Hello! I wanted to share my experience with Kit and Clowder's Skin & Hair class. I had just learned about Copic markers in Dec 2014 when I got my first set of original Copic markers for Christmas. Coloring with alcohol based markers was all completely foreign to me until a friend explained that you can blend with them to get smooth gradients, and make patterns and texture, etc.
Soon I discovered the Copic Sketch markers and I was hooked. However as I looked at other peoples coloring and card designs online I found there were huge differences in the way my coloring looked and the way many others looked. I began to research how people were coloring these georgeous skin tones with shading and shadows and hair that had amazing depth and dimension. I wanted to know how I could learn to color like that. My research led me to the Kit and Clowder website. I read the testimonials and looked at all of the available classes and even became a member of the K and C community both here and on Facebook. I lurked in the shadows for quite a while. Then Alyce Keegan offered a free video of her coloring an image of Spring Bling Wryn by Tiddly Inks. I watched the video of Alyce coloring and I knew this is what I needed to do to really learn what my Copic markers could do and become a better colorist. As soon as I was able I signed up for the Skin & Hair class.
I'll admit, I was still very skeptical on how easily it would be to learn just by simply watching videos and practicing. I'm the type of person that has to see things done and then do it myself several times to get the hang of it. I guess I'm a hands-on learner. I wasn't sure I'd be able to do that without the benefit of a live instructor, but I was willing to try to take my coloring to the next level.
I began my class on January 8, 2015. I printed out all of the practice sheets on good cardstock paper and printed the instruction booklet for the class and put everything into a 3 ring binder - just like you would if you were going to attend classes at school. At the same time I began the class I also started my own art journal. I've kept a few images of things I've colored outside the class in there and I can now look back on it and see my progress as my coloring has improved.
Because the class is self-paced, you can start the class lessons in any order and you can take as much time as you need to go through each of the class lessons. I chose to do all of the classes in order from start to finish.
For each class I would watch the videos - often more than once - and then color the images that corresponded with each class lesson (often more than once). For nearly every image I colored I uploaded them to the feedback forum for Alyce to provide feedback, I even uploaded a few cards I'd made for feedback. That feedback became an invaluable tool in the learning process. I printed out all the feedback and kept it with my original images in my 3 ring binder. I took what Alyce said to heart and tried to make the changes she suggested. Many times I would go back and re-color images again just to see if I could improve upon myself.
Because I work full time, I was spending my evenings coloring and watching the video lessons working my way through the class. I'd set a goal for myself of 6 months to complete the class and I was able to meet my goal. I colored my final image on June 30th. Of course six months may sound like a long time to complete a class. That's the beauty of these classes. You can go through them as quickly or as slowly as you'd like. There's no time frame in which you have to complete them. For me, I wanted to take my time and really learn all of the techniques. You basically get out of it what you're willing to put in as far as time in learning. Here's my final image:
I feel that taking these classes was the best investment I could make in myself. I believe that it has really taken my coloring skills to the next level and made all the difference in my card creations. My goal is to someday be on a design team for a stamp company and I felt that I'd never be able to achieve the level of coloring that I needed to reach that goal on my own. Taking this class has improved my Skin & Hair coloring 10-fold. I've already signed up for the clothing class and am looking forward to learning to better my coloring skills even further.
I would highly recommend the Skin & Hair class to anyone who is looking to improve their coloring skills with Copic Markers! It was absolutely the best money I've ever spent!!
Below is my before and after image:
