Process

I thought you might be interested in my process so, in this post wanted to share a few examples of how I create my illustrations.

There are actually a few methods that I use to create my work. I’ll save the second method for another time.

S’mores Icon

How I created My camping icons.

It all begins with simple sketches. Once I have an idea of what I will be creating, I quickly work through some of the visuals. These sketches are the starting point for the finished work and help to clarify my ideas into visual representations. These are very rough, but that’s okay!

Camping Icon Sketches

Once I have a few rough sketches to work with, I convert them into digital drawings which allows me to refine them until I get to a point where I am satisfied. I use either Procreate or Illustrator to make my digital drawings. It all depends on how refined the starting sketches are. I find that Procreate lets me sketch digitally a little more freely than what I can do in Illustrator.

Camping Icons Digital Sketches

At this point, I use my own custom brushes to create lines that have a little personality other than the pre-installed brushes.

Now I work with these in Illustrator until I get the shapes, lines, forms and details that will become the final pieces. Finally, add color and shading, working with them until I get just the right combinations.

Completed Backpack icon!

As promised, I’ll share another version of my process in another post!