Illustration Process
Process
Inspired by my childhood love of roller skating, “Girls Rule” pairs pink skates and playful details with a bandaged knee—a little reminder of resilience. Here’s my illustration process, from a pencil sketch to base colors, shading, and hand lettering in Procreate.
Step 1: The Sketch
I loved rollerskating as a young girl. Ice skating, too. I searched for reference photos of the type of roller skates I had as a girl. I wanted the illustration to be both feminine and tough and ended up with over the knee socks and a bandaged knee to illustrate the fact that girls are resilient.
Step 2: Base Colors
I imported a photo of my sketch into the Procreate app on my iPad and began filling in the large areas with color. I don’t worry about texture at this point. I’m just making sure the colors are right and laying down a foundation.
Step 3: Shading
Next, I add shading. I love using symmetry in Procreate because it’s a time saver. You can see how I used symmetry to shade the roller skates, but the socks and skin were done separately.
Step 4: Details and Lettering
Finally, I colored in the fun details and hand-lettered the quote. Bold colors and happy motifs on the skates give the illustration the retro vibe I was going for.
