Hey All, It's Been A While! I've Been Riding The Roller Coaster Of Life While I've Been Away. It's Hard

Theme 4 on Friendship is complete! 😊 I like how this piece has a subliminal yin-yang quality to it; it was unintentional, but it works. 🔹⠀ Feel free to interpret this piece however you like. I have no idea what these two friends were laughing about, but I’d love to hear your take on it. Also, I did color the sky a light blue, but I think it got washed out in this photo… That’s something I’ll keep in mind for next time. I hope you enjoy! There’s more coming~

It’s been a tumultuous year so far to say the least, and I think we could all use the vibes Jewelia here is emanating right now. If you’ve been following me for a while, you may recognize this art format as my 100 Themes Challenge (See #Crystal_100TC if you’d like to see more related works). This piece took me the longest time to complete so far (at least 7 hours alone on the zentangle-like patterns) though here it is in all it’s glory. I finished it a while back, and I wish I’d shared it sooner ‘cause now I’m starting to see all my mistakes lol. Anyways, there’s no time like the present! Stay safe and sane~ ✌🏼⁠⠀ P.S. See my Mandala Drawing story while you can for the WIP pics. I may take it down next week. 👀⁠⠀ 🔹 ⁠ ⁠⠀ #art #arts #DailyArt #ArtoftheDay #draw #drawing #doodle #sketch #dailysketch #sketchbook #illustrator #artwork #mandala #originalcharacter #characterdesign #pencil #pencildrawing #pencilsketch #instaart #traditionalart #digitalart #originalartwork #instaartist #instadraw #artistsoninstagram #artistsofinstagram #Crystal_100challenge #artist #CrystalCurie https://www.instagram.com/p/CKQNcApjn8P/?igshid=1czb4e0fnj5tt

Hello fellow bloggers of Tumblr! Today, I've (obviously) made myself this Tumblr page, and revived my once dead Blogspot (or Blogger) page. I will only be posting artwork of mine on these blogs, and I'm also on Instagram, posting pics of my art and my life. If you wish to follow me on these 3 platfroms, I am Crystal_the_CC. See ya on the flip side! 😁

Reblogging because this is really good advice!

Hi Jenny, I was curious and looking for advice. I graduated from LCAD just last year, but I'm still having a lot of trouble achieving a more natural look to my digital art and linework. (I took Vargo's digital painting class, but my linework usually looks like stairsteps instead of smooth). Your work is always very lovely, smooth, and natural looking, is it okay if I ask what you do to achieve it? Or what program/tablet do you prefer to use?

Hi there, thanks for the kind words! First off I want to make a disclaimer for everyone here at the top: these are my own thoughts and opinions based on how I personally work & perceive my work. This advice is not for everyone, if it’s not for you that’s totally cool, everyone has their own path!As for your question this is a really difficult one to answer. There is no program or brush that helps with what you are trying to achieve. All the drawings I do are done in photoshop on a Wacom Cintiq (sometimes an iPad) and each drawing uses a variety of the Kyle brushes. I understand the frustration of not being taught how to clean digital line work or even to be able to sketch digitally but the best way to think of it is if you are inking on paper and to treat it the same way- difference is there is the safety net of the Cntrl Z hah. I also was never taught how to sketch or draw in any program so I was self taught, even through college. I had to just practice constantly until I was able to achieve the line quality that I was after. 

Here are some great tips I have gotten over the years:

-The line is the essence of what you are drawing, it’s more than just the contour of the form or an identifiable path; it is the flow and movement in which the drawing is given life

-Try not to make mindless lines, every line should have it’s purpose so do it thoughtfully. This means being thoughtful of your silhouettes, straight against curves, so on & so forth.

-Try not to lift your pencil off of the paper so much, if you want to avoid the “hairy line” 

-Be aware if you are using your shoulder/ elbow movement to draw or if you are tensing up & only using your wrist. This breaks fluidity in your body thus also breaking the fluidity of the drawing.

-Be confident in your lines- it shows!

-Less is more

I’m sorry there isn’t a definitive answer for this question but I hope these tips help. In the end it really just took me a lot of practice, self study & self discipline. Don’t give up & just keep practicing! <3

Here’s my #TopNine on Instagram this year! A few of my favorites are here, including my mandala drawing in the middle and the preview of my comic in the upper left (the most liked!). Thank you my friends and the community for your support! I hope to make more great art next year. 😊 🔹 #art #instaart #DailyArt #ArtoftheDay #artwork #originalartwork #creative #draw #drawing #sketch #sketchbook #pen #pencil #inking #digitalart #character #characterdesign #comic #comicart #traditionalart #illustration #digitalpainting #TopNine2018 #BestNine2018 #instaartist #artistsofinstagram #artistsoninstagram #artist #CrystaltheCC https://www.instagram.com/p/BsCaF3Uhhvj/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=j8ntc8uo2kit

here’s a zine i made (the printed copies look great!!) thought i’d share them here, too!

ENJOY SOME TIPS ON COMIC-MAKING!

We're a quarter of the way into the Fall semester and October is just around the corner! 😱 I've been busy, working on a few art projects, but I got in some quick sketches here and there. Hope you enjoy! More artwork to come soon. 😊🍁⠀

I’ve seen many iterations of yin yang characters and I tried making a pair; They turned out to be a sun god and moon goddess. And tbh I didn’t finish the second one because the face looked so good, I was afraid of messing it up. 😅 Enjoy~

Love this

Here’s a Gif of the brush in action so you can see what it looks like:

You can find the brushes here! 💕💕💕

I will also be posting an extra notes pack for $5 that will cover:

-how to add stars and effects easily

-how to adjust your image easily

You will be able to find those notes here!

I was reminded of this Halloween-themed challenge I made for myself 5 years ago and thought I’d attempt it again last minute. I’ll be drawing my OCs in Halloween outfits for (hopefully) the whole month. I would’ve posted this sooner but I’ve been feeling kinda icky lately (prob just the weather affecting me again) and like I said I thought of this last minute. If you use my prompt list, please use the hashtag #crystal_OAC2020 so I can see what you guys make. And feel free to tackle the prompts in any order you like. Enjoy~ 😊🍂🍁 🎃 https://www.instagram.com/p/CF3ZV2cDIbF/?igshid=14kn2a040jk91