NOVEMBER CHALLENGE 🖤
Bonjour my little demon, ready to collect gem #26?
Whether you just joined or have been here from the beginning, thank you so much for reading.
TODAY’S GEM
When I started, I felt like a fraud.
You saw it in yesterday’s gem—I had zero talent. For years, I barely made progress.
I couldn’t understand why. Why did other artists create such stunning work while my portraits always looked flat, boring, and just... off?
Like many beginners, I thought the problem was my tools.
So, I chased the trendiest mechanical pencils, tested alcohol markers, dabbled with watercolors, and even splurged on an iPad.
But my portraits didn’t improve.
Not with the fanciest Pentel Graph Gear pencils. Not with hours of Instagram scrolling.
Not even with countless YouTube tutorials.
I was drowning in expensive tools I didn’t know how to use.
And the more I scrolled, the more discouraged I felt, comparing myself to artists who seemed to create effortlessly.
I felt like a fraud.
1/ I was focusing on the wrong things
Then one day, I stumbled upon the work of Kim Jung Gi.
Kim Jung Gi was a genius—a master illustrator who could create entire imaginary worlds with nothing but a pen.
And that’s when it clicked:
I had been focusing on all the wrong things.
I was drowning in distractions when all I really needed was a pencil, an eraser, and some paper.
I needed to focus on what actually mattered: my skills.
So, I cleared my workspace, ditched the clutter, and embraced minimalism.
I refocused my energy on one thing: graphite portraits.
And here’s what happened: in just a few months, everything changed.
When I stopped chasing the unnecessary and honed in on my craft, my skills began to grow.
2/ Join the no fraud zone
Don’t make the same mistakes I did.
The first step to leveling up your art isn’t a new tool or technique.
It’s a shift in mindset: entering the No Fraud Zone.
It took me years to realize this, but you can start today:
- Drop the unnecessary.
- Forget the fancy tools.
- Focus on honing your skills.
- Practice daily.
- Invest in yourself
When you cut out the noise and focus on what truly matters, that’s when the real transformation begins.
Once I embraced this mindset, my entire approach to portrait changed.
But I didn’t yet realize this was just the first step—there were still mountains to climb.
Tomorrow, I’ll share the biggest obstacle I faced in my portrait journey: anatomy.
Voilà, that’s all for me today!
Bisou,
Léa
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