of benefits beyond simply challenging yourself physically.

Studies suggest incorporating tasks such as writing, brushing teeth, or eating with your non-dominant hand can enhance cognitive abilities and stimulate brain function.

This cross-brain training increases neural connections and improves overall dexterity and coordination, promoting holistic brain development.

Moreover, using your non-dominant hand is an excellent way to foster creativity and enhance problem-solving skills.

By forcing your brain to adapt to unfamiliar movements, you encourage the development of new neural pathways, which can inspire innovative thinking and fresh perspectives when approaching tasks at work or in daily life.

Additionally, this practice nurtures patience and perseverance as you navigate the initial challenges of coordinating movements with an unaccustomed hand.

Challenging yourself to use your non-dominant hand can be fun and rewarding.

It may start with simple tasks like brushing your teeth or stirring a pot with your opposite hand. Still, over time, you can progressively incorporate more complex activities such as writing, drawing, or even playing sports with your non-dominant hand.

The gradual improvement you’ll experience in these tasks will not only boost your confidence but also expand the capacity of your brain to learn and adapt to new skills.

Furthermore, this practice can lead to greater ambidexterity, benefiting various aspects of life. Using both hands effectively increases versatility and flexibility in daily tasks and navigating challenges.

It enhances overall motor skills and fine-tunes muscle control on both sides of the body.

Integrating activities that involve using your non-dominant hand into your routine can have long-lasting benefits for cognitive development, creativity enhancement, problem-solving abilities, and overall mental agility.

How to train non-dominant hand:

To kickstart this journey, start with simple tasks like doodling or writing short notes with your non-dominant hand. This deliberate practice may initially feel clumsy, but consistency is critical to rewiring your brain and improving dexterity.

Additionally, incorporating activities that require fine motor skills, such as painting or playing a musical instrument, can further challenge and strengthen your non-dominant hand.

Embracing ambidexterity can lead to improved coordination and balance between both brain hemispheres.

So, why not embark on this fascinating journey of self-discovery and unlock the full potential of both hands? Start small and watch your non-dominant hand become more skilled and adept at various tasks.

Non-dominant hand exercises:

The power of simple exercises should not be underestimated when it comes to building strength and dexterity in your non-dominant hand.

One effective exercise involves using your non-dominant hand for daily tasks such as washing dishes or stirring a pot. This seemingly small change can significantly boost coordination and motor skills over time.

Another powerful technique is to incorporate finger exercises into your routine. Try learning a new instrument or doing activities like knitting that require intricate finger movements.

This challenges your non-dominant hand and stimulates neural pathways in the brain, fostering ambidexterity.

Lastly, consider engaging in activities that involve tactile sensitivity and precision, such as painting or playing card games that require fine motor skills.

These exercises offer a unique way to enhance the capabilities of your non-dominant hand while tapping into hidden potentials you never knew existed.

Regularly practicing these exercises can unlock a whole new level of ambidextrous skill and cognitive flexibility.

Drawing with the non-dominant hand:

Have you ever tried drawing with your non-dominant hand? The results can be surprising and revealing.

It’s a challenge that pushes you out of your comfort zone, forcing you to rely on unfamiliar muscles and coordination.

However, the imperfections and unique style of using our non-dominant hand can lead to unexpected creativity and freedom in our artwork.

Drawing with your non-dominant hand can also be a form of mindfulness practice. It forces you to slow down, pay attention to each movement, and focus on the present moment.

This heightened awareness can bring a sense of calm and clarity to your mind as you engage in this simple yet challenging task.

Embracing the awkwardness of drawing with your non-dominant hand can help you break free from perfectionism and embrace the beauty of imperfection in your art.

Conclusion

Whether you are right-handed or left-handed, you can always train your non-dominate hand to perform tasks equally—if not greater—than your dominate hand.

You will benefit from activating the dormant hemisphere of your brain and thus becoming a more well-rounded individual.

Exercises to improve your non-dominant hand dexterity include practicing writing, using utensils, and performing simple tasks like buttoning a shirt or tying shoelaces.

With consistent practice and patience, you will be amazed at your progress in developing ambidexterity.

