The 15-Minutes-a-Day Drawing

Exercise Routine (so easy but so

effective!)
The Exercises
Minutes 1-2: First stroke of the day
While there are countless different drawing styles and techniques, there actually is a
certain number of standard strokes that should be part of every drawing artist’s
repertoire.

This includes your hatches, of course, and your stipples, scribbles and chicken
scratches.
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The most common drawing strokes, from top left to bottom right: hatching, cross-hatching, sidestrokes,

stippling, scribbling, curved hatching, rough shading, contouring.

I like to compare practising your strokes with repeating vocabulary. If you are
learning a new language you usually start with certain common words with which you
can then build simple sentences.

It's the exact same thing with strokes. They are an artist’s vocabulary and what makes
up your drawings. Practice them, regularly, repeatedly, and they’ll become second
nature.

The goal is to be able to use them naturally, automatically when you draw, without
having to stop and think. Have them ingrained in your mind and muscles. And for that
you need to practice them, over and over.

Strokes are an artist’s vocabulary and as important for a fluent drawing as words
are for a fluent conversation.
Each day, start by choosing one stroke to work with, then draw as much of them as
you can fit in the two minutes you’re practicing.

But there’s a trick: The same kind of stroke can be used in a lot of different ways. That’s
why this exercise is so super beneficial for your art.
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Example of one of several variations of scribbles.

While you are drawing, think of ways to vary the stroke. You might make it big or
small, spaced close together or far apart, change the direction or how hard you press.

You could have it crisp or use the side of your pencil for a blurry effect. Make the
strokes neat and accurate or fast and undefined.

Minutes 3-4: Second stroke of the day

And because strokes are so so important, we’re going to spend another two minutes
on them. Pick a second type of stroke and repeat the exercise above. Really
concentrate on it in the time you have, vary it and play with it. Find out what it can do,
and what you can do with it.
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Example of one of several variations of hatching.

Trust me on this, even if you think you’ll never use a particular stroke in your work, if
you’ve really mastered it it will show up in there automatically one day. And a variety
of strokes can make your work so much more interesting.

I’ve never liked stippling before I started these exercises, mainly because I only
thought of it as drawings made entirely of this one technique. But I practised it
anyway and now I use the stroke in almost every sketch to give certain areas more
texture and interest.

Even strokes that you think you’ll never use can become a new staple and enrich
your sketches immensely.
Tomorrow you can then pick two different strokes and when you’ve gone through
them all start again from the beginning, just like you’d do with vocabulary cards.

Minute 5: Combine the strokes

Now that you’ve freshly practised two different strokes and how to vary them to
create different effects it’s a good time to see what happens when you combine the
two.

Variety makes a sketch more interesting and one way to achieve variety is to combine
and layer different strokes. Remember, as above, to vary also how you draw the
strokes.
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A combination exercise of scribbling and stippling in different sizes and strengths.

If you mix up the order in which you’re practising your strokes you’ll always end up
with new, interesting combinations.

Minutes 6-7: Shape of the day

This exercise staple can be done quite well while you’re doing something else more
interesting. I tend to practice it while watching telly or chatting with my friends.

Regular readers will know it from my post 12 simple Warm-Up Exercises that will
Transform your Drawing Practice.
There is not much explanation needed, truly. All you do is to pick a shape, be it lines,
circles, ellipses, rectangles, whathaveyou and draw it, repeatedly, in the two minutes
you have.
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Simple exercise drawing circles in different sizes.

It’s super beneficial to vary the size and pressure you draw with, as well as the
direction, e.g. clockwise or counter-clockwise.

If you think this exercise is a waste of time, try to draw an actually round circle or
straight line at speed. Not as easy as it looks, is it? Practice and muscle memory can
help you there.

Minutes 8-9: Texture of the day

We are surrounded by different textures every day, from rough stone to smooth metal
or layered foliage. Some of them are easier to draw than others.
And you know what a repertoire of different strokes is good for? You guessed it: for
creating a repertoire of different textures.
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Quick texture drawing exercise, in this case wood.

You can try to draw that fluffy sheepskin rug you love so much, your woollen jumper
or the clouds in the sky.

So that next time you’re drawing something similar you’ll have a good idea of what
kinds of strokes might work best. Having a nice sketching session is just so much
easier when you already know how to approach certain patterns.

Don’t worry if you come across a texture you just can’t seem to get right in those two
minutes. Just come back to it another time. The more you practice your strokes the
easier you’ll find this exercise.

Minutes 10-11: A case for pillows

Not the most exciting of subjects, I know, but one of the most useful. All you need is
a pillow you can change the shape of, so nothing too stiff. Feather pillows work well,
or you can get a cheap couch cushion and simply remove some of the filling to make
it more pliable.

Ideally it’ll be all white or any other simple colour as patterns can be distracting for
this exercise.
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Albrecht Dürer was a fan of this particular drawing exercise.

Just put the pillow in front of you whichever way you like and sketch it. Approach
this in a simple way, just outline, folds and a bit of shading, since you only have two
minutes.

The good thing about pillows is that they have a simple overall shape, but it will be a
little different each time you move it, because the inside of it will rearrange itself.
Alternatively, you could use a towel or a scarf.

This practice is excellent for your general observational skills and to get better at
shading.

Minutes 12-15: Quick, sketch!

We end with the king of all drawing exercises, the quick sketch. It’s honestly super
simple, all you’re expected to do is sketch different things, anything you like, but go
for speed rather than accuracy.

It doesn’t matter if the result looks exactly like the subject or if it’s all crooked and
indistinguishable. The roughness is what makes the charm of these sketches and takes
the pressure off. No place for perfection here.
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Example of a quick sketch of two peacocks.

It’s easy to fall back into a slow drawing rhythm when you’re not used to fast
sketching, so I find it best to choose subjects that aren’t static.

If you’re out and about, sketch people that don’t know they’re being sketched.
Animals also work really well, or even leaves moving in the wind.

The easiest way to create lively, energetic quick sketches is to use subjects that are
alive as well. Or at least seem like they are.

If you’re at home alone you can also just turn on the TV and find your subjects there.

Ideally, you’ll take no more than 30 seconds per quick sketch, so in the 4 minutes you
have for this exercise that’d give you about 8 sketches.

Have a look at my exercise collection for more ideas how to improve your drawing
practice.