I can't draw a straight line – the struggle is real.
It turns out, I can’t draw a straight line. I came to this realization while trying to draw a house in procreate. I know, I know, you can “make” straight lines in procreate by not lifting up your apple pencil at the end of the brush stroke. But I wanted my lines to be more natural - straight but not too straight. Is that too much to aim for? Well, maybe for me!
Did I mention I have an underlying tremor in my hands? It’s not always bothersome, but that’s the term my doctor decided upon after ruling out anything serious. And this can give my lines a wobbliness I hate. So even when I’m using guides to draw, I was finding my lines too wobbly.
And on top of that, I was trying to give this house gables and windows and doors and details that were all, well, straight-ish lines. This house became my obsession and I was drawing and redrawing it over and over. And even once I did achieve the perfect, “casual” lines I imagined, this house did not feel like a house I would draw.
I made a few key mistakes with this house challenge:
I should have taken a step back, given myself a break, worked on something else for a bit, and come back to it with a fresh set of eyes and a calmer attitude.
I was unable to accept that my first attempts at imperfectly perfect lines were likely good enough. Instead I wasted a lot of time going around in circles.
I got so caught up in trying to draw all the lines of a realistic house that I lost sight of my own style.
Honestly, I’m not surprised by points 1 and 2; I’m a human work-in-progress so I’m sure I’ll be stuck in an obsessive, perfectionist loop again in the future! 🙃
I was most surprised by the third oversight, because it’s not that often that I move far from my style, which is so ingrained in me. But, because I have a clear set of style guidelines for myself, when I finally stepped back I was able to see what wasn’t working for me in the house illustration right away.
My personal set of style rules aren’t to limit myself, but rather they help me stay true to myself.
My style guidelines include:
No shading
Elements are simplistic rather than technical
Animals are typically in profile
Drawn with a loose hand
Play with contrast - some items that are large may appear small in relation to something small that may appear large. ie a house may be smaller that a tulip.
When it came to my house illustration, I was getting too technical. It had to represent and feel like a house, but not be a realistic house. I went for a looser ink brush, and ditched the windows and little details, and accepted that my lines are a little wobbly. So for now, it’s looking like this:
These style rules apply to my rug designs and also my pattern illustrations. On Wednesday, I’ll be sending you a workbook to help you think about and hone in on your own style. Of course, developing your style requires time and involves creating a substantial amount of work, but this guide might help you realize some creative choices you continually make or don’t make. Elements you like in work you see, or don’t like.
Then you can explore punching or hooking with an eye toward those preferences and see what develops.
Until then, be kind, be curious and make things.
