Improve Your Drawing Skills: 3 Sketching Exercises

Hand to eye coordination (or getting our hand to draw what our mind wants) can be learned or improved with repetition and implementation. In sports, we call this practice, and the same can be done with art. One way to improve your drawing skills is to draw what looks like simple shapes. Circles are prefectly round, but have you every tried to draw a perfect circle? It can be done, but it involves drawing many of them. This video gives 3 exercises for drawing lots of circles in a simple way. Use a sketchbook page, index card, back of a receipt, or blank paper to practice your sketches. The more you practice, the better your drawing skills will be.
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#danielamellen #create #creativeinspiration #artprocess #artistlife #learntodraw #doitanyway #drawing #artinspiration #dailyart #sketching #drawingexercise #handeyecoordination #practicemakesprogress #drawingexercise #handeyecoordination #artprocess

[@user-iv4fs2ch2u]

It's good to draw larger circles too! The important part is practicing drawing "from the arm/shoulder" instead of just moving your wrist.

[@DanielaMellen]

Great tip!

[@Rikisballs]

Wait wait what?? I've never heard of this!! Please elaborate

[@user-iv4fs2ch2u]

@@Rikisballs When you draw smaller circles, you're drawing using your wrist and fingers. Drawing larger circles is important too, and practicing them is vital because they're drawn using the arm and shoulder. "Proper form" when drawing large circles and making other large marks is drawing mostly or entirely from the arm and shoulder. Drawing from the arm and shoulder can help a lot with line confidence, and is the best method for drawing longer straight lines, circles, and many other larger things that don't require as much fine control. Hope this helps!

[@elbayo421]

I’ve heard that before too ^

[@saucelessbones5872]

I was thinking of saing the same thing , its alsow going to make your wrist not hurt .

[@Tekyng_of_Baregan]

I think if you alternate the direction of the spirals, it will help balance your skills. :)

[@DanielaMellen]

That's a really great idea. Thanks!

[@sleepyjavanlangur]

I’ve done this but different shapes. Makes a huge difference

[@DanielaMellen]

Thanks for the helpful comment.

[@mghayes9489]

Nice...practice...practice...practice. Don't get discouraged in the beginning and give up.❤

[@DanielaMellen]

Very good advice!

[@chungdenzamyongmu7508]

❤❤👍👍 nice🎉😊

[@YTgoldyXx]

As a left handed person trying to improve their right hand writing skill I approve of this to actually be affective to improving drawing skills 👍😊

[@DanielaMellen]

Thanks.

[@HereComesWheely]

I have no criticism of the exercise, just confused on the why the paper was folded in half

[@DanielaMellen]

Good question..... The paper was folded, just as a guide to help you gauge how large to make the circles, so that you had some idea the overall space you were working within. It's not necessary - but creates boundaries.

[@LaurennM360]

i like this cause its something i can do and let my mind relax to.

[@DanielaMellen]

Great explanation!

[@rabbitwhisperrr]

That sounds like a really effective way to improve art skills. That u so much for sharing. Look forward to ur next lesson.

[@DanielaMellen]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@The_Artist_Arcade]

This is fantastic. Thank you 🙏

[@DanielaMellen]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@JACKJACK-fo1wb]

Uzumaki!

[@rexcarloechivarre7725]

Thank you 😊

[@DanielaMellen]

You're welcome 😊

[@LalitaDevi-km8ot]

Thank you so much

[@DanielaMellen]

You're most welcome

[@janettekreulen54]

Thanks ❤❤❤

[@DanielaMellen]

You're welcome 😊

[@jellyjamzxo]

I love her clipboard! ❤😊

[@DanielaMellen]

It's a fun one!

[@jellyjamzxo]

❤❤❤❤

[@user-dv1pv7uo2r]

Loved your drawing board 😍

[@DanielaMellen]

Thank you! 🤗

[@avijitmistry9315]

Thanks a lot 🥰❣️

[@DanielaMellen]

You’re welcome 😊

[@815scorpius7]

I was doing so good until I did the bottom circles. Everything went blank until I snapped out of it.

