PARTNER
PARTNER
Welcome to Josie’s Portrait Painting Tutorial! 🦋
Welcome to the Portrait Painting Instructions page! Today, we’ll be creating a stunning portrait painting from the shoulders up. Follow along with these steps to map out, color, and bring your subject to life.
Feel free to adapt these instructions as needed during your painting session. Change up the colours, add extra details—whatever makes it yours! Have fun exploring different techniques and creating your butterfly masterpiece! 🎨
Set up
After following our set up guide here, you’ll need these paint colours: all of them! You’ll need quite a bit of white and brown, and then a small amount of each other colour, just in case :)
Step 1: Mapping
Start by mapping out the basic shape of the face. We’ll use thin, watered down yellow paint, so if we make any mistakes, they’re easy to cover up and change :)
First, paint a circle slightly above the center of your canvas—this will be the top portion of the head.
Then, paint a line down the center of the circle and extend it downward past the bottom of the circle. Mark a small dot below the circle; this will be the bottom of the chin. Connect this dot to the sides of the circle with gentle, curved lines to form the outline of the face.
Finally, draw in the neck and shoulders. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect; these are just guide lines to help us get the right proportions.
Step 2: Background
Before we dive into the details of the portrait, let’s create a beautifully blended background to make the face pop!
Choose a color (or blend of colors) for your background. Use a thin layer of paint, adding a bit of water if needed for smoother blending.
TIP: If your subject has light-colored hair, consider using a lighter background color so that we can paint the hair over it later. For a smooth edge, paint right up to the edges of your guide lines around the head and shoulders.
Step 2B: Edges
Because we want this painting to look polished from all sides, paint all the way around the edges of your canvas! This can be our background colour, or a completely different border color.
This small touch really brings a finished, gallery-ready feel.
Step 3: Colour in the Face and Shoulders
It’s time to bring some life to the portrait!
Mix together brown with different tones to make your skin tone: to make it darker, and a touch of blue, if lighter, add white.
Begin by filling in the face and shoulders with a base skin tone. Use smooth, even brushstrokes to cover the area.
Feel free to add subtle variations in color for a realistic effect. For instance, you might add a bit of pink or peach for the cheeks, and a slightly darker shade to outline the chin and neck for depth.
Step 4: Paint the Hair
Next, we’ll add in the hair. Use thicker, textured brushstrokes to mimic the natural flow and volume of hair. Don’t be afraid to layer different shades to create highlights and shadows within the hair.
Fun Fact: Did you know? Artists often paint hair in loose sections to create natural flow. Try moving your brush in the direction the hair would naturally fall!
Step 5: Clothing
Paint the clothing on the shoulders using colors of your choice. This is a fun area to play with, so feel free to add patterns or textures if you’re feeling adventurous! Use slightly thicker paint for the clothes to help them stand out from the smoother background and face.
Step 6: Mapping the Face
Before we start painting in the facial features, it’s a great time to consider what expression your muse will have - happy, sad, serving, whatever feels right :)
For mapping, we’ll just make a few small marks so we know where we can paint our features. Use a subtle colour, only a few shades lighter or darker than your skin tone, just enough that you’ll see it. In the video, I’ll use a bright white, but that’s just so you can see it better.
Mouth: make a dash in the centre, placed at the bottom of the original circle
Eyes: find the centre of the original circle, mark two dashes halfway to the edges
Nose: slightly above the mouth, mark a dash in the horizontal centre.
Of course if your muse has different features, please change them up to suit them better :)
Step 7: Facial Features: Eyes
For eyes, I like to start by painting in a layer of white paint, and waiting for it to dry before proceeding. (Feel free to go to the following steps, and come back to this later).
After the base is dry, I like to paint the iris and pupil. First paint in a circle for the iris, then, to get a perfect circle for the pupil, I like to use the back of my biggest brush to stamp the shape with black paint. Then, to add life to the eyes, with a smaller brush, stamp a dot of white to give it some shine.
Then, for the eye outlines. For masculine portraits, I recommend a softer outline of the eyes with a dark brown. For more feminine, you can use a more intense black, and paint the eyelashes in.
Step 8: Facial Features, Nose
For the nose, I like to break it down into simple shapes, that can be altered to match your muse’s nose. Use thin brown paint for these steps.
Draw a circle for the tip of the nose - feel free to make this more like a diamond for a point nose. Your nose mark should be at the bottom of this shape.
Draw small dots for the nostrils on either side of the tip of the nose
Draw brackets around this area to represent the sides of the nostrils - these should be as tall at the tip of the nose
Optionally, draw a line or two for bridge of the nose
With this tutorial, you can change up the proportions and shapes to match your muse.
Step 9: Facial Features: Mouth
For a more masculine muse, typically a brown or brown-red line suffices for the mouth.
For a muse with full lips, here are the steps:
Pick your lip shade, and draw in a line for in between the top and bottom lips.
For the top lip, start with the cupid’s bow in the centre by drawing two small diagonal lines, then from the top, draw them out in a curve to the edge of the mouth.
Typically the top lip is slightly darker than the bottom lip, so use a subtly lighter paint for the bottom lip
For the bottom lip, draw a straight line under the centre of the mouth, taking up the middle third of the lip. From the edges, curve to the side of the mouths.
TIP: If you’re painting a toothy smile, I recommend not necessarily painting in the individual teeth with dark outlines, but using a light gray to represent the teeth - this results in a more natural look.
Step 10: Highlights
Lastly, add highlights to give the portrait a final, lifelike glow. Use a small brush and white or very light paint to add gentle highlights along the cheekbones, nose, and chin. I like to add some highlight dots make the lips sparkle. A few strokes of white in the eyes and hair will add sparkle and make the portrait shine!
Step 11: Sign your masterpiece
The final touch—sign your work! Every artist deserves to claim their fabulous creation, and that includes you!
Thank you for joining us today at Josie's Paint and Sip!
Don't forget to share your masterpiece on social media and tag us @JosiesPaintAndSip.
We look forward to seeing you again for more fun-filled painting sessions :)
Glamorously yours,
Josie 🎨