Waffle Art Time : Create a Whimsical Food Illustration in Procreate

1. Introduction: Welcome to this creative Procreate class. I'm so excited to have you here with me as we dive into one of my favorite subjects to paint waffles. There's just something comforting and joyful about painting food, especially when we lean into those soft textures, warm colors and layered details that make each illustration feels full of character. For this class, I will be working entirely on my iPad using the Procreate app along with my Apple Pencil. You can use any stylist or compatible device that you are comfortable with. The main focus of this class is to enjoy the process of building up an illustration using a pain early digital approach. That feels rich, expressive, and textured. I will be using one special brush throughout the entire process, and that is my bubbly letters brush from the Cdiglass collection Procreate brush bag. It's a brush I created myself and absolutely love using because it brings such a soft, smooth texture. It glides beautifully and gives me the freedom to work intuitively across every stage from outlining to building color. And adding highlights. Of course, you are completely free to use any procreate brush dad gives you a similar painterly or textured look. It's not about having the exact same tools. It's about getting comfortable with what you love and letting that flow into your work. This class is designed to guide you through my step by step process. We will begin with a light casual sketch just to get the basic idea down. From there, we will move into filling base colors for different parts of the waffle, whether it's a plate, the waffle blocks, fruits or toppings. Then we will slowly build up through layering, darker tones for shading and small finishing details that give the illustration life and warmth. My approach is always initiative and relaxed, so I love paying attention to how each area evolves as I go. The goal isn't to make something perfect. It's to enjoy the layering process to take your time and to see how small color changes can bring such a big shift in mood and dimension. If you enjoy food illustrations or if you are just looking for a creative way to explore painting with a single procreate brush and a cozy theme, then you are in the right place. I hope this class brings you a sense of calm, creativity, and confidence to explore your own digital artwork. So let's get started and enjoy every brush strokes along the way. 2. Materials: Before we jump into painting, I just want to show you the tools I will be using in this class. I'm working on my iPad using the Procreate app, which is my favorite for creating these colorful illustrations. It gives me a lot of flexibility and control when it comes to layering colors and textures. I will also be using my Apple pencil, but you can absolutely use any stylist that works with your device. For this class, I will be using just one procreate brush named bubbly letters from my Cdiglass collection procreate brush pack. This brush has a thick paint early texture and is pressure sensitive, making it perfect for creating soft expressive strokes with dimension. That said, you are totally free to use any brush that feels painterly or textured in a similar way. Just choose what works best for you and your illustration style. That's all you need to follow along and create your own beautiful waffle illustrations. Let's get started. 3. Classic Waffle Illustration: Let's begin with a fresh canvas in Procreate. I am starting with the six peed pencil from the sketching section. This is one of my favorite brushes when I want that natural pencil texture. Something that feels just like drawing on paper. I'm holding the apple pencil loosely here and just letting my hand move freely. The first thing I'm doing is sketching around soft shape that will serve as the base for our waffle. I'm not trying to get a perfect circle or outline. It's more like a fluffy, imperfect shape that already gives a playful vibe. You will notice I'm sketching in short curved strokes rather than one big outline. If your shape is a little taller or wider, that's totally okay. In fact, I encourage you to let your own style come through right from the start. Sketching is such a forgiving step, and this is the part where you can just relax and explore. I'm also leaving space on the sides for toppings we will add later. So keep that in mind while placing your waffle. Now that we have the base shape down, I'm gently going over it to add the waffle texture, I'm starting to draw in the crisscross pattern. You know, those signature squares that gives waffles their fun, graded look. I'm keeping the lines curved slightly just to match the round shape of the waffle and make it feel more dimensional. You will notice I'm not aiming for perfect symmetry here. These lines are a little wobbly on purpose, and that's what gives a whole illustration a more handmade and whimsical feel. While I draw, I'm paying attention to how the lines wrap around the shape. The ones in the center are straighter. But as I move outwards, I curve the lines a bit more to hint at the round from underneath. Think of it as sketching three D structure, but with a soft artistic touch. Don't feel pressured to get every grade line exact. The charm in this kind of illustration lies in its imperfections. The key here is consistency, not perfection. So try to keep the spacing somewhat even but don't overthink it. Once the grid is in, you will already see the waffle coming to life. As I begin outlining over this sketch, you will notice I'm not really aiming for precision here. I am intentionally letting my lines drift just a little, and I'm not too concerned about perfectly tracing over this sketch. In fact, I like to leave tiny gaps between the sketch lines and my outlines. It creates a slightly loose, almost eerie feeling in the drawing. Rather than aiming for clean shark perfection, I'm focusing on the softness of the movement. I let my hand float just a bit above the screen while I work. So my stroke stay light. If a line wobbles slightly or curves unexpectedly, that's totally okay. That's part of what gives it personality. We are moving into the coloring part now, and honestly, this is where everything starts to feel really fun and expressive. I'm laying down a warm golden base that will shape the main body of the waffle. I'm not using any kind of fill tool here, just painting it in slowly one section at a time. Notice how I'm not trying to be overly careful. I'm keeping my strokes relaxed and letting them slightly drift outside the lines here and there. If you look closely at the brush marks, you will see the subtle textures in the