I was commissioned to do a piece for a client recently and they asked for a pin-up style woman baking ( it ended up being a gift for his wife). I decided this would be en excellent opportunity for a tutorial on how I go about doing my marker rendered pieces. This is the second in 4 steps and all will be posted separately so, if you would like to see the rest of the process, please check out the following links to the other Deviantart entries. Step 1: [link] Step 3: [link] Step 4: [link]

STEP 2:

This probably the most self explanatory portion of the process but I will go into detail concerning tools and methods. I print my initial sketch that I have leveled and adjusted to a non-photo blue image onto a cut piece of Strathmore Smooth DRAWING paper. I prefer this paper because I like a slick surface and this paper seems to accept ink the best and provide a crisper line without bleeding or smudging. It also is the best paper I have found for Copic markers but we will get to that in step 3.

I always begin the the face because it is THE most important part of the drawing and will be the first place the viewer looks so it's doubly important that it be done correctly. I also start with the face because, if I screw it up, I can start over on a newly printed piece and didn't loose much work time in the process. Nothing worse that spending hours inking a piece and finally inking the face and head only to screw it up and loose hours of work. I also decide to add a tile pattern to the wall behind the mixer to give the background a little more interest. The tools I use are pictured below and I will go through them one by one:

COPIC MULTILINERS(The silver pens): I use these for any super fine detail I need to do. The provide the thinnest line and the most control so tiny details can be addressed without worrying about your lines being to fat. Mostly, this means the face. Her eyes, nose, mouth, and chin contour where all done with these pens. The other great thing is that these pens will not run or bleed when you draw over them with markers.

FABER-C ASTELL PITT PENS(The black ones): I ink the majority of the background with these pens as well as some of the other details on the girls figure including the earrings, pearls, bowl, hands, belt, garter, and portions of her hair. These pens have the best flow of ink and will give you the most consistent lines especially when doing straight edges like the background. These pens also will not run or bleed when you draw over them with markers.

PENTEL BRUSH PEN(Black on with the silver clip): This in the most important and my favorite art tool. It's a pen that has a nylon bristle brush tip and is refillable with Pentel brush cartridges. The ink is permanent india ink and will not run or bleed with markers. I use this pen for the majority of the contour lines including the majority of her body, shoes, dress, and hair. I also use this on the dog at the bottom. This pen mimics a traditional brush and ink extremely precisely though it does take a steady hand and a bit of practice. I can't recommend this pen enough whether you are a novice or an experienced professional. Here's an Amazon link to get one since they can be hard to find at art supply stores sometimes: [link]

Once finished, it's time to move onto the marker rendering step but first you want to scan in your inked linework for safety. I'll go into this more in the next step. Please check out step 3 for the next portion of the piece.

Hope you dig!

Best,
-Mark
Follow me on Twitter: [link]