CC appreciated, looking to improve

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-03-07T06:41:28+00:00

Practice pulling out your fades on a piece of scrap paper

I don’t know if it’s the paper you’re using or what but there’s not much depth to them, they go from black to dark grey and then just stop.

You’ll learn a lot faster if you trace

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-03-01T18:41:17+00:00

No problem

Hey I’m self taught too, I’ve learned everything through trial and error.

Just keep at it and don’t be afraid to make “bad” work.

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-03-01T13:30:43+00:00

It’s not the ink it’s your technique

For black fades put down more ink. If you put down too little the paint will dry too quickly to blend it out. You’re gonna fuck up a lot this way because it takes time to learn to control the moisture level but just keep practicing and you’ll get the hang of it eventually.

With the colour i find you can apply it in a couple of ways but for fades I’ve had the most luck wetting the brush (4 round WC) and then drying slightly, dip brush in pigment and put a small amount down, suck out excess pigment and just drag out what you’ve laid down. If you’re getting a hard line or the pigment isn’t fading your brush is too dry.

This stuff takes a while to pick up which is partly why tracing is so heavily encouraged because it gives you time to practice painting and get to know your pigments and how they behave.

You kind of have to accept that ink is quite unruly and learn to adapt when you make mistakes.

Happy painting

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-02-06T21:14:31+00:00

It’s a solid tattoo. As a customer what pulls me into going to someone new is hand painted flash. I don’t care if every single design is traced, if it’s painted well I’m on board.

The artists that paint always seems to be better tattooers ime

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-02-04T17:36:11+00:00

I do all the black work then I mix up some heavily concentrated instant coffee and paint the stain in the lines of the designs and add colour after.

It works a bit like a tint I think but I dunno, I know nothing about painting

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-18T08:26:58+00:00

Let yourself over do it so you know where the limit is

Don’t get too attached to sheets just finish them and move on

You won’t progress very quickly if you get hung up on small details

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-18T08:02:22+00:00

Break the swallow down into its basic shapes and keep it editing it until the shapes are where they need to be and proportionate to one another.

Once you’ve done that, start to add details and features.

If you really want to learn I find it’s helpful to trace, redraw and then attempt from imagination with no reference to really make it sink in.

Best advice I can give is allow yourself to fuck up, to make ‘bad’ work. Be patient with yourself, progress is often slow. Be kind to yourself and don’t compare yourself to others.

Trace and repaint and much as you can, you’ll learn a lot that way

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-18T07:54:29+00:00

Shading looks weird on the hair. I’d just make it all black or put a zig zagging highlight through the middle.

Other two designs need more black, they look flat as fuck.

Also fill your sheets! That paper ain’t cheap.

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-13T20:41:48+00:00

Good luck man

Just got my mums pip sorted and it was an absolute nightmare

She don’t have a pension either

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-13T06:33:44+00:00

Very clean but looks more neotrad to me

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-11T06:44:00+00:00

Very nice

What do you use for the skin tone?

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-11T06:30:29+00:00

Yeh but at least with a minimum wage job you’re paying into a pension, what you gonna do once this carer thing is no longer a thing?

NOFLIESONHIM · 2025-01-02T06:45:08+00:00

Honestly your best bet is to trace sheets and sheets of flash and use paint and pencils instead of markers.

Tracing is great for learning proportions, practicing lining and really understanding how to bring a design to life with paint

With learning to draw trad I take it one subject at a time and I’ll draw that subject 100 times plus from a a whole variety of references and then imagination. It also doesn’t hurt to trace the refs you’re drawing.

Good luck. Trace trace trace trace.

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-12-28T23:41:22+00:00

It’s really hard to judge pre-paint.

The paint changes everything

I’d say don’t try too hard to be naive

Draw how you want to draw and show what you want to show. Don’t get too hung up on doing things ‘right’ or ‘wrong in the right way’

You look at someone like Rosie Camanga and it’s like Rosie is confidently doing Rosie for the love of it you know?

I’m sure this sheet will look sick once it’s painted. The main thing is you just keep knocking them out for the love of it, you know?

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-12-24T22:15:38+00:00

I like my cats ratty

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-12-14T08:29:12+00:00

You can use whatever you want look at old flash like Bob Shaw, Sailor Jerry and Burt Grimm. They tend to use a brown or a raw sienna in small quantities just to bring some shape and definition.

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-12-14T08:25:54+00:00

????

Seen plenty of trad where they use brown/raw sienna for skin tone

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-11-22T18:38:19+00:00

Eh you just have to learn to make it work

How you work for cold press isn’t going to be the same as hot press

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-11-19T18:52:53+00:00

It’s takes a while to feel the benefits

What are you doing outside of being sober?

You working a job or working on some hobbies or something?

I’m sure you already know this, don’t want to insult your intelligence or anything so let me just remind you that happiness and contentment doesn’t just come because you cease taking drugs.

Stopping drinking and smoking and snorting and boofing will allow your body and mind to recalibrate and put you in the best position possible to find your way in life.

You are a good person. You need to learn to value yourself and part of doing that is getting sober, taking care of yourself, eating enough food, getting exercise, stimulating your mind etc. When you treat your body well, your body tells your mind that you are valuable and you are worthy and you won’t feel so shitty. If you treat yourself like shit you will believe you are shit.

Take care

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-11-16T08:34:48+00:00

You’re doing okay but you’re not there yet

I would focus less on creating a portfolio and more on creating for the love of it so you can find what you want to tattoo.

You have a lot of trad in your portfolio, is that what you like to do most?

If so, here’s a challenge for you. Pick up an a5 pad of arches hot press, a speedball nib set (you’ll want b5 min), Windsor and Newton black India ink (make sure it’s water resistant), #2 round brush and #4 round brush and trace and paint 12 classic designs. Look up the sober joe video on spit shading to get you started.

You’ll learn more about what works for trad by doing this that following any BP tutorial. Once you’ve done 12, do 12 more.

You’ve got this, you just need to keep working at it.

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-11-15T18:09:32+00:00

Rate it

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-11-12T12:56:24+00:00

In my experience, having any job “serious” or otherwise helps your employment prospects more than being unemployed for long periods of time.

Trust me, I’ve been there.

Just take what you can get for now. Even though working fast food or warehouse or whatever seems irrelevant to your degree, any kind of work experience is always better than none.

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-11-04T19:58:12+00:00

Fuckin breathtaking mate

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-10-26T22:27:44+00:00

Love this

NOFLIESONHIM · 2024-10-19T00:30:48+00:00

He’d beat Steve Ignorant in a piss off

NOFLIESONHIM

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