Books published by publisher North Loop Books

Anyone who can hold a pencil can learn to draw.In this book, Bert Dodson shares his complete drawing system—fifty-five "keys" that you can use to render any subject with confidence, even if you're a beginner.These keys, along with dozens of practice exercises, will help you draw like an artist in no time.You'll learn how to: • Restore, focus, map, and intensify • Free your hand action, then learn to control it • Convey the illusions of light, depth, and texture • Stimulate your imagination through "creative play"

Discover the wealth of creative possibilities that versatile and colorful polymer clay has to offer. Here are all the techniques you need to create oven-clay projects: buttons, beads, jewelry, figurines, boxes, mosaics, and frames. The book begins with some basic techniques to get you started, including rolling, baking, and gluing. It then moves on to marbling effects, simulating textiles, making frames, building miniature pots, and creating faux stones. Inspirational examples of work from some of the best polymer clay artists in the world will fire your imagination and provide ideas for developing your own designs.

This inspiring book makes drawing in a realistic style easier than you may think and more fun than you ever imagined!Authors Mark and Mary Willenbrink (Watercolor for the Absolute Beginner) cover it all—from choosing materials and the correct way to hold your pencil, to expert advice on the tricky stuff, like getting proportions and perspective right, drawing reflections, and designing strong compositions. (It's not as scary as it sounds not with Mark and Mary as your guide!)At the heart of this book, a series of fun, hands-on exercises help you practice and perfect your strokes—24 mini-demos lead up to 9 full step-by-step demos. Each exercise builds on the previous one as you develop your skills, build your confidence, and enjoy yourself along the way. The lessons you learn by drawing simple subjects such as coffee mugs, clouds and trees will help you take on progressively more challenging matter like animals, still lifes, landscapes and portraits the kinds of subjects and scenes you've always dreamt of drawing.This book is just the ticket for budding artists of any age. It's never too early and never too late to discover the pure joy of drawing!

Anyone who can hold a pencil can learn to draw.In this book, Bert Dodson shares his complete drawing system—fifty-five "keys" that you can use to render any subject with confidence, even if you're a beginner.These keys, along with dozens of practice exercises, will help you draw like an artist in no time.You'll learn how to: • Restore, focus, map, and intensify • Free your hand action, then learn to control it • Convey the illusions of light, depth, and texture • Stimulate your imagination through "creative play"

"As long as humans have been alive, we have drawn." ~Justin Maas Drawing is the most essential of all visual arts. Everyone, from sculptors to painters, draws in one form or another. It is also the simplest and most affordable form of artistic expression. All you need is a pencil and paper to make something magical. But to create a successful portrait, one must understand how to capture a person’s likeness--their spirit--and portray it in graphite. In Drawing Realistic Pencil Portraits, artist and teacher Justin Maas provides a step-by-step guide for both novice and experience portraitists looking to enhance their skillsets. His tried-and-true techniques for mastering the basics and accurately rendering proportion, placement and nuance when drawing the head and face will help you add energy and life to your drawings and create recognizable and moving portraits. In this book: • Lessons in drawing basics, including value, line, shadow, light and anatomy • How to work from both reference photographs and live models, plus tips for selecting your subjects • Step-by-step demos to create crucial features, such as eyes, ears, and hair • Methods for building successful portraits, including the grid method, the tracing method and the author's own Maas method • 15 detailed step-by-step portrait-drawing demos with subjects of different ages, genders and ethnicities • A gallery of additional portrait examples in both black-and-white and full color

Digital Photography and Mixed Media--a creative match made in heaven! Love photography? Want to make yours better? Want to use your photography as a springboard for fabulous and diverse mixed media and digital projects? Photo Craft will help you elevate the average into the extraordinary! Using Adobe Photoshop Elements and following thorough, easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions, you'll learn to make basic adjustments to your photographs that will yield stunning and artistic results. You'll also learn to use those photographs -- along with some everyday mixed-media supplies -- to create unique and personal art. Inside You'll Find: 13 stepped out mixed media techniques and projects 16 stepped out digital techniques 9 stellar techniques and projects from contributing artists including Michele Beschen and Claudine Hellmuth Dozens of great examples of and tips for iPhoneography Countless inspirational suggestions for photo field trips and photo shoots An author curated list of recommended apps to take your photos to the next level Access to exclusive online materials including new techniques and projects and downloadable materials for your personal use So get to it! Take new pictures today (and every day!), look through those boxes of old and long-forgotten photos, and free those lonely images from your hard drive. Make them better, make them new and make them art. Soon you'll be seeing things in a whole new way!