Your Art Skills Like The Great Renaissance Artists

Draw like Michelangelo. Could you even begin to imagine such a vast accomplishment? Drawing at the same level as one of history’s all-time greats. 

I know this sounds far-fetched, but bear with me. Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael were like you once, starting from scratch. Zero skills. Not knowing anything about picture making, drawing, and the magic of illustrating. 

Now, to be fair, the renaissance fathers worked tirelessly to achieve such timeless masterpieces. It wouldn’t be honest (and truthful) to give you false hope here. 

This lengthy article will not do you wonders simply by reading it. However, I believe you will be on your way to a great path by taking the shared notes here and combining them with daily commitment and consistency (even if it’s just 15 – 20 minutes a day). 

Of course, this doesn’t mean you will have timeless pieces by tomorrow. But it means you are taking the proper small steps. 

And over time, with momentum and experience building up, you can decide for yourself how badly you want to achieve your illustrator goals. 

7 Drawing For Beginners Full Video Presentation

The Cost of Achieving Your Artistic Dreams

Dream big. Expect to pay big. I wish to shock you for a moment back to the reality of what it means to achieve big goals and dreams. 

It will require two essential elements that most folks—unfortunately—will never pay the price. 

I am not talking about your money but the level of commitment and consistency you bring to the table. 

Take Michelangelo, for instance. He was known to sleep about 1.5 hours in a 24-hour period. I can’t even begin to imagine the massive anxiety, depression, and loneliness he experienced. All the while he was working without ceasing. 

“If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn’t seem so wonderful at all.” –Michelangelo Buonarroti

I believe you can reach that level in any walk of life—provided you are willing to sacrifice so much of your precious, short life. 

“But that’s too much for me,” you might think. “That’s an insane way to live.” And that’s okay. Your dream might be much smaller and more digestible and not so immense.

I simply wanted to expand your mind to the possibilities if that’s how far you wish to reach. 

Drawing for Beginners Flexible Goals

Having flexible goals is normal and healthy. Perfect for beginners and a great habit for advanced artists. The size of your goal can change over time as you begin to experiment with your drawings.

Now, pay attention to what I am about to say.

In order for you to advance your drawing skills, you cannot be flimsy and flexible about staying committed and consistent—drawing one day, taking a few off. I can’t stress this enough.

This is important to learn.

Exercising your commitment and consistent habits are far more important than learning anything here. I promise that if you work on building these foundational habits, it will not only help you learn how to draw many folds better, but you can also achieve so much more in all walks of life.

Now that I have warmed you up, let’s dive into what was promised—the 7 powerful drawing for beginners to advanced tips.

Enjoy.

Learn To Draw by Sketching Every Day—Duh!

Dream trap. Not much different from a mouse trap is the perfection trap. Instead of the mouse suffocating to death, you will stifle your dreams by chasing perfection.

Take it from me. It’s not a healthy approach to life. Quantity will get you light years farther than someone stuck on making that “perfect” anything.

It’s been proven. If you take a person, ask them to focus on creating the best drawing possible. I am talking about that perfect piece. And on the contrary, someone else asked to produce a set of quantity pieces.

You will find, over time, that more quality pieces come out of the quantity-focused person.

While the quality-focused person is still “figuring their drawing techniques out,” little do they know, they are walking into their dream prison. No pun intended.

Don’t get caught in that giant dream killer (perfection) spider web as Frodo did. Excuse the nerdy Lord of the Rings reference.

You might think, “Well, I wish to push some of my work as close to perfection as possible.” That’s fine, provided you focus on producing quantity first, then selecting from that batch what is worth pushing to a more refined stage.

You will also begin to feel more confident due to the volume of work you produce—regardless of the quality at first. 

This is good news. Loosen up and allow yourself to make plenty of mistakes.

One of my art teachers back in college once said, “Let all the bad drawings come out of you.” Boy, do I still have plenty coming out of my system.

Remembering this will help you stay encouraged, fueled, and optimistic. You begin to shed one lousy drawing at a time and get closer to your ultimate artistic goal. Like a pro, baby!

Begin a Busy Bee

The harsh truth in life we all face. Being busy all the time and overcoming those bad habits that orbit your daily world will be challenging.