stroke. They help make the waffle feel soft and real. You don't need to press hard or get the exact coverage perfect. Just work naturally and build the color by luring it gently. Sometimes I go over a section twice just to deepen the tone a bit or to smooth out areas, I want to feel more baked. And other times I will leave red or white or lighter gaps because they add a nice bit of contrast. Let the unevenness become part of the artwork. It adds depth and personality in your illustration. You can also pause between strokes and just look at how the color is settling across the surface. If it looks a bit streaky in places, that's great. It mimics how real paint would behave. Don't worry about covering every bit perfectly. Just focus on enjoying this part of the process and letting it guide your hand. This tap is also a great opportunity to feel the rhythm of your brush. Now I'm layering in the chocolate, and this is where the whole illustration starts to feel warm, rich, and a little more dimensional. As I fell in the little waffle pockets, I'm using a darker tone to mimic that golden crispiness, but I'm treating it like melted chocolate, settling into the texture. I'm not being too precise instead of trying to stay inside each square perfectly. I'm letting my brush move loosely, following the rhythm of the shape, but allowing those painterly edges to show. That slight messiness gives it a more natural feel like real food with soft and uneven surfaces. You will notice that I'm not painting everything at once. I'm layering slowly, brushing in a few strokes at a time. This kind of variation helps give the waffle its toasted character. It's subtle, but it makes a big difference. The contrast between this deep chocolate tone and the base golden color is really what gives my illustration its warmth. We are creating a cozy, inviting visual, almost like a fresh waffle straight off the griddle. Also, don't worry about making every pocket look the same. It's okay. If one is a little darker or a bit more texture, that's exactly what adds jam. Just enjoy this process. Let your brush takes its time. This way, the colors interact here, the warmth, the richness, the softness. It all comes together to create a delicious, cozy mood that feels really satisfying on the canvas. In this step, I'm focusing on blocking in the base colors for each waffle pocket. I'm not blending anything just yet. The goal here is to fill those little scare areas with rich flat tones that clearly define the contrast between the chocolate and the golden waffle base. You will notice I'm not making the edges perfectly clean or sharp, and that's completely intentional. I actually like keeping things a bit loose here because it brings a more natural handmade look to the illustration. Even though these pockets are part of the same waffle, giving each one its own slightly different shape and tone adds visual interest and personality. What I love at this stage is how the textured brush starts doing its quite magic. It naturally creates unevenness in how the color sits. Some spots look heavier, others look lighter, and this instantly adds character. You start getting this gentle bake texture effect almost like you could already feel the crips outer layer of a warm waffle. I don't have to overwork it. The brush texture gives that softness without much effort. And since I'm not trying to make anything look finished yet, this part of the process is really mic. It's just about absorbing how the tones look next to each other, gently filling in each block, and letting the illustration develop one relaxed stroke at a time. I don't rush through it. I let each shape settle in, knowing that these early layers are the quiet support behind all the vibrant detail to come. I have started outlining around each of the chocolate and waffle blocks to bring more definition and clarity to the illustration. The outlining isn't harsh or overly sharp. It's soft, slightly uneven and textured, which helps preserve the handmade feel we have been building so far. What's really interesting is how the outline layer starts to pull everything together. In this step, I have started gently layering in that warm, yellowish tone to fill up the lighter sections of the waffle. I'm not trying to fill everything in perfectly or evenly, letting the color flow where it naturally wants to settle. I want each block of yellow to feel like it's catching a bit of light, which is why I am letting some areas to be a little more opaque and other slightly transparent. Rather than outlining sharply or pressing for precision, I'm letting the brush trail around the edges and soften into the shapes. You can see I'm still working within the blocks, but I'm not filling them solidly edge to edge. This choice gives the waffle a bit of movement and warm, almost like it's glowing from the inside. The most important thing here is to relax into the process. In this step, now I'm adding lighter yellow tones right into the middle of each pocket to build up that toasted golden look. At this point, I already have the base colors down, so now I'm just gently layering brighter areas to create a soft sense of warmth and light. I am not focusing on clean blending just yet. This is more about contrast and structure. I want you to feel that the waffles are warm and fresh with pockets that have caught the light just a bit more. You will notice how a small stroke of yellow starts to bring out the form in the waffle pattern. At this stage, I'm starting to build the character of the waffle by carefully adding those warm yellow tones into each little square. These aren't highlights yet. They are still part of the base, but they help separate one pocket from the next and give the waffle that recognizable, toasty golden brown look. Each block of color is painted intentionally but not with rigid precision. The idea is to preserve that slightly imperfect, painterly feel that keeps the illustration looking playful and handmade. As the yellow goes down, it creates a soft warm next to the chocolate tones. At this stage, I'm beginning to define the outer edges of the chocolate sections a little more clearly. I'm still keeping things loose, but now gently outlining each pocket to enhance the separation between the darker chocolate and the base waffle color. This step isn't about creating a hard outline. It's more about giving subtle shape and direction to the waffles texture. At this stage, I'm continuing to build up the character of the waffle by working through its pockets and chocolate ridges, one color block at a time. I started by filling in each little square with deep tones for the chocolate and bright yellows and gold for the base. These aren't blended