How I made a drawing of my cousin in Pencil and Pastel Medium.

So her 18th birthday was on the 8th day of October and I thought to my myself, What stunning gift could I present to her that would blow her mind and would always be appreciated. Thought about buying her a cake but then, the effects from a cake would only last for a few hours and after that it's just a cake🍰☺️. So I decided to make a drawing of her. It's been a while since I drew anything for a serious purpose but I thought I'd give it a try. I mean what could be the worst that can happen. I just go for the cake if the worst happens right??!?😃. So the materials I used for this portrait are an HB pencil, soft charcoal pencil (black and white), kneaded erasers, cartridge drawing paper, a smudger for blending but had to replace it with a cotton bud and a 12 by 16 inches frame for a good presentation.

So like all other works of art I was pretty confused how to go about this. Stared at my references photo for minutes and just hoped it would come out right. So while staring at the blank paper, I took this photo to show how blank and empty every piece of art was at first. But with great amount of dedication, persistence and inspiration, the empty paper or canvas becomes one of the most beautiful things ever😍.

I normally start my human drawings from the eyes and work all the way to other parts of the body because everyone has unique features in their eyes and once you get that right, every other part becomes easier. Drawing the eyes require alot of patience I must say and it is one of the most crucial aspects of drawing.

After getting both eyes right,at least 60% right☺️, I went for the facial structure, the nose and the lips. She's has cheeky face and also a distinct lip and chin structure so I had to put all that into consideration.
Only a charcoal pencil would do the magic of bringing out this features so well for me. I basically used it for almost all aspects of this drawing.

Thereafter, I began using the cotton bud to create my blend🤫🤫. Don't judge me, I just feel safe and comfortable with it😌. Blending requires patience too cos the contrast would actually determine the outcome. Wouldn't be right to make a black woman so light or make a white woman so dark. I hope you got that😉.
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After getting all facial features right, I had to use a white charcoal pencil for the highlights on her nose, lips, hair cover, cheek and earrings. I used my set of colourful soft pastels for her clothes to make the work look more lively, and it worked🤗. When I was done, I could see so much resemblance and was proud of what I had done😊.

The piece was framed and presented to her. She was so happy, screamed a couple of times and was overwhelmed. You all should've seen the priceless impression on her face. A cake wouldn't have done that at all😊.
Personally, I loved the portrait and wished it was mine😋. I would be posting more of my recent works soon. So stay tuned guys. Comment and critics are all loved and welcomed. Thanks for reading guys😘