Drawing Friends

Drawing Friends!

Some of you might be surprised about today's title. You might be thinking "Wow! This can't be true because Veronica doesn't have friends!" Well think again bucko! I have at least 1(one) friend! 

What's difficult about drawing friends is that you know how that person looks from a three dimensional point of view. You know all of their features and little things. Then you draw them and realize that the picture doesn't do ANY justice for what they actually look like. That is what exactly what happened when I drew Alivia Phok (said like poke) from KM. But don't fret! We all have these moments when drawing! Most people draw, erase, draw some more, erase, then get angry. Sometimes people get restless and frustrated. Then they say something like "I hate drawing anyways. I had no talent to begin with." This is normal. People usually abandon art because of this. Edwards says      
"[People] often blame the drawing for the causing the hurt, rather than blaming the careless critic.[Edwards 64]". I felt like this midway during this drawing. It's important to remember that drawing needs practice and patience. It may not turn out great but there is always room for improvement.

So what you need is 

• a picture of said friend
• pencil 
• paper 
• Kleenexes in case you loose all hope 
• maybe not so much this one, I have faith in you :)

So if you've been keeping up with what I do, we start with an oval/ellipse and two guide lines. 

 Sketch out little details such as eyes, nose, mouth. You should kinda sketch out the face. Side note! Keep in mind that lighting can alter your sight. Alivia has a lot of shadows near her eye making her face look closer to her eyes. This is very common and is called "missing skulls" Edwards says "The top half of the head apparently is considered less important than the features, and therefore is perceived as smaller" I have done this before with my first picture I used for my blog. I think it improved my drawing by making it look more realistic and human-like. Beware of this and notice these before you make your final picture. I decided to add hair too so she doesn't look exactly like an egg. 

Next you should add some shading areas. It helps when you actually do the shading and know what you're doing. I like doing it because it simplifies what a human can look like.
Next I added shading around the T-zone. The nose is the center of the face and I like to work around it. I recommend looking at the picture or look at your friend with loving eyes and draw the little details. Alivia has little details like no lines under her eyes. It's important to capture all the little things so it looks like your friend.

My phone ran out of storage mid way so I wasn't able to take pictures but Julia saved me by taking a screenshot of my picture via snapchat. Feel free to add her @julia-monkey. But i started working around the face and I noticed that her face looks a little off but I was too deep in the drawing that i couldn't do anything about it. The darker areas should be above the eyebrows, under the cheekbones, and under the mouth. She is also looking to the side a bit to there would be more shading. Contrast is also important because you see where the face is compared to the hair and neck. From the side of the neck to the furthest point of her cheek bones should be pretty dark and get slightly darker.

Hair is easy when its straight and you should just see the dark and light spots would be. Still make it darker than the face or else it'll look blended in.


Thanks for reading and have fun drawing!

Question: Would you give a framed drawing of your friend drawn by you? 

Tell me in the comments below!


Edwards, Betty. Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain: A Course in Enhancing Creativity and Artistic Confidence. Los Angeles: J.P. Tarcher, 1979. Print.