yet. The goal here is just to block out those areas and define the contrast. I'm intentionally keeping the edges loose and painterly, letting each pocket vary slightly in shape and color. This tap isn't about perfection. It's about laying a warm and rich foundation. As I added the outlines the chocolate ridges in the next step, you can see how it helped give more structure and direction to the waffle surface. The darker chocolate just creates a beautiful contrast with the golden yellows, adding definition and movement. This is where the brush texture really shines, and it gives this soft painterly texture. Finally, I went back into refine those chocolate areas, strengthening the shape and warmth. Even though it's still rough, you can already feel the toasted dap starting to emerge, setting up perfectly for the final highlight and detail layers. At this point, I started enhancing the waffle by adding more lighter yellow tones into the center of each pocket and along the edges. These soft highlights helped create a warm, slightly toasted look, making the waffle feel fresh and golden. I wasn't aiming for perfect symmetry. Just enough variation in each spot to suggest that slight crispiness, you see when waffles are freshly made. These light strokes also bring balance to the deeper brown areas, giving the whole illustration a subtle brightness and more realistic texture. After finishing the details on the waffle, I shifted attention to the background to gently frame the entire illustration. I choose a cool, pastel blue for contrast, something that wouldn't compete with the warmth of the waffle, but would still feel refreshing. I softly painted around the waffle using loose flute strokes to give it a dreamy, relaxed feel. The brushstrokes weren't harsh or uniform. Instead, they waved organically around the edges, almost like watercolor petals spreading on paper. This toys made the background look calm and playful, like a breakfast seen quietly unfolding on a peaceful morning. The soft blue gave just enough pop to help the golden tones in the waffle glow brighter without overpowering this illustration. This kind of background works especially well when you want your food illustration to feel both cozy and polished, keeping the focus on the subject while still filling the space meaningfully. 4. Waffle Sundae Illustration: Began by sketching the entire composition using the six B Procreate pencil brush, and this brush gives off such a gentle, slightly taxtured pencil feel, and I love how it instantly makes the sketching process feel more approachable. I started with the outline of the Waffle bowl. I used very light pressure at first, just blocking in the overall shape. I wasn't aiming for the perfect smetry just getting the right balance and curve that would anchor this whole illustration. It's okay if things look hand drawn, it adds personality. Next I begin sketching the scoops of ice cream. I imagine them piled into the bowl overlapping slightly. So I made sure to vary their shapes a bit. Some are taller, some rounder, and that helps keep the sketch playful. Then I added the syrup drips flowing down one scoop, just a few wiggly lines to hint at a melty topping. After that, I placed the two wafer sticks behind the scoops. They are simple diinal shapes, and I added light stripes to them to make them feel dimensional like crunchy rolled wafers. Finally, I added the little details like berries, small highlights on the scopes, and some sketchy texture lines. This whole part of the process is just about laying things down and getting a feel for the shapes. Nothing has to be perfect yet. Once I had that rough shape down, I moved on to the criss cross lines inside the bowl to give it that classic waffle texture. I kept these lines loose and didn't worry too much about perfect angles. You will notice I'm just building things slowly, sketching with purpose, but keeping the pressure low, allowing the lines to flow freely. This part of the process is always my favorite because there's no pressure. I'm not focusing on the final outcome. I'm just thinking about composition and balance. Sketching like this helps me stay relaxed and enjoy the creative flow without overthinking anything. Alright. In this step, I'm working on the line art for our Waffle dessert illustration. I'm only using one brush here. It's the bubbly letters brush from my candy gloss procreate brush back. Even though the brush was originally designed for lettering, I really love how it gives a smooth and playful stroke that works beautifully for outlines too. I began by sketching out the basic shapes using the sixp pencil brush just to lay everything down loosely. Once I was happy with the structure, I went over it with the bubbly ladders Procreate brush to create the clean final lines. If you are following along, feel free to go with a similar setup, keep it relaxed and loose. You don't have to get every curve perfect. What matters more is that the elements feel cohesive. So take your time here, have fun with the details, and don't worry about making it overly polished. This part of the process always feels the most satisfying after finishing the line art using the bubbly letters brush from my candy gloss brocade brush bag. I began with the strawberry soup on the left. There is something about starting with pink. It instantly makes the drying feel cheerful. Next I moved to the orange scoop on the right. It felt like the perfect contrast to the pink, still playful, but warmer and more mellow. Now for the chocolate scoop at the top, this one felt like the heart of the bowl comforting and familiar. I used a deep warm brown to fill it in, making sure it contrasted well with the pink and orange scoops below. Then I gently fill in the chocolate syrup drizzle, layering it right on top. I kept it simple, just letting the lines from the outline guide me. No highlights yet, just flat shapes and rich color. Then I moved on to the small raspberry sitting near the center front. I picked a rich red, not too dark, so it would feel juicy but still cute and vibrant. Right beside it, I added a cool toned tea leaf to break up the warm colors. Then I filled both biscuit sticks with a warm yellow base and then overlaid a soft brown tone in diagonal stripes. These two tones played so nicely together like a caramel, swill pattern. I try to keep the direction of the lines consistent and slightly curved to match the flow of the biscuit shape. The yellow felt bright but not overpowering, and it gently echoed the color of the waffle bowl while still standing on its own. These biscuits kind of work like framing elements, directing my attention downward to the scoops. Finally, I colored a waffle