Realistic eyelashes can be what separates a good drawn eye from a great one. Here is how to draw eyelashes that pop off of the eye and look convincing.
Eyelash Myths
Many beginning artists fall into the trap of eyelash myths, which ruin their early efforts.
Myth One: All girls have long lashes.
Wrong. This is a stereotype. Many men have long, luxurious lashes, and many women have little, stumpy lashes. Example one has long lashes, but the drawing is of a man.
The trick is to really look at your subject and draw what is there, not what you think should be there.
Myth Two: All women should have jet black lashes.
Nope. Another beauty stereotype that has nothing to do with reality. Actually, many lighter skinned, or lighter haired, women look much better with lighter colored lashes. If you are drawing with colored pencils, try using a dark brown.
Once again, if you are drawing a real person, draw what you see!
Myth Three: Eyelashes should always be visible in a drawing.
No way. Take a look at example two. Since this drawing is of a person, not just a face, the eyelashes are not visible. Eyelashes should only be visible if the image is closely cropped.
Drawing Lashes Right
Lashes can be very easy to draw once those myths are put aside.
- Start with the center lash. It will be the longest and will start on the very edge on the eyelid.
- Next, draw the lashes beside the center lash. They will be a bit shorter.
- The rest of the lashes will continue to get shorter and lighter in color the closer they get to the edge of the eye.
- The bottom lashes are generally finer and lighter than the top lashes. They are also, most times (look at your subject!), shorter. Draw these with gentle, quick movements.
- If the eye is the only thing in your drawing, you may want to add highlights onto the longest lash.
Tips and Tricks
- Use a very sharp pencil to draw lashes. The harder the lead the better.
- Use light, quick, sweeping strokes.
- Lift highlights with an eraser that you have cut to a point.
- Lashes can be implied by making a dark line over the upper lid on full-body drawings.
Lashes should be the fun part of the drawing, not the hard part. They are embellishments that make your drawing realistic and recognizable. Take time to practice drawing eyelashes, and soon they will be something you look forward to.
Alina Bradford - Alina Bradford is an artist with around 20 years of experience and 12 years experience as a professional writer.
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