You must commit time and attention for anything to germinate in your life. And I mean daily. This isn’t about blocking five hours a day and going haywire.

If you have that time gap freedom, I highly doubt you would dedicate it without first building up mental stamina and momentum. No different than a beginner bodybuilder trying to train for five hours daily.

That’s too much at the beginning of your journey.

Before you panic, let me propose something much more digestible and doable.

The Magical 20 Minutes of Dedication

All you need is 15 – 20 minutes of concentrated training. And make sure it’s something you repeat day in, day out.

Don’t go insane trying to work seven hours one day and mentally burn yourself for the next.  You will have no drive for a 20-minute session in the upcoming days. It’s best you keep the short-duration momentum chugging.

If you do as I suggest, you will notice that your desire to increase the session time to 30 minutes (and beyond) daily will naturally appeal to you.

Word of caution. Before you get excited, understand that sometimes life will happen to you, and that momentum will break.

If that’s the case, I suggest you get back to stage one and start at 15 – 20 minutes again.

Remember, short daily durations of concentrated work will do wonders compared to one extensive weekly session. 

Avoid Smudging Like the Rat Plague

Smudging is annoying. Unless you intentionally wish to smear, then that’s a different story.

Smearing ruins your artwork and leaves your hand covered in graphite and other pencil substances. There is a simple trick to avoid it.

If you are a right-handed artist, always start your drawings from the top left of your paper and work towards the bottom right.

The opposite is true if you are a south-paw, left-handed person. Work from top-right to bottom-left.

Pro Tip: If you must go over sections already covered, say shading; for example, simply place a piece of paper under your drawing hand. This will help avoid ugly smudges.

Keep it clean before you get mean. 

Drawing from Life—Whether Beginner or Jedi Level

The invention of the internet has opened many doors and connected our world, making it a small place. You can access information past generations couldn’t even dream of by pushing a few buttons. More like a button at this point.

And what exactly does this have to do with drawing from life?

Hold on, cowboy (or cowgirl). I’ll get to that part.

Drawing from life is hard—but it’s the best training you can give yourself. Like everything else, there is always an upside and a downside.

You might say, “Why not just use images or pause videos and draw from these readily available resources.” The problem is that your computer, tablet, and phone screen is a flat two-dimensional surface.

The world you see around you functions within three dimensions. So, when drawing from life, you observe the world from a 3D standpoint.

You will learn to see how shapes wrap-around volumes. It’s a more complex task because you don’t have a photo that flattens objects into a 2D surface.

However, your artwork will speak “volumes” in the long run. But I must warn you; there are side effects to stepping into the real world.

You will be bombarded by fresh air, and by-passers will surround you like dragonflies attracted to bug zappers. This approach will force you to get comfortable with your public surrounding and draw in all conditions, regardless of sitting or standing. 

Lessons you will pick up from life drawing and observing your scenery:

1. You will begin to see how light and shadow work
2. Your rendering skills will increase
3. Help break down complex objects such as a flower and a tree canopy into simple shapes
4. Seeing actual scale surrounding us—architects, mountains, skyscrapers, bugs, etc
5. Weather conditions and smells all add to your artistic repertoire. When you create an illustration, say a castle on top of a mountain, your experience from drawing from life in cold conditions will help remind you of that encounter. The cold, wet, bitter frostbite experience will pour into your drawing and painting. Giving it a more believable, grounded look and feel
6. This goes for painting as well. Life observation is the key

You can also set up your homemade still-life setup. Using either natural sunlight or artificial interior light bulbs. If light bulbs are your choice, I would suggest 2700 Kelvin for warm light and 5000 Kelvin for cool light.

Since I have encouraged you to get out there with your sketchbook, let me tell you about another age-old tip. Oh, even the masters practiced this one. Keep reading.

Copy Masterpieces Using Your Sketchbook

Secrets of the old masters. Even Michelangelo practiced this forgotten gem.

If you were fortunate enough to get educated in France or Italy. Maybe you saved money or had parents who could afford your education abroad. Then one of the secrets of these schools could be found here, at home.

You see, masters were created by copying previous masters. Whether they were from past generations or current contemporary artists. Contemporary is a fancy way of mentioning current living artists.