basket. My favorite part of this section, I picked a light golden yellow as a base stone because I wanted it to feel toasted but still sweet. Then over that, I filled the grid lines using a deeper brown to maintain that criss cross structure. I was careful to keep those lines visible. The basket pulls all the other colors together. It's warm, welcoming and anchors the whole dessert. It's like the foundation of the illustration, and it really wanted it to feel light but sturdy, like something freshly baked, maybe even crispy. Apopl solid here with no gradients or textured yet because I wanted a clear foundation before any depth or highlights. Now, I really wanted the waffle bowl to stand out not just as a container, but as a warm, cozy foundation for this entire dessert. So I began layering in those lighter yellow tones, focusing especially on the upper parts of the bowl where natural light would hit if this dessert were sitting in a sunny cafe. I didn't just fill in the yellow uniformly. Instead, I thought about the curve of the waffle and added brighter yellow strokes more intentionally. Just on the raised areas of the lettuce wave and around the rim. This helps those parts visually pop out more, giving the bowl around it slightly puff look like a freshly toasted waffle cone. Next, I soften the main grid outlines using a light brown tone, just a few shades gentler than the original lines. Like, this step is subtle, but makes a huge difference. I carefully traced over some parts of the cross hedge pattern, especially in the middle sections of the waffle to create a feeling of bake texture without overpowering the golden base. The light brown wasn't meant to sharpen. It was meant to soften and blend. Think of it like layering a toasted highlight not a shadow. This technique adds dimension without darkening the overall feel. It still feels light, crips and inviting, which is exactly what I wanted because the rest of the illustriation is full of bold. This technique adds dimension without darkening the overall feel. It still feels light, crips, and inviting, which is exactly what I wanted because the rest of the illustration is full of bold and fruity colors. At this point in this illustration, everything already had its base colors, and now came one of my favorite steps, bringing each elements to life with lighter tones, subtle dimension, and soft textures. I began with the pink scoop first. It's such a cheerful bold color, so I wanted to retain its vibrancy while also suggesting a creamy texture. I picked a lighter version of the same hue, a soft magenta, and used my bubbly letters brush from the candy gloss pack to sweep gentle curve strokes along the top and center areas of the scoop. I wanted that subtle softness that holds its shape but would start to melt slowly. Then I move to the orange scope, which had such a cheerful wipe to it. I mixed in a light peach tone and gently dabbed highlights in the upper area. I let the strokes blend into a scoop without fully outlining it. I find that when I'm adding light, I like it to fade naturally, so I don't lose that soft edible feel. It starts to resemble those fruit based scoops that are slightly icy but still creamy. Again, using the same brush kept the texture consistent. That's something I'm very intentional about. So the strokes from scoop to scoop feel cohesive. Now for the chocolate scoop, this one needed a completely different feel. Unlike the other two scoop, this one had melted chocolate dripping over it, so I shifted my goal from soft to glossy and slightly indulgent. I introduce a warm beach highlight to the top of the scoop, blending it inward to simulate that slight light reflection. Then I deepened the underside of the drips with a slightly darker chocolate tone to give the yen of thickness and dimension. I kept the brush pressure low here so the chocolate didn't lose its density. Chocolate is thick, and I wanted that richness to come across in the strokes. This part felt especially fun to do because of how satisfying it is to see the contrast between the bright scoops and this deeper luxurious tone. After the scoops, I worked on the biscuit sticks at the back. They already had a cozy cookie like color, but they needed more warmth and shape. Layered a buttery yellow along the curves of the biscuits, just on the edges where the light would hit. I made sure the lines were smooth and slightly rounded. These highlights instantly gave the biscuits more structure. They looked puffer, more baked and added that charming dessert cartoon style that I always lean toward in my lstrians. Even though the raspberry section is tiny, I always treat it with the same care as the bigger parts. For this one, I zoomed in and used a light red pink tone, almost like the hue of ripe strawberries. I tapped small curves and tiny dots right on the upper left side of each berry bum. This gave the raspberry a fresh juicy feel like it was glistening in the light. All of this work, the highlights textures blending was done with just one procrt brush, and that is the bubbly letters from my candy glass collection of procate brush back. I love using this brush for detailed work because it's soft and round, but still gives me edge control. It doesn't have too much grain or scatter, which makes it perfect for digital desert illustration like this one. The way it lets me control pressure and build up tone gradually means I can work on both larger soils and tiny varibons without switching brushes or settings. Then I moved to the orange scoop. This one already had a warm base white broth in a very soft peach tone to lift certain areas. I gently tapped it into the upper curve of the scoop. I began softening the edges of the strawberry scoop by adding lighter magenta tones right at the top curves and around the ridges. This added a gentle shine and gave it a creamy, just coop texture. I was careful not to flatten the look, so I kept the original richness underneath. Letting the highlights follow the curves of the foam. Instead of going for a glossy look, I aimed for something soft and natural. Then I shifted focus to the chocolate scoop at the back. I didn't want to overhighlight this part since darker shades need a more careful approach. Moving on to the biscuit sticks, I used a muted yellow orange shade to brighten the curve tops. I wanted the brush strokes to follow the arc of each biscuit, so they would feel cylindrical and bake like crispy pastry sticks. The added tone gave them that golden slightly toasted bakery feel almost like they were fresh out of the oven. Although I haven't worked on the waffle bowl yet at this stage, its deep brown lines and golden tone already provide a solid base. Each highlight here wasn't just about light. It was about foam. It helped make the scoops rise up, the biscuits twist more playfully, and the raspberry sparkle with sweetness. And all these small enhancements work together to bring this joyful dessert to life. I zoed in just a little for the raspberry to work delicately. Here I added a few tiny dots with a slightly lighter red paying close attention to the round bulbs that makes up the fruit. These many highlights made it sparkle just a bit without making it too shiny, just enough to hint at juiciness and moisture. So now I moved onto the background. I wanted something that would really help the dessert illustration stand out, but still feel playful and cohesive. So I went with this rich, bold aqua blue. I didn't go with a plain block color. I added the soft wavy edges all around the dessert. The rippled outline adds movement and gives the background a light hearted frame. I wanted it to feel fun, not too serious or perfect. 