[@minor_em9]

interesting 🤔

[@hebafathy3641]

I loved the idea

[@DanielaMellen]

Thanks!

[@johnsonchan8532]

Great idea. I'll get my 3+yo girl to practice. Thanks

[@K_ASHIP10th]

Thanks sister 😇 from India ❤️

[@linetsituma6696]

Very ❤

[@DanielaMellen]

😊

[@ThePopo543]

Junji Ito approves

[@S33R333]

Ur awesome

[@DanielaMellen]

Thanks for your really nice comment!

[@S33R333]

Yw thanks for content

[@user-tr2tu8sw7b]

Thanks for the support and happy New year too all artist.

[@DanielaMellen]

Happy new year!

[@artfuldrawing]

Things like this improve a artist’s muscle memory

[@DanielaMellen]

Very true.

[@FunLibrary3]

Love it... I will try my best... ❤❤

[@DanielaMellen]

Thanks so much.

[@zoraidaherrnandez-id7tg]

😁👋thank u so much 🙏for sharing 😅👌👍🙏

[@DanielaMellen]

Welcome 😊

[@NyxDiscordia33]

speaking from personal experience if your circles suck and you cannot, no matter how much you try, draw a decent circle reverse the motion I used to draw pages and pages of circles every day for like, a week and they never got any better until one day I decided to start drawing them anticlockwise as a joke but now, while my circles still aren't great, they at least connect and are round. Try it if you're seriously strugglng

[@DanielaMellen]

Thank you for the very helpful tip! Great advice.

[@khanbakar4154]

it was good because I try on1 November thanks 👍 😊 😊 😊

[@DanielaMellen]

Great 👍

[@susanspisak65]

Now I want to stitch these circles inside of circles !!! Lol

[@DanielaMellen]

Those would look great!

[@veronicanicell5935]

I am going to practice this. Would love to be good at sketching, thanks for yhe tip

[@DanielaMellen]

You can do it!

[@junnyq23]

Pro tips

[@DanielaMellen]

Thank you.

[@elisachin9330]

Okay I guess 😮

[@ognorant4349]

I thought it was bad to draw a circle by hand and you should do it with your whole arm?

[@DanielaMellen]

Drawing a circle with your whole arm vs your hand works different things. Circles can be drawn both ways - one is large motor skills, the other is fine motor... Working with your hands assists with detail work.

[@Sakura-tz1yi]

It's been almost a year that I have been practicing like this and my circles are almost perfect 😊 keep practicing you won't get good overnight , You Got This ! ✨

[@DanielaMellen]

Thanks for the feedback. 😊

[@HoneeyBee3]

Do you notice it actually improved your accuracy with your art? Or do you just draw better circles? Not being funny, I'm just genuinely curious if you saw an improvement in your art overall as well.

[@Sakura-tz1yi]

@@HoneeyBee3 yes I did see improvement, I got better confidence and control when drawing , at the beginning I struggled to do so because of my shaky hands but the more I practiced the better control I had over it . With Constant practice I developed muscle memory and drawing from the shoulders increased my range of motion rather than just using my wrist . There were also other things I practiced besides drawing circles , that would be like spheres. ,cubes , 3d forms the basic art fundamentals before moving onto the more challenging ones. Here you can check out these youtubers who helped me improve my art . • proko • Marc Brunet • Uncomfortable (Draw a box ) etc. It may take time to develop the correct muscle memory but if you remain consistent you'll get there . Oh and before I forget a little hand warm up or some wrist mobility exercises can help along way aswell. Let me know if you have anymore questions 🙏🏻.

[@HoneeyBee3]

​@@Sakura-tz1yi Your comment got filtered out, but thankfully I was still able to read it from my notifications! Thank you for taking the time to respond and providing the additional suggestions!! I took a screenshot so I can review them later and add them to my watch later playlist!

[@Sakura-tz1yi]

@@HoneeyBee3 your welcome , hmm 🤔 I didnt know comments could be filtered out .

[@THEREALHAZEY88]

😳😳

[@ronaldpagar6513]

Excuse me But it doesn't have to be a perfect circle right?

