Ballgown with Tulle Skirt (A Not-Really-A-Tutorial Tutorial)

A ballgown with a halter-style black bodice and a floor-length, bell shaped skirt. The bodice is patterned with a metallic gold brocade. The gown is divided into three layers. The first one is shades of layered orange, yellow and red tulle under a light layer of black tulle, which the warm colors show through. The second layer is light green, dark green and light blue under a layer of black tulle. The third layer is dark blue, purple and magenta under a layer of black tulle. One of my Pinterest boards is titled “Paperdoll Reference.” It may as well be titled my “Why Can’t I Draw Like That?” board. I’ll pin dresses with interesting coloring, particularly shiny dresses or dresses with great draping, with the intention of using them to study from. Not being the most diligent artist in the world, I’ve been piling up interesting examples and not doing all that much with them. Then the thought came to me, why not make the learning process into a paper doll outfit? (Everything’s better with paperdolls.) Sort of like a tutorial, except I, too, start out with no clue what I’m doing. Let’s learn together!

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Tutorial: Shading and Blending with Prismacolors

Click for larger version (PNG); click for PDF version. Click here for the list of dolls. I draw pretty much everything using Prismacolor pencils, and one thing I’ve intended to do for, well, longer than I might care to admit, is a basic tutorial on how I use them. Now that I’m feeling guilty about having neglected my page for half a year, I’m finally, finally going to show you how I shade my dresses! Let’s get a little music going, that’s crucial. If I get really into drawing I like something I can sing to while I work, but I’m interrupting my work to scan and write the tutorial, so today it’ll be Bound Together, a remix of music from the SNES game Earthbound. (If you want the full following along experience, here’s my favorite track: SnowBound.)

This turned out to be extremely long, so please click “read more” to see the rest!

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