5. Waffles Sweet Tray Illustration: Now I started out by sketching the dessert tray using the six P Procreate pencil brush. It's honestly one of my favorites when I want something that feels soft and just a little textured, kind of like working in a real sketchbook. I didn't worry too much about making things super perfect here. I just wanted the sketch to feel natural and relaxed. The tray slightly tilted and I layered the dessert slices in a way that lets them overlap just a bit, giving the whole thing a cozy stack c. I also made sure each light had its own little details like sprinkles or icing because I knew that would give me a chance to play with colors and shine later when I get into my candy glass brushes. This cat stage is where I really like to keep it loose. I'm not trying to be precise or polished at this point. I'm just setting the mood for what's coming next. And I try to enjoy the shapes, the lines, and the imperfections. If you are following along, feel free to sketch your own favorite dessert or snack in a similar layout. Just make it fun and make it yours. After sketching my dessert illustration using the six B pencil brush, I switched over to one of my absolute favorites, the Bb Ladders Procreate brush from my candy gloss collection. I love how it gives a soft but playful edges to the lines. It's not too harsh and not too delicate. It has that perfect handmade vibe that feels both fun and approachable. You can totally use any brush you are comfortable with here, but I personally enjoy this one because it adds a little personality to every line. As I traced over the pencil sketch, I didn't worry about perfection. I let my hand flow naturally, keeping the shapes a little wobbly, a little imperfect, but that's exactly what makes it feel more real and joyful. I find that these kinds of details bring charm into this illustration and make it look less stiff. You can already see how this step transforms the drawing, bringing it to life with just the outline. It's like the artwork starts to talk back to you in the gentlest way, and that's always my favorite part. Watching a simple sketch start to feel like it has a story. Now that my lines are all set, I'm diving into the base coloring stage, and I always find this part to be so calming. It's almost meditative. I begin by filling in the waffles first. I choose a warm, golden honey like shade. That instantly gives the dessert a cozy and too good feel. I'm not thinking too much about shading yet. This is just about laying down that flat base color, and there's something really relaxing about that simplicity. I zoomed in just a bit to stay inside the edges, but I also like letting some of those edges be imperfect. It gives the whole illustration a handmade painterly vibe, which is something I always lean toward in my art style. The base layer doesn't have to be perfect. It's more about starting to bring the illustration to life through color. I take my time with each section of the waffle selling in one segment at a time so that I can get a sense of the overall shape and rhythm. You will notice, I'm not rushing through this. I really like giving each part its moment, especially when it's food illustration. The golden color really glows against the white canvas, and I love how it sets the tone for what's coming up next. I always say, start with the part of the illustration that excites you the most. And for me, that was these little waffle blocks. They are just so charming. Once the waffles are all filled in, I move to the plate for the background. I wanted something that would control softly but still feel playful. So I picked a light lavender tone. It's cool and soft, and it plays really nicely against the warmth of the waffles. I go ahead and block in the whole plate in one go. It's a bigger section, but I'm keeping my brush size consistent so that color feels even throughout. I try not to overwork this part, letting the color flow and cover the space is enough. The goal here is simply to give structure to this illustration. And once the background comes in, the waffles instantly start to pop more. And again, I'm not stressing over perfect fills. So at this stage, it's all about laying the groundwork, just big colors, warm and cool tones, and letting the illustration start to speak back to me before I move into the details. I went ahead and started outlining the plate. And for that, I choose a much deeper, more intense purple. It creates that nice clean edge I like and gives the plate a defined shape without being too harsh. I followed the lines I had originally sketched just slightly sharpening and polishing them so they have stand out against the lighter tones. You will notice I'm not trying to make the lines perfectly uniform. I actually enjoy a little unevenness. It keeps the illustration playful and keeps me from overthinking every corner. Then I began building up the inside of the plate with different shades. I kept layering purples, not too dramatically different from the base stone, but just enough that it created variation and movement. It's like I was slowly sculpting with color instead of clay. I tried to keep the edges soft and blend in a few places while also letting some strokes remain a little rough and sketchy, because I personally like when it looks like a painting in progress rather than a perfectly polished graphic illustration. There's something satisfying about painting the object that's holding your main subject. Even though it's just the background. In this case, the plate becomes a stage for the waffle, so I wanted to give it love and attention. I didn't want it to feel flat, so I used a variety of brush pressures and layering techniques. Again, nothing super refined, just