[@DanielaMellen]

It doesn't. Try to connect the lines OR try and aim for a perfect circle, but you're trying to practice drawing with intention. Your goal is to repeat the shape (multiple times) and start to see them all look consistent.

[@nandhu0011]

Thanks mam love from Kerala 🇮🇳

[@DanielaMellen]

Thanks!

[@asuba57]

Im a bit confused aren't you not supposed to use your wrist

[@DanielaMellen]

You can use your wrist for finer detail and finer movements or use your arm for larger movements. It depends on the results you want and what you want to practice.

[@REDACTEDrose184]

I’ll think about this technique

[@DanielaMellen]

Great!

[@dima_keller]

I wonder if there are some poor souls who'll read the title and take it literally 😅 You really should specify that it's just an exercise for hand eye coordination Also I personally don't think just circles will help you much. I'd say draw them both clockwise and counter clockwise, draw line at different angles, draw curves and repeat them, put dots and try to connect them with a straight line in one motion, this should help much more

[@DanielaMellen]

I think your tip on drawing circles clockwise and the reverse is a good one. There are plenty of exercises, like the ones you mentioned that are helpful. I appreciate the quick exercises, as they are easy to do, and incorporating them into a practice routine is helpful.

[@zahirahmohamad2573]

Thank you for the tip!

[@DanielaMellen]

You're welcome!

[@pestilenceme8420]

Use wrist or shoulder?

[@DanielaMellen]

Use wrist for the smaller circles, shoulder for the larger circles. The smaller the detail, the smaller the motion.

[@pestilenceme8420]

@@DanielaMellen thanks for the sugestion 👍👍👍

[@amaemae69]

You gave up on that last swirly one lol 😆 that was not at all close to the lines 🤣

[@DanielaMellen]

Eyes like a hawk! 😜

[@MediDrawing]

amazing. thank you

[@DanielaMellen]

Glad you liked it!

[@estebanlopez5372]

It's would be better if you draw from your shoulder

[@DanielaMellen]

Certainly true in many cases. I find that there are times I want the added control and that helps me using my wrist.

[@nightmaregaming9260]

Your age

[@gelvaraju]

Can we have more tips on basics of drawing for kids

[@DanielaMellen]

Sure 😊

[@matias9609]

This is gonna sound like a dumb question, but how will this improve drawing ability? Steadier lines?

[@DanielaMellen]

Not a dumb question - the repetition of creating the same size circle will improve your hand to eye coordination, work on muscle memory, and practice the art of drawing a "perfect" circle... which I find very difficult. The idea is that most circles will not be perfect, but through practice, there will be improvement.

[@margaretwallach7200]

​@@DanielaMellen

[@MrsDorita19]

Purpose???

[@DanielaMellen]

The purpose of this exercise is to practice of large motor skills and fine motor skills, as well as develop muscle memory for drawing circular shapes.

[@KBforJesusChrist]

Now lines am trying to learn how to draw, I wanna do that for a month am starting with line practice then move to shapes then shading. If would be great if you make a video about lines. Am afraid that I'll end up wasting my time because I wasn't practicing the right thing

[@DanielaMellen]

I'll work on a video on line practice. Thanks for the idea.

[@KBforJesusChrist]

@@DanielaMellen oh thank you very much 😊😊

[@DanielaMellen]

Here's the video kzbin.info-67cRENCm2Y

[@leeclarke8993]

Thanks.

[@DanielaMellen]

Thank you!

[@khiclark31]

Subscribed

[@DanielaMellen]

Welcome!

[@janet-margaretashton3688]

Why?

[@user-js3vs3en5u]

she cant even draw it herself bro

[@DanielaMellen]

It's difficult! 😊

[@artistpriya541]

What is this

[@animeshorts4126]

You must move your wrist

[@DanielaMellen]

It's certainly an option.

[@saiprasad5877]

Mam, what's the use to practice like this ?

[@DanielaMellen]

Good question! It helps in a few ways - repetition, coordination, drawing with intention, and muscle memory. You'll have to repeat the exercises, but with practice, I find it improves my ability to draw.