Sketching Tips

Colouring In With Kabuki November 22, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM: Prints of Japanese Kabuki actors are masterpieces of colour and line and are a great way to practice watercolour techniques. In this article I show you how to paint ...
Let It Glow: Five Watercolour Techniques for Beautiful Painting November 11, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM. When it comes to bringing out the beauty of watercolour, good timing is of the essence. Five easy techniques, with practice will enable the best from this beautiful medium.
An ABC of Drawing Directly in Ink: ASK, BUILD, COMPARE September 30, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM. In the search for a spontaneous line, it’s important to walk before we can run. Ditch the pencil and follow the ABC of drawing directly in ink.
SeaFest 2018: Sketching An Event Right First Time July 11, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM – Sometimes when you’re sketching you have to get it right first time. Here I share some of the tips I’ve picked up to make sure I don’t need ...
Understanding Your Watercolours: A Rembrandt Colour Wheel May 12, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM A colour wheel is a great way to better understand the variations available in your paint set, as I demonstrate with this Rembrandt Basic Set.
How to Draw Accurately (Part 3): Negative Space May 2, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM In this article I show you how to use negative space to make a strong drawing. It isn’t magic, but it is a useful tool when you can’t see ...
How To Draw Accurately (Part 2): Spiral April 25, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM Drawing in a spiral is an easy way to keep control of a sketch. With time and practice you’ll do it so fast that your drawings will be loose ...
How to Draw Accurately (Part 1): Mental Grid April 18, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM: Drawing with confidence is one of the holy grails of sketching. In this article I share the first of three techniques that will get you well on the road ...
Light and Shade: Making Your Sketch Look “Real” April 4, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM: Getting light and shade right in a sketch goes a very long way to making a sketch believable, to give a feeling of “being there”. Here’s how I approach ...
Sketching On Holiday: Now It’s Me Time! March 14, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM Lots of us would love to capture a few memories on holiday in a sketch, but what do we bring with us, and how do we keep everyone happy? ...
How to Sketch the Sky in Watercolour March 1, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM A beautiful sky is the most effective way to add atmosphere to your sketch; all kinds of cloud conditions can be realistically depicted with the aid of a ...
Planning an Urban Sketch: 10 Tricks for your Toolbox (Parts Two and Three) February 21, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM The second and final part of my 10 Tricks for your Toolbox. Elements four through ten are some of the things to consider when planning your sketch.
Planning an Urban Sketch: 10 Tricks for your Toolbox (Part One) February 7, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM It’s good to do some advance planning before you put pen to paper. Far from removing spontaneity, it gives you freedom to express yourself, confident that you know what ...
Urban Sketching Kit 1: Watercolours January 31, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM With an almost endless choice of watercolours to choose from, it can feel daunting to choose just a handful for your urban sketching paintbox. I’d like to share my ...
Making Colours Pop – As Easy as 1, 2, 3 January 24, 2018 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM Sketchers often wonder why their watercolours don’t “pop” with bright, clear colour. The solution is really easy, and I describe it in this article in 3 simple steps.
Know Your Values: Speed and Light with Versatile Indigo July 19, 2017 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. Light and shadow can be effectively conveyed with the use of just one colour added to an ink line. Here the colour used is indigo, but Payne’s grey ...
Only Human, After All: 10 Dos and Don’ts When Drawing People April 23, 2017 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. While it’s potentially very rewarding, drawing people is one of the biggest challenges you’ll face as a sketcher. Get the inside track of tips and techniques to make ...
The Colours In My Paintbox: How They Earn Their Place April 25, 2016 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. Finding you’re missing a crucial colour can be annoying at best..but choosing just twelve colours for your paintbox is hard. Here I describe mine, and why they’re ...
Sketching People Moving: A Barbershop Quartet January 23, 2016 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. Sketching people moving is one of the biggest challenges you’ll face as an urban sketcher. But don’t despair – there are lots of ways to make it easier.
Cartooning for Kids: Getting Started June 11, 2015 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM post. Children are natural cartoonists. There are a few tips I’ve learned that will make it easier for children to get more out of the comic strips they invent.
Sketching Coconut Harvesting in Mauritius May 8, 2015 Róisín Curé
The Coconut harvesters of Mauritius risk their lives to bring us their bounty – and to let Róisín sketch them at their work.
Sketching Everyday Life May 5, 2015 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM. Sketching everyday life may not be glamorous, but drawing the objects around your home can be just as satisfying and rewarding as more dramatic or exciting scenes.
Painting Reflections in Watercolour April 29, 2015 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. Painting reflections in watercolour can be challenging. Getting to know their main forms provides a short cut to learning to look well and paint faithfully.
Forge an Old Master: The Japanese Art of Ukiyo-e April 19, 2015 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM. You can learn a lot by trying to forge an Old Master: in this article, I offer tutorials to download, based on the beautiful Japanese prints of Utamaro. ...
25 Dos and Don’ts When Urban Sketching March 29, 2015 Róisín Curé
Here are 25 urban sketching tips for you to consider when you are out in the field. They include some things you should be doing and some you shouldn’t.
Accurate drawing and understanding tonal values: Killeenaran Quay, Co. Galway October 12, 2014 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. I show how to achieve accuracy when drawing and how to achieve good tonal values in watercolour
Video: Painting the Giant Lilies in the Pamplemousses Gardens, Mauritius April 10, 2014 Róisín Curé
Painting the giant lilies in the Bassin aux Nénuphars, the Botanical Gardens, Pamplemousses, Mauritius
No Time to Sketch? So Draw in the Cracks April 7, 2014 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. When you think you have no time to sketch, just draw in the cracks!. I explain.
Painting a Still Life in Watercolour February 20, 2014 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. I give a demonstration of painting a bowl of fruit in a still life in watercolour
Draw Accurately: Why can’t I draw my kids’ faces? October 18, 2013 Róisín Curé
PREMIUM article. I talk about why we should learn to draw accurately and how to approach this
Urban Sketching: 20 Dos and Don’ts when Getting Out There September 15, 2013 Róisín Curé
Róisín Curé gives her 20 tips for urban sketching
Video of Róisín Curé painting Tyrone House June 19, 2013 Róisín Curé
Video of Róisín painting Tyrone House, Galway
Painting in the field: Give it a try June 18, 2013 Róisín Curé
Róisín discusses why it can be difficult to start painting in the field and how to overcome this.