initiative, lose, and kind of letting my hand move without overthinking. As I fill in the side planes of the plate, I let the brush strokes follow the angles to give it that glassy dimensional wipe. Now that I had already mapped out the shapes and filled in the base color for the waffles, I started to really slow down and enjoy adding depth and dimension to each piece. I love this part because it's where everything starts to feel a little more alive. I wasn't thinking about making things perfect. I just let my hand move across the screen in a way that felt comfortable. Like I was gently layering in personality one stroke at a time. I focused on each individual waffle, adding slightly darker tones to areas that felt like they would be a bit more in shadow, especially on the bottom edges and where the waffles overlap. I was picturing them stacked neatly on a plate warm and golden, maybe fresh out of the waffle maker. I think that kind of cozy daydream helps me decide where to adapt. It's not about accuracy, but about how it feels. Once the shading was in, I wanted to bring in a lighter areas to hint at that golden crispiness waffles usually have around the top ridges. So here I just starting layering on this light yellow almost like a sunshine tone, and I'm focusing on the tops of each waffle piece. Like, these areas would naturally catch more light. So I'm thinking about where that soft highlight might fall if this were an actual plate of waffles sitting by a sunny window. But I'm also not trying to be too perfect about it. I just want it to look happy and warm. I go one by one, waffle by waffle and just gently start applying the lighter shade. Sometimes I dab the color on and then slightly soften the edges, so it feels like it's blending into the rest of the waffle shape. After finishing the base layers earlier, I spend this entire part of this process just working on the sprinkles. It was a slow and enjoyable step where I let myself having fun with details. Each waffle felt like its own mini canvas, so I gave them all something unique, different sprinkled colors, different styles, and a slightly different placement rhythm. I didn't try to make the sprinkles perfect or symmetrical. Instead, I added them one by one in a relaxed way, letting some cluster closer together while others stayed more spaced out. One waffle got tiny rainbow dots, another got little pink and white dashes, and one ended up with lots of tiny white sugar dots that gave it this cozy bake look. It was calming to repeat the motion, almost meditative, tapping them and using light pressure and letting the color combinations play off each other. It's one of those steps that really brings the painting to life without brushing anything. And I didn't change anything else. I didn't go back to the plate or at shadows, just sprinkles, carefully placed and happily layered, adding sweetness and texture to every single waffle. So now the waffles are already looking super colorful with all those playful sprinkles, but something feels like it's missing, right, that depth and richness you get when you add a little contrast underneath. And for this one, I knew I wanted to bring in some chocolate layers just below the sprinkles to help them pop even more. I really wanted them to feel like they are melted right onto each waffle like a sweet little chocolate glaze on every corner. I started working from left to right, just gently filling in under the sprinkle areas using a nice warm brown. I kept it kind of loose at first just to get the bay tonee in, not worrying too much about perfection here. What matters most is how the chocolate layer interacts with the toppings. That little peak of color that adds richness, especially on those edges where the sprinkle colors meets the waffle. Now that the waffles are layered with their sprinkles and toppings, I moved onto something that ties the whole illustration together the plate. Even though it's just a background element, I love giving it just as much attention because it frames the entire illustration and helps anchor the color palette. So for this part, I started building up the base color of the plate. I went with a light blue tone, something a bit cooler to balance out all those warm waffle hues. I like how this color twice keeps a focus on the waffles while still feeling playful. I didn't go too flat with the color either instead. I let the strokes show a little giving it a casual energy that keeps the whole thing from feeling too polished or stiff. Also began shaving the outer edges of the plate with a slightly darker shade, just to bring in that contrast and help separate the plate from the background. I always find that adding just a bit of shadow around the edges really helps everything pop without needing to go full realism. So now at this stage, I wasn't too concerned about perfect lines or symmetry. I was more focused on how the plate feels visually in relation to the waffles. As I worked my way across the plate, I kept adjusting the tones to make sure they were sitting well against the bright pinks and oranges from the waffles. I love that mix of warm and cool. It just brings the whole piece to life. I love that mix of warm and cool. And honestly, sometimes it's these smaller background elements that really pull the whole illustration together in the end. I will keep building on this plate in the next steps. But for now, this was all about getting the first layer of personality down. It's already starting to feel like a fun breakfast scene, and I'm excited to add in more dimension next. I came back to the waffles for just a little bit. There was something about the lighting that felt like it needed a tiny push. I didn't want to overwork them, so I kept it really simple and intentional. I focused only on soft subtle highlights, just enough to make those golden ridges pop a little more. So I started working on the background, and for this one, I really wanted a background to feel playful and light hearted, kind of like a cozy kitchen towel laid out on a table, just subtle enough to support the waffles and plate, but still holding its own in the composition. I choose a soft coral pink tone to lay the base. It felt cheerful but not overwhelming. You can see how it starts matching together the outer edges of the plate. To bring in a bit more energy, I started layering those brighter diagonal stripes. I didn't want them to be perfectly symmetrical or clean, something relaxed, fun, and flowy. Almost like hand painted strokes across this piece of fabric. I made sure to keep the placement balanced around the tray, using them more like gentle framing elements rather than a full pattern background. And one thing I kept reminding myself as I filled in the background, don't overthink it. It's really easy to get caught in making things look right. But I find when I let the brush strokes flow a little looser, the piece feels more alive. These small imperfections like the uneven spacing or the slight wobble in the lines actually help the whole illustration breath better. So here I'm just layering the color in, adjusting the saturation a bit to see what works best. And slowly the background begins to tie everything together. If you are doing this along with me, don't stress too much about matching it exactly. Think of the background like your own little space to play. You can go bolder or softer depending on your vibe. The key is just giving your central objects a place to belong. That extra layer behind it all makes such a difference in how the illustration feels when it's done. 6. Fruity Waffle Treat Illustration: So now I'm starting off this new illustration. I'm using the six B pencil here because it gives that lovely textured feel kind of like a traditional sketch, which I really love. There is something cozy about beginning this way. It slows me down and makes me more intentional. I decided to sketch out this round waffle shape, and it's honestly been so much fun breaking down the sections. I'm not going for perfect symetry here, just a gentle balance between neat and whimsical. I added a variety of small square indentse on each half to really bring that waffle texture forward. Right in the center, I have clustered a few strawberries and some banana slices. I kept the shapes very loose and playful. I didn't worry about getting them perfectly realistic. I just wanted to capture that joyful feeling of a fruity breakfast topping. I even tucked in a couple of little leaves to give it some freshness. There's something so satisfying about starting a sketch like this. All the possibilities are still open, and I'm just playing around with ideas. I like working with just one clean brush at this stage. Nothing too fancy or polished. Now comes the fine pot, switching from pencil to ink. And for this illustration, I'm using one of my absolute favorites from the candy glass brush pack. That is bubbly Letters Procreate brush. Starting with the outer circle, I traced over the waffles rim in one smooth go. Then slowly I work my way inward, outlining the grade of square intense that give waffles their signature look. I made sure to vary my pressure just a little. Some lines are thicker, others lighter, so it still feels hand drawn and approachable, nothing too perfect here. For the fruit cluster, I traced around each strawberry, blueberry, and slice with care following the curves, but letting the brush character show through. The seeds on the strawberries, the ivc, even the gentle cuts on the banana slices, all of it got a soft, bubbly outline. What's interesting here is that the stage sets the entire tone for the rest of the illustration with this brush. Even before I add color, it already has a friendly, cheerful vibe like a dessert menu doodle or a fun kid's illustration. At this stage, I moved into what I call the base painting phase. It's a part where I begin laying down flat colors across the entire illustration. This part is always exciting because everything that was just a sketch before now starts to get some personality through color. I started by filling the waffle. I kept it a warm, rich, orange brown to capture that classic baked waffle look. I wasn't trying to do anything complicated here, keeping the tone even, letting the color fall neatly inside the shapes I outlined earlier. The goal was to make sure the waffle base look clean and recognizable without jumping ahead to any extra details or shading yet. Next, I moved on to the fruit toppings. The strawberries came first, and I fill them in with a deep red. I kept the shape solid and uniform, not too bright, not too dark, just enough to make them feel fresh and ripe. Then I added the kiwi slices. These were so fun to color in because their natural vibrancy make them instantly eye catching. I picked a bold bright green, so they would really pop against the warm waffle tons. The bananas were the last fruit I tackled in the step. I would choose a soft light yellow to keep their presence gentle and warm. The waffle as previously outlined and filled with a light golden brown that begins to carry the warmth and depth of something real, something tangible. And it all happens through a single thoughtful decision, adding a slightly darker brown into each of those little squares inside the waffle. Instead of rushing to finish all the components, I choose to slow down and honor the structure of the waffle. Every block was treated with care like tiny pockets of crips edges that needed to feel toasted, cozy and just right. Keeping the color flat, but deeper than the base, I didn't overcomplicate the texture. There's also something meditative about this stage as your hand moves slowly across the screen, filling in block after block with this rich toasted brown, the process itself felt calm. It wasn't just about adding color. It was about letting the waffle breathe. I gave it depth without overpowering it. I made it feel finished but still soft and sweet. Darker brown started playing beautifully with the bright greens of the kiwi, the reds of the strawberries, and the sunshine, yellow of the bananas. Suddenly, everything began working together. It's a gentle reminder of how meaningful it can be to focus on just one area and how even the quietest parts of a painting can carry so much weight. Those little square blocks, they hold the whole thing together. They are the foundation that lets everything else pop. And by giving them just a little extra care, I brought balance to the whole illustration. Now it's time to shift our focus to the little square blocks on the waffle. I began gently luring in lighter tones inside each of the great squares, keeping my strokes soft and controlled. This is a moment where the waffles strt to visually warm up, dose golden, honey like tones begin peeking through the darker foundation, giving a dark cooked crispy surface. I carefully choose a shade just light enough to contrast the deep brown base I laid down earlier without overpowering it. The goal here wasn't to highlight every single block perfectly or to make it too realistic. Once the fruit toppings were complete and the waffle blocks already had their baked daft, I moved on to a gentler but equally important step. Adding soft, lighter yellow tones across the entire upper surface of the waffle. Using a gentle pressure on my apple pencil and a slightly brighter buttery yellow, I began brushing over the top layer of the