Marker Drawing Techniques to Improve Your Art (2023)

Using the Small Tip

A small tip draws a thin line with a consistent width. It works best for outlining or adding small details. Use hatching, or the continuous close placement of straight lines, for coloring an area.

Using the Chisel Tip

The chisel tip is a wider tip and is designed for quick color filling of broad areas. Also, by turning and using the side of the tip, you can achieve lines of various widths, some even thinner than a fine tip.

Smooth & Continuous

To fill an area evenly when drawing with marker, move it smoothly in a continuous motion without lifting it from the paper.

Striped Texture

Lift the marker from the paper with each new line to form striped hatching (overlapping lines) that can imitate rough surfaces, such as wood.

Random Texture

By moving your marker unevenly in various directions, you achieve a chaotic filling suitable for adding random texture, such as you would use for foliage.

Contrasting Shades

Create a contrasting darker shade of color for well-defined borders or shadows by repeating layers of the same color.

Two Different Colors

• Apply the lightest value. Here we’ve decided to use А9423.

• Apply the next value of this shade as a second layer. We’ve used А422.

• Once again apply A9423 to the border between the two shades to achieve a smooth gradient from one hue to the next.

Two Different Colors

Get fascinating combinations by combining hues located closely on the color wheel. Here we used blue and turquoise, А268 and А266, as examples.

The more tints you use, the harder each transition from one color to another becomes. For example, to convey the volume of an object fully, you should try at least 3 markers: one for light, one for midtones, and one for shadows. There are two ways to draw a gradient with these markers — from light to dark (the most common and recommended one) and from dark to light.

Extended Gradient - Light to Dark

Using А5959-А5947-А546 - grass green gradient.

• Fill in the whole area using the lightest marker, А5959.

• Then darken the midtone and what will become the darkest area with А5947.

• Before it dries, blend and blur the border with the previous light marker, А5959.

• Create the darkest area with the darkest marker, А546.

• Blur it the same way as with the previous marker А5947 to achieve a smooth transition.

Extended Gradient - Dark to Light

Using А546-А5947-А5959

• Fill only the space that will be your darkest color with the darkest marker, А546.

• Use a midtone marker А5947 over the dark part and then fill in the center section of the paper. Blend and blur the border between dark and midtone. After that, fill in the remaining area with the lightest marker, А5959, and blur the border between midtone and light tone.

HINT: To get smoother gradients, draw over while wet. Don’t wait for your last layer to dry. If it dries, you won’t be able to blur the lines between colors but will be able to see the lines separating the layers.

Dots

• Draw the first layer of dots from the lightest marker, leaving white spaces for flares. We used A267.

• Randomly add darker dots in А263.

• Repeat the previous step using a darker marker in A8272.

• To make your glitter really shimmer, use a white gel pen on top of the darkest dots.

Various Hatching

Vary your hatching to draw different textures like grass, hair, or fur by using a mixture of parallel lines going in different directions or in assorted lengths, such as long diagonal lines or short curly ones.

Mixed Media

Here we’ve mixed in colored pencil and white gel pen. Colored pencils add character and details and achieve an even smoother gradient. A white gel pen works for adding small flares, hairs, and sparkles. You can hide unwanted lines with this valuable tool, too!

First method:

• Fill your surface using the lightest color (we used A949) leaving white spots to represent the light.

• Use a midtone, such as A9423, to fill the shadow areas, and blur the edges using the previous marker.

• Make shadows deeper by using A422 and A611 while also blurring them.

• Use the blender for the edges of white spots to make them glow. Some of them may remain white, while others may be filled with the lightest yellow tint.

Second method:

• Fill the whole surface with А949.

• As in our first method, make shadows deeper by using mid-tone marker A9423, while also blurring and blending them and leaving yellow circles of light.

• Lighten your yellow spots, using blender to achieve a glowing effect.

Rub Two Marker Tips Together

Get a chameleon effect by pressing the tip of one marker against the tip of another until the color is transferred and then draw on paper. Here we used А268 and А884.

Beware: This technique stains each marker’s tip and it will take a lot of work to restore them to their original colors.

Paper Towel & Solvent

• Apply a single color over your surface.

• Dip a paper towel in solvent and press on and off the surface for these irregular shapes.

Cotton Swab & Solvent

• Apply a single color to your surface.

• Dip a cotton swab into a solvent, then dab across the surface to get these randomly shaped orbs.