With this easy-to-use handbook, best-selling author Gary Greene provides you with instant access to his best tips, tricks and techniques for creating exceptionally realistic colored pencil artwork. Whether you're new to colored pencils or perfecting advanced techniques, you'll find the answers you need here in dozens of complete step-by-step demonstrations, including: • Simple techniques for achieving amazingly realistic compositions, including layering, burnishing and underpainting • Proven methods for working successfully with water-soluble colored pencils • A full range of inspiring subject matter, from flowers and animals to landscapes and still-life compositions • Tips for solving common problems, fixing mistakes and taking sharp, clear reference photos • Expert guidance in choosing the right materials and colors, including complete color charts from all the major manufacturersIt's all here in the The Ultimate Guide to Colored Pencil—the solutions and secrets you need for your own colored pencil success!

With this easy-to-use handbook, best-selling author Gary Greene provides you with instant access to his best tips, tricks and techniques for creating exceptionally realistic colored pencil artwork. Whether you're new to colored pencils or perfecting advanced techniques, you'll find the answers you need here in dozens of complete step-by-step demonstrations, including: • Simple techniques for achieving amazingly realistic compositions, including layering, burnishing and underpainting • Proven methods for working successfully with water-soluble colored pencils • A full range of inspiring subject matter, from flowers and animals to landscapes and still-life compositions • Tips for solving common problems, fixing mistakes and taking sharp, clear reference photos • Expert guidance in choosing the right materials and colors, including complete color charts from all the major manufacturersIt's all here in the The Ultimate Guide to Colored Pencil—the solutions and secrets you need for your own colored pencil success!

Make your first steps in watercolor fun and rewarding!Watercolor's vivid colors and fresh, direct brush strokes make it the most exciting way to paint. "But," you think, "Learning to paint must be hard and frustrating." Not with Cathy Johnson as your teacher! Here, she makes learning to paint in watercolor fun—even easy!With Painting Watercolors, you'll learn to paint by picking up a brush and painting—not by reading about a bunch of confusing theories.Cathy tells you everything you need to begin—including: • Which tools and materials you should buy to get off to a good, affordable start • When, what, even where to paint • Explanations of watercolor terms (such as "washes" and "puddles") • Easy and useful painting tricks—such as glazing and drybrush.Exercises help you loosen up and learn the ins and outs of putting paint on paper. Easy-to-follow, step-by-step instructions show you how to paint water, believable skies, a variety of trees in different seasons and other popular elements. Plus, a dozen demonstrations show you how paintings come together, from initial sketch to final brushstrokes.With Cathy's help, you can start painting right away!

Shiny happy paintings you can complete in an evening! Simply follow the steps to fun, beautiful paintings! Anna Bartlett has led hundreds of enthusiastic new painters through paint-alongs in her studio. It's a fun, stress-free way to experience the joy of painting while completing an original work of art in a single sitting. Now you are invited to attend Anna's Painting Party in the comfort of your own home. Inside, you'll find 12 of Anna's favorite paint-along projects--from butterflies and owls to flowers and Monet's bridge--all featuring her signature sense of whimsy and color. Each painting is broken down into easy-to-follow, fail-safe steps that guarantee great results, yet with plenty of built-in opportunities for you to add your personal touch. There are no complicated theories or tricky techniques. Materials lists tell you exactly what you need. Step-by-step instructions tell you precisely what to do. Simply follow along, sign your name and display with pride! Like any good party, the most important thing is to have fun. Your skills and confidence will grow with every stroke! • 12 whimsical paint-along projects spanning a variety of favorite subjects such as princesses, peacocks, and tulips • Advice on selecting materials and setting up your painting space • A variety of fun techniques including painted collage, stenciling, "beginner's Impressionism" and negative painting

Master of art, science, philosophy, architecture and much more, Leonardo da Vinci was the definition of a Renaissance Man. While many of his works were left unfinished or have badly deteriorated, his drawings and words preserve his genius and remain a critical resource for artists today. Delve into one of history's greatest minds to be guided and inspired by his works and wisdom in The Leonardo da Vinci Sketchbook. From anatomical studies to tonal compositions, master essential techniques, principles and subjects. Pour over the most compelling details of Leonardo's work and follow the guidance within to become a master artist.

You Can Do It!You can draw anything–flowers, people, animals, even water and glass–with this expansive, in-depth "Drawing Bible," by veteran artist and instructor Lee Hammond. Learn to draw realistically the easy way using reference photos with Lee's simple techniques and clear step-by-step instruction. Look inside for: • Before and after examples from Lee Hammond's students that prove how her simple graphing and blending techniques translate into remarkable drawings. • The shape and "Puzzle Piece" theories and how to apply them to anything you want to draw. • More than 40 step-by-steps and plenty of tips and hints for beautiful drawings.Whether you're just beginning or more experienced, Lee's instruction will give you everything you need to know to create realistic drawings that will "wow" your audience.