Skillshare Sessions 01: Kickstart Your Creativity (Week 1)
I have really enjoyed the first week of Kickstart Your Creativity with Procreate. I’ve wanted to practice drawing digitally for ages, but many courses seemed to require more time per day (or per lesson) than I could realistically commit.
This course asks for just 20-30 minutes daily, which has made this a practice I look forward to carving out time for. Each lesson ends with a tangible finished piece, so I feel accomplished while staying motivated and excited for the next step.
The pacing has been perfect for me so far, and I’m already pretty jazzed about some of the tips and tricks I’ve learned. After the kids are tucked in bed, I’ve been applying those new skills to other object studies outside the daily practice, which has also been a surprisingly cathartic experience.
W1 D1: Orange
We started with Procreate’s Quick Shape and Quick Line tools, then learned how to use Alpha Lock to keep texture and shading contained within the orange. It was satisfying to see how quickly a simple circle could become more dimensional after applying a few layers of color and texture.
W1 D2: Pear
We practiced using the eraser tool to refine shapes, then rearranged layers, and used Select and Transform to reposition elements. We also experimented with brush pressure, layering textures, and adding background colors, which shows how seemingly small decisions can have a big impact.
W1 D3: Fried Egg
I really enjoyed working on the fried egg. It was very satisfying to take the concept from rough sketch to finished piece. We learned how to build complexity gradually, using shading, color choices, and textures to give our eggs a soft, painterly finish.
W1 D4: Pizza
Working on this drippy slice of pizza was definitely a highlight of the week. It brought together sketching, flat color shapes, and the strategic application of lines to define the pop-art/comic book aesthetic. Liquify is a fun tool, and Clipping Masks are super handy!
W1 D5: Donut
The donut was an interesting exercise because we only used one brush (albeit a versatile one) to carry the entire illustration. We used it to handle shape, color variation, shadows, highlights, and sprinkles by varying its size, opacity, and pressure.