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The Surprising Truth About Teaching Drawing to Kids

By Cheryl Trowbridge 2 Comments

photo of a boy drawing

Why teach drawing to kids? When you teach drawing to kids, you're giving them a skill that pays big dividends in today’s world. Drawing is the foundation for many forms of art. But you certainly don’t need to be an “artist” or work in an art-related career to benefit from drawing. Anyone can use drawing to explore an idea, solve a problem, give visual form to a mental … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Abstract Design, Art Education, Drawing, Markers / Pen and Ink, Paper, Pencil, Seeing Like an Artist, Sketching, Tips for Teaching Art

Find Your Best Composition With a Viewfinder

By Cheryl Trowbridge 1 Comment

Find Your Best Composition With a Viewfinder

How do you choose what to paint or draw when there are so many choices in front of you? Whether your subject is a landscape, still life, or portrait, arranging your composition can be challenging when your options feel limitless. A viewfinder can help you select your best option. A viewfinder is a simple tool you can make yourself with strips of cardboard or popsicle … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Drawing, Art Concepts, Inspiration, Painting, Seeing Like an Artist, Sketching Tagged With: #cmacivickids, composition, rule of thirds, viewfinder

22 Ways to Combine Writing & Art to Encourage Creativity

By Cheryl Trowbridge Leave a Comment

22 Ways to Combine Writing & Art to Encourage Creativity

I recently had the privilege of helping my adult daughter edit the manuscript for her first book. Her first real, published book. A book with an agent, a publisher, a release date (April 2017), and it’s own pre-order page on Amazon. A proud parenting milestone for sure! But this book of hers has been a long time in the making. In fact, we can trace its origin all the way back … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 3D / Sculpture, Bookmaking, Books, Calligraphy, Collage, Creativity, Drawing, Greeting Cards, Illustration, Inspiration, Lettering, News & Announcements, Painting, Philosophy, Portraits / Self-Portraits, Sketching, Tips for Parents, Tips for Teaching Art, Trees, Words / Letters

Giving Back with Art

By Cheryl Trowbridge Leave a Comment

The 'Young at Art' art bag - Buy One Give One

Have you ever been inspired to ‘give back’ to your community as a way to say “thank you” to those who helped you through a difficult time? I was touched by the story of Dan and Janean Toone, who started Young at Art in response to the care that their young grandson received while spending most of his first year of life in the hospital.  As art lovers themselves, Dan and Janean … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Art Fundraiser Projects, Art History, Art Therapy, Colored Pencil, Crayon, Drawing, Famous Artists, Inspiration, Markers / Pen and Ink, Misc. Subjects, Sketching, Supplies / Products Tagged With: appreciation, encouragement, giving back

My New Favorite Pencil Sharpener

By Cheryl Trowbridge 1 Comment

Sharpen Pencils Fast with the iPoint Ball Sharpener

Usually, I sharpen pencils as needed, a few at a time, and don't think much about it. But this morning I sat staring at 9 dozen brand new pencils I needed for a workshop I'm teaching. I found myself procrastinating this simple task all week, just due to the sheer number of them. But once I got going, I was completely surprised by how quick and easy it actually was, so I had to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Back to School, Drawing, Pencil, Product Reviews, Sketching, Supplies / Products Tagged With: pencil sharpeners, procrastination

Art with Math – How to Draw a Soccer Ball

By Cheryl Trowbridge 4 Comments

A hand-drawn soccer ball

What do you get when you combine geometry, art, and soccer?? A winning art lesson, that’s what! The excitement of the World Cup inspired me to come up with a creative way to teach kids how to draw a soccer ball. I was determined to develop a method that would be easy to teach and easy to learn, and would give kids a result they could be proud of. I ended up creating two … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Drawing, Lessons, Pencil, Realism, Sketching Tagged With: soccer, soccer ball, sports

Feed Your Creative Soul – with a Sketchbook!

By Cheryl Trowbridge 5 Comments

Sketch Books & Paint Set

Most art teachers I know struggle to find time for pursuing their own artwork.... so if that's you, you're not alone! Summertime provides a great opportunity for teachers to do things they otherwise set aside during the school year. But if we're trying to teach our students how important art is, should we really be putting off our own art until summer? (I'm speaking to myself … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Art Games / Activities, Books, Colored Pencil, Drawing, Inspiration, Lettering, Markers / Pen and Ink, Medium, Mixed Media, More, Painting, Pencil, Process, Sketching, Supplies / Products, Watercolor Tagged With: Moleskine, sketchbooks, waterbrush

Pink Gold – Sketching with Erasers!

By Cheryl Trowbridge 3 Comments

Did you know that the simple pink eraser at the tip of your #2 pencil is worth its weight in gold?? (Or maybe even more, since erasers don't weigh much!) Well, it is, and here's why... I don't use these erasers for erasing (I save that for my trusty Magic Rub Eraser). I use them for DRAWING. It's a little known secret that you can sketch on almost any kind of paper using the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Drawing, Pencil, Sketching, Supplies / Products, Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: drawing, erasing, teaching tips

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