It’s ironic that I work in education but I don’t know how to make an art tutorial, so here’s my sad attempt! Forgive me if it’s useless.
I LOVE drawing hair, it’s always been my favorite, although I’m a bit of a perfectionist and therefore hair is usually the part that takes me the longest when I work on a piece. It involves a lot of experimentation and drawing the same lines over and over until I get the right shape or flow and it requires a lot of patience (at least for me). Is there a right way to draw hair? Of course not! That’s the beauty of it. Every artist is unique and will have their own style, it’s all about trying new techniques to see what works best for you. *blows kiss*
Okay here we go!
I generally have three main steps: a loose sketch, a more refined sketch to build a cleaner design, then the final lineart. I also tend to make about 3 or 4 sketches to find the right hairstyle or flow. (I’m also indecisive as f**k)
Things I think about:
Action, dimension, shape, flow, movement and how it’ll interact with the body or what’s around it
Is there wind? Is the character outside? What are they doing and how would the hair respond to that? Is it pulled behind the ear? Wrapped around the neck? Tied up?
References and inspiration – I always use a reference of some kind just to remind myself what I like or what I want to see, it’s the best tool to keep myself on track. Sometimes I even use my own art just to see what how I’ve done it before and what I liked about it. Don’t be scared of reference! (Example: Alphonse Mucha’s art is a major inspiration, I LOVE his use of line weight, shape and flow)
Using Gladio’s face from a wip I’m currently working on, I tried to draw some of my process out:
(Is it blurry!? Did I screw this up? Oh well, let’s keep going!)
Steps:
Sketch – Loose and messy gesture lines to show the general shape and movement. It’s okay if your sketch looks like a hot mess, it’s supposed to!! I have a hard time staying loose myself, so I’m working on that. Usually my sketches are very dramatic haha.
Refined Sketch – This is where I start to actually define the strands and the general shapes. By using my sketch as a guide, I can then build the design and the more individual strands and how they interact with each other. This can take a while (like it takes me hours). I try to go slower and I’ll end up reworking it a few times before I’m happy. Tip: reverse your canvas! It helps you see if your hair is more or less balanced or if something looks off.
Final Lineart – At this step, I strengthen my lines and erase lines where I want the flow to be more continuous. I also add detail lines and extra strands or flyaway hairs for a more interesting or complex design. The example above is still too messy or simple for what I normally like, but that’s okay. Also, what the heck is up with that messy bun? What am I even doing?
Final points:
Find inspiration and examples of what you like! This can be from other artists, movies, nature – literally anything. References are your best friend.
Experiment and try new things – I’m always trying to push my designs further and learn new skills
Keep your sketches loose and messy! I like to warm up by drawing circles, ovals or like the infinity/8 shape over and over again.
Play with line weight and thin vs thicker hair strands. Have the hair interact with something, whether it’s an ear or a shoulder or itself. Push yourself for an interesting design. (Gotta push myself too! It can be a frustrating process)
The more you practice, the better you get (cliche, but it’s so true)
Honestly, I don’t even know what I’m doing half the time and my skills have a long way to go. So we’re on this hair journey together! ❤
BONUS!
Here are a couple Gladio sketches that I never posted on tumblr as an example of a messy sketch vs a more refined sketch
Apparently I really like drawing Gladio shirtless Okay hope this was somewhat useful! ❤
~My Tumblr Back-Up And Stuffs~ 