One great example was Michelangelo copying Leonardo Da Vinci’s work—regardless of his hatred for Da Vinci. Michelangelo couldn’t resist but study such a fine master.

Now that some history lesson has been discussed, let me explain how you can benefit from this without spending money.

Of course, the highest quality of art you can observe would be the original piece. But flying to France for a museum visit is impractical so you can copy a Sergeant painting.

I have a much cheaper alternative for you. I am talking about creating your home museum.

Before I continue, I want to mention that if you live near a museum hosting masterpieces you gravitate toward, then stop by and spend a few hours drawing.

This applies to drawing for beginners as well. We all need to start at some point.

Don’t forget to pack some food and perhaps grab a coffee if you’re a coffee lover like me.

Another alternative exists if you don’t have that option or are not interested in leaving your home. One that I put to practice.

Here it goes, drum rolls, please. It’s easy and fun. What you want to do is find high-quality images of artwork online. I recommend masterpieces, but you can still add images from artists’ work you admire.

My first recommendation is a professional printing service. Not Staples or any other business printing places, for that matter.

I am talking about your local college print shop.

The problem with Staples is their focus on darker-duller printing. I suppose it makes sense when you’re printing business material. Just a wild guess. Who knows.

Back to college print shops.

They focus on printing for graphic students and charge less than retail stores. Call your local college(s) and ask about their print shop. Ask if they have public access to their printing services. 

The quality of their paper is phenomenal, and they print on demand, which means direct printing instead of waiting at least 24 hours or more.

You can also print from home if you can access an excellent printer. Still not as great as the above option, but better than nothing if you’re on a super-tight budget.

After you have printed your stalk of gold nuggets, cut out the white edges of each image, then tape it to your wall.

You can always set all the images on the ground and organize them before taping. That way, you can see what it will look like once on your wall.

I mentioned this because you might have a list of images, and you can’t exactly see what they will look like posted next to one another. Maybe even run out of wall space before you can finish taping all your goodies.

Another recommendation is to tape the images roughly at your height level. I say this because you will spend time standing and staring at the pictures while measuring and copying as you would at a museum.

So if the images are too low or too high, it can place stress on your neck after hours of observation.

My last recommendation here is to stand rather than sit. Let me explain.

I avoided this skill for years, thinking I could get away by always finding comfortable conditions before beginning my drawing sessions.

Think about it. when Leonardo was painting the Last Supper and was searching for references for Jesus’ twelve apostles, including Judas Iscariot sitting with Jesus, do you think Da Vinci simply Googled some terms or looked through a swipe file of photos?

Of course not. He took his hand-made papers and drawing tools and went to local marketplaces—locations buzzing with life.

Da Vinci wasn’t exactly grocery shopping.

He would stand and draw from life. And when I say life, I mean at the moment. Not exactly telling by-passers to “hold that pose, please.”

Da Vinci would observe and try to keep that reference in mind as he quickly recorded the drawing on his precious paper.

I say precious because it wasn’t easy to buy paper for the price of dirt as we do today.

Imagine the confidence you will gain with this skill. Having the ability to draw anywhere, any time. In your face Tony Robbins.

From the edge of a cliff (not recommended) to busy streets looking over beautiful architects, exciting and interesting people, and your very own home museum. 

Speaking of your home museum, let’s talk about what you will do with those awesome (or hideous) sketches you produce.

Become a Member of the Wall

Avoid social media posting. At least, at first. Tape your artwork on your wall instead. Let me explain the difference.

When you focus on posting on social media, it creates an addiction pattern in your brain—that craving for likes and comments pouring in. This opposing driving force restructures your mind to think, “What’s my next post, and how soon can I complete it.” Thus creating an artificial fix in your brain. 

You might argue that posting creates a community-like vibe of ideas bouncing and everyone benefiting as artists. That is true.

However, if you have been grounded for some time and have been actively drawing WITHOUT showing it to anybody, you might be okay with starting your social media postings.

Your focus improves when social media is eliminated.

Drawing for beginners pro tip: Stay away from posting on social media until you get good at regularly drawing for some time, regardless of your work’s quality.

