1. Drawing the outline

The first step involves drawing an outline of the fire. If you are trying to draw flames with visible bases, then you can start by drawing a concave, curved line as the base. You could think of it as the bottom half of an imaginary circle. Having drawn this semi-circular base, you can start to draw the licking flames. If you are trying to draw flames whose bases are cut off by the page, simply assume that the bases of the flames exist in some space off the page. Draw the licking flames as if they are in fact emerging from these invisible bases. In either case, the flames should essentially appear to be growing out of a semi-circular base.

2. Turning “fingers” of flame into tongues of flame

Draw the flames as if they are fingers reaching out from the base, but make the “fingers” with wavy or zigzag edges that end in points at the top. By the time you are done drawing this outline, the image should somewhat resemble seaweed waving in the underwater current. Remember not to make the tops of the “fingers” of fire flat or curved. They should end in sharp points to give viewers the impression that they are tongues of flame.

3. The three-dimensional effect

The next step involves adding detail to the picture to make the fire more convincing to the viewer. This could be done in two different ways. The first way involves drawing inner layers within the outline of the fire. The new lines marking the inner layers should be fainter than the primary outline, but they should try to match the outline in shape; for instance, where there is a peak in the outline, there should be a peak in the line marking an inner layer. The end result should be a fire with three layers, which the artist can then shade differently. The innermost layer should be lightest in color to give the impression that it is giving off white heat. The outermost layers should be more deeply or brightly colored. The second option for the artist to follow is to draw numerous outlines of smaller flames overlapping with the first outline and to color each outline a different shade of the same color (for instance, orange). These two techniques give results that approximate the appearance of three-dimensional flames.

Author’s Bio:

Learn pencil puzzle tips and tricks from guest contributor Christa Blair who writes for DearTips.Com

When starting out on motorcycle airbrushing, the workspace is of great importance. A place with good lighting and a wide open space is definitely a must. Your airbrushing supplies should be well-organized in your workspace. The temperature should not be too hot or too cold since these conditions can ruin your paints and materials. Store your equipment away from dirt and dust and always clean the workspace. Running water and electricity also need to be within reach.

If you don’t have an airbrush, you’ll need to buy one, but it doesn’t have to be the top-of-the-line model to start with. You can always choose to buy additional equipment once your budget permits. Research items beforehand so that you will know which supplies to choose for good quality airbrushing. At a minimum, you will need an airbrush, paints, masking materials, and an air compressor.

Also, before airbrushing on the motorcycle, it is a good idea to do practice sketches and plan the overall designs beforehand. Keep several pads of sketch paper on hand for such purposes.

If you’re working outdoors, make sure that your work is well-protected from the elements. Always keep away from too much dust or dirt when the paint is still wet and check the weather beforehand so as not to be surprised once you start to work outside.

There are a lot of other things that can be airbrushed besides motorcycles. You can choose to airbrush shirt, caps, helmets, and a lot more.

1) It’s Fun To Do With Friends and Family: Why tie dye alone when you can share it with your friends and family? You can tie dye with just about anyone. I enjoy tie dyeing with my sons. They love the feeling of creating something, and especially love getting a little messy as they create new tie dye patterns!

2) Artistic Expression: Tie dyeing gives you a chance to express your inner artist. From picking different patterns to using different tie dye techniques, every change you make will result in a different unique piece of art.

3) Expanding Your Wardrobe: Every piece of art you create can be worn, so not only are you creating an artistic piece, you are creating an addition to your wardrobe! Every shirt is unique so you can guarantee that no one will be wearing the same shirt as you!

4) It’s Simple To Do: Just hop online and learn how to tie dye to begin. In no time at all, you will be creating your own tie dye T-shirts!

As you can see, there are numerous reasons why I love to tie dye, and why you should go get your first tie dye kit today! It’s fun, easy to learn, and can be shared with just about anyone. Go ahead, start tie dyeing today!

Old Jeans: If you have three or four pairs of old jeans, you can make a handmade rug. Cut the denim into strips about an inch wide, then take three pieces and braid them together. As you reach the end of each strip of denim, simply hand stitch another strip on and keep braiding. When you have used all the denim, you should have one long denim braid. After you decide what shape you want your rug, start winding the braid into that form, stitching it at short intervals so it will stay together. If you used a light color of denim, you can also dye it. Darker dyes will work better. Just a few hours later you will have a cool rug! If you dyed it you could have a brown rug or a bright red rug, and no one will realize you made it yourself.

Image via Wikipedia

Old T-Shirts: A bunch of oversize T-shirts can be given a new life with a pair of scissors. Cut the bottom to the length you like, then cut off the side seams. Cut slits in the fabric at several inch intervals at the sides (they will need to be several inches deep, these are the strips you will use to tie the shirt up). Next, cut off the collar. Be creative, you can make it a v neck or even off the shoulder! Now tie the side strips together (trim if you need to), and you have a cool new shirt!

In the Western world, calligraphy ink can be bought already made, something that is accepted by the average calligrapher. The quality of calligraphy ink in this instance is perfectly fine for the standard type of work such as the creation of invitations and scribing of certificates and diplomas.

Although black is the most commonly used ink when performing calligraphy there is a growing trend towards the use of more colorful inks. Indeed, with calligraphy being used for artistic purposes the colors in the work form amazingly beautiful and creative patterns on the paper.

An important aspect to a good quality type of calligraphy ink is that it is non-waterproof. This means that the ink will flow freely and will not clog the nib of your calligraphy or fountain pen. You also want to buy calligraphy ink that will provide permanence and won’t be prone to fading over time. Inks with a permanence rating of AA or A will give you that assurance.

Just as a brief guide, good quality calligraphy ink can be found from companies such as Winsor & Newton Calligraphy Inks.

It doesn’t matter whether you are practicing calligraphy with a calligraphy pen or a calligraphy brush the important thing is to use good quality calligraphy ink. The last thing you want to happen is to put in all that hard work only to find that a year or two down the track it has all faded and doesn’t do justice to the original product.

Many beginning crocheters choose a simple afghan crochet pattern for their first large project once they get past hats and scarves. Afghans can be great for beginners because they use the same stitch or pattern throughout the piece. It is good practice and helps the crocheter become more proficient at the stitches used in the crochet afghan pattern.

Not every crochet afghan pattern is suitable for beginners though. Some of them can be very complicated. Some of the best afghan patterns for beginning crocheters are the single crochet afghan, the ripple afghan and the granny square afghan. These types of afghans tend to use simple stitches that most beginning crocheters will already know.

Fiesta Throw Ocean Waves Throw Basic Granny Squares

Single Crochet Afghan Patterns Single crochet afghan patterns are composed mostly or entirely or single crochet stitches. They may be striped or incorporate a geometrical pattern. You can even make a picture afghan in single crochet. Ripple Afghan Patterns Ripple afghans are made by repeating a sequence of stitches that includes some increases and decreases at evenly spaced intervals. These increases and decreases make the rows wavy. Most crocheted ripple afghans are made in double crochet, but you can also find single crochet ripple afghan patterns. Crochet Granny Square Afghan Patterns A basic granny square has rows with sets of three stitches followed by an empty space equal to three stitches all the way around. There are many variations of granny squares, and all of them can be used to make afghans. A granny square afghan can either be one giant granny square or many small granny squares joined together. When you feel you are ready to move on to something a little more complicated, you will find that there are an overwhelming number of crochet afghan patterns to choose from. Check out the Crafts Crazy Pattern Index for a great selection of crochet afghan patterns.