Art Book #1

Prickle

I wanted to draw a canine, so I did. I also wanted to show you all my process!

First I made the sketch in 6B pencil. I keep the lines pretty loose at this stage, and try to capture the personality in the pose and expression of the subject, as well as conveying texture.

Next I do the lineart with an untitled brush (or UB)—it's literally called Untitled Brush, and it's one of my favorites—and lay down the base color. I use the UB for coloring as well.

Once I have it completely filled, I put the color layer on Alpha Lock, and now I can color the markings freely without having to worry about going out of the lines. I'm a messy colorer, so it really helps. 

I lay down the flat colors, all the markings, eyes, and nose. I love how it looks at this point.

I select the Lineart layer, put it on Alpha Lock, and color the lines. I add the highlights on the fur,  and highlights and shading on the eyes and nose. 

At this point I decided to change the background color to a darker shade. I made the borders for the square, and drew the cactus pattern (with the UB) by duplicating and moving the three plants. Once all of them were moved, I put them all into one layer and centered them on the square. 

I then added the speech bubble and signed my name. All done! 

His name is Prickle (and Pickle, by his friends). 

I hope you like it!