Printer Paper Rocks

I would suggest an alternative, similar to your home museum. I recommend you purchase a set of printer paper. They usually come in 500 sheets, and the quality is quite suitable for sketching.

Nice and inexpensive, but not as cheap as drawing on napkins.

There is no pressure or guilt every time a drawing goes wrong. This is great for drawing for beginners.

I sometimes start a basic drawing, then place a new sheet of printer paper on top, flip the page to help see the image below and draw a more refined picture.

Then continue this process until I feel satisfied.

Most of my drawings end up in the famous bin with zero guilt—no sense of cost considering the low price I paid per printer sheet.

My Current Favorite Pencil

As for pencils, I use PaperMate BREAK-RESISTANT LEAD HB2. This particular one is my favorite of all the expensive and non-expensive graphite pencils I have used.

It has a bit chalky grip when sketching, and it’s not slippery like most pencils. I don’t know about you, but slipper pencils remind me of tablet surfaces and slippery pens–very annoying. 

I encourage you to keep a sketchbook with you and sketch in that as well. My favorite sketchbook is by Stillman & Birn. They make the finest sketchbooks that you can buy in the market.

The only thing that would beat that would be to fly to Italy and find a sketchbook shop where they make you hand-made sketchbooks. This is a dying practice, unfortunately.

The best recommendation is to sketch on printer paper and keep your sketchbook around.

At least, that’s how I do it. This approach might work for you, too.

Then you can take those sketches and tape them around your room.

I understand you might not like your work, but post them anyway. This will create a sense of self-motivation. “Ah, look at all this work I have produced” will run through your mind whenever you feel down and discouraged. 

Avoid posting other artists’ work on your wall unless it’s part of your potential museum studies. This could cause a negative impact. While you are on your lonely-journey-to-artistic-mastery.

Set Up Your Work Environment Correctly

Studio Setup. Think of it for a moment. When you picture your couch and your television, what comes to mind? Relaxing, laziness, kicking back, couch potato, Netflix, and comfort food. Maybe more comes to mind, but you get what I mean.

This is the case because of the conditions we have created with our environment setup.

When you visit your local public library, your immediate thoughts would be quietness, study, and focus oriented.

A place to be productive.

Once again, this is a direct consequence of the environment that has been intentionally or unintentionally set up.

The same applies to your art environment. And I am not talking about spending a fortune setting up a studio with natural Northview lighting, a section dedicated to oil painting, and another to props and manikins.

Although you might wish for such a rich studio in time, we must start at an affordable and reasonable place.

Even if you could afford such a luxurious studio, I think it would be a waste of money, considering you haven’t figured yourself out as an artist.

What you like and don’t like. What appeals to your taste and what you cannot stand?

Here is my personal setup at home.

I want to help you save money, so let’s consider affordability.

Think Ikea, Walmart, and Amazon.

I purchased my lightweight tables at Ikea and the lamps at Canadian Tire (a local superstore in Canada, but I believe Walmart is equivalent in America). 

Affordable Tools List

I have access to a good amount of tools that I have accumulated over time. Nevertheless, I usually revert back to good old pencil and printer paper. 

1. The printer paper is a no-brainer. Anywhere that sells printer paper.
2. The pencils are PaperMate BREAK-RESISTANT LEAD HB2.

You are welcome to use whichever pencil you gravitate toward. But if you want something affordable with a chalk-like grip, perhaps my recommended pencil would suit your taste.

Conclusion To My First Post

I am new to blogging, and this is my first piece of content. But don’t underestimate the concentrated value you are receiving.

My goal is to challenge you and shock your belief system today. Some of these principles are universal—I believe you can apply them in any walk of life and be able to match your success to the degree of effort you wish to apply. 

So much more to say and so little time. I suppose you will have to come back when I publish more content

In all honesty, if you genuinely enjoyed my post, I would appreciate it if you could drop me a comment. 

I post content on my youtube.com/@artbirch channel as well. If you enjoy my work, consider subscribing. You will motivate me to produce more and better content for you, my audience.

And don’t forget to share my content with your friends using the share buttons below.

I am working to expose my knowledge and artwork on various social sites such as Instagram @artbirchposts. I encourage you to follow the ones that work for you.