SELF-LOVE IS NOT SELFISHNESS | Graphite pencil portrait of myself.

Hello steemians and great members of @worldofxpilar. How is your Christmas vacation. I hope everyone is doing great and enjoying the euphoria of the season!? I'm here to share my realistic graphite drawing of my BEST friend, which is no one but myself. This self-portrait was a way of saying I love you to myself.

About Me: My name is Tempest Etim Inyang. But I love calling myself the $elfmade because of the literal meaning of selfmade on the dictionary. The name was pleasant to me since it really goes with my reality. I have been a professional artist for close to seven years now yet didn't see reasons to draw myself, even though I wanted to I may not have the time since orders from clients keep coming in. I then said to myself "Uncle Tempest Inyang you don't have to wait for orders to stop coming in before you draw yourself. Remember orders may not stop coming in."
Let me say since it was my portrait and my personal collection I really took my time, being that I could drop it in between order just to make sure I don't rush it, and come up with what I will not like each time I see it since it will be hanging in my apartment.

Self-love is rate these days, a lot of people mistaken it for selfishness. but that's not true. If you don't find yourself and love who you are then you will not be happy with being yourself or you won't love being alone. this, constantly seeking people around you for validation, which is wrong. Learn to unlearn and relearn. Learn to Love yourself. Everything you do or get in life all starts with you. Don't get lost in the crowd of same.
Someone once said " Don't be an echo, be a voice."

About The Portrait

Title	My best friend.
Artist	Tempest Art.
Model	Myself
Muse	Recent Passion for Creating hyperrealism.
Medium	100% graphite on Pelican.
Size	16 by 20 inches.
Duration	Approximately 96 hours.

Materials Used

Paper	Pelican
Size	16 X 20 inches
Pencils	Fei Yan Graphite pencil, mechanical pencil and Graphite powder
Eraser	Tombo mono zero and nataraj vinyl eraser
Camera	Infinix mobile phone
Duration	Approximately 96hrs
Location	Home

Here are the steps on how I did the portrait. I drew my grid lines and made my sketch then started shading it gradually. Starting from the hair down to my face and neck. Though the whole work is marvelous but I did a great job on the hair.

Progress shot 1

Progress shot 2

Progress shot 3

Progress shot 4

Progress shot 5

Finishing

I love to appreciate you for checking my blog and artwork as well. I wish you merry Christmas in advance🎄⛄
Happy steeming 💙