waffle. My strokes were wide and loose, not bound by the edges of the squares because I wanted to capture the golden softness of a freshly cooked waffle right off the pin. I didn't want it to feel flat, so I allowed some unevenness in my brushwork to show how real waffles catch light unevenly, depending on how they are cooked. As I moved from one section to the next, the entire surface began to glow. It was such a subtle change, but it brought everything together. Now that the waffle base is starting to glow with all that warm, I turned my attention to the fruits. This is where the real joy begins. I started adding details to the strawberries first. Using a lighter pinkish shade, I carefully dotted the surface of each strawberry, making sure those tiny seeds pop just enough to give them a little spark of realism. These strawberries are such a strong red that the soft contrast with lighter pink makes them feel like they are busting with juice sweetness. After the strawberries, I moved on to the kiwi slices. I used a darker green tone to define the radial lines coming out from the center of each kiwi slice. It's a small touch, but it gives the fruit that distant look almost like sun rays peeking through. Then with an even darker shade, I gently paste dots all around the coat to resemble the tiny kiwi seeds. This tap really brought the kiwis to life, giving them that refreshing feel we all love. The bright green surrounded by those deeper tones are just enough contrast to make them stand out against the golden waffle background. And then came the bananas. For these soft mellow yellow slices, I used a warm ochre color to define the edges and add just a bit of curve shading near the center. It gave each banana slice some septle dimension without overpowering its soft tone. A little curved highlight near the outer edges of each banana slice gave them that slight sheen like they were freshly cut and sitting right on top of the waffles. This tab was all about bringing the food toppings to life, not with too much complexity, but with just enough playful detail to make each illustration look like it belongs. The contrast of colors, the layering of shapes, and the joy of watching everything slowly come together felt so satisfying. Now that the bay stones and the fruit toppings are in place, I'm going in with a slightly lighter shade of golden yellow. This tap really softens the overall look of the waffle and gives it more warmth and texture. Instead of coloring inside the small square blocks, I'm focusing only on the flat upper surface that surrounds them. This is where I want the light to hit gently, so I'm applying those lighter strokes with a soft hand, just enough to brighten the surface without overpowering the warmth of the base. As I continue layering, I'm letting the brush strokes follow the natural roundness of the waffle. This gives a soft pillowy texture. I'm not going for a perfect highlight here. It's more about building a sense of depth as if the waffle is slightly raised and catching soft light from the top left. Now that the toppings are done, I'm moving back to the waffle base and focusing on giving those golden blocks a bit more glow. I'm using a lighter, slightly creamy yellow tone, not too bright, just enough to catch the light. For each square block, I'm only applying this lighter shade to half of the surface. I'm choosing one side of the block, typically the top left or top right, depending on where I want the light source to feel like it's coming from. This technique is subtle, but adds so much warmth and makes the waffle feel toasty and dimensional. You will notice I'm placing this lighter brownish shade along the upper edge or one side of the square, kind of like giving the waffle a little spotlight from the top right corner. It's subtle, but it makes such a difference. These lighter tones gives a sense of warmth, almost like the waffle stock layer caught a bit more light while it was baking. Instead of being a flat color, this new layer helps suggest that the waffle has a toasted texture by only covering part of each block. I'm not just adding color. I'm thinking about dimension. This helps each square pop a little and creates the illusion that they are gently puffed up rather than completely flat. I'm also being careful to keep the strokes soft, nothing too harsh or sharp, so that it feels like the light is just gently brushing over the surface. After I felt happy with the structure of the waffle, I turned my attention back to the fruit toppings. For the strawberries, I added tiny specks of lighter pink and a soft white along the curves to give that plum glistening look like howbrries catch the light in the sun. I got a bit more love here, too. I tapped in some curve shadows between the little parts and lifted the top edges slightly so they wouldn't look too flat. Then came the bananas and kiwis. For the bananas. I added some buttery yellow strokes in the center of each slice. Then pulled in soft creamy color near the edges. It made them look thick, smooth, and a little more dimensional. These final touches might look small, but they tie everything together. They help your eye move from one fruit to the next balancing color. I always love this part. It feels like the moment where everything clicks into place. Now that the waffle and all the fruits were fully detailed and sitting beautifully at the center, it was time to think about the environment around them. I didn't want a plain white canvas. It felt too empty for something this warm and cheerful. So I decided to softly build a background that would gently frame the waffle without paying too much attention. I began by choosing a pastel lavender tone. It felt soft, calm, and just playful enough to pair with the bright yellow tones of the waffle and the vibrant fruits. It gave the whole illustration a comforting contrast, something that made this illustration feel grounded and complete. I started painting loose horizontal strokes behind the waffle, nothing too harsh or precise, quiet movement, like the folds of a cloth or the flow of a morning breeze across a breakfast table. I made sure to let the lines curve slightly and peek from the sides, creating a sense of cozy space without enclosing the food illustration too tightly. By the end, the background gave this illustration a finished feel, just quite cosy wamp behind all the color. 7. Waffle Dessert Illustration Sketch and Background Colors : I'm going to make this illustration by using one proct brush from my sweet scape glamurPcd brush bag, and let's get started. Whenever I start a new illustration, I don't really think about making a perfect sketch. I just want to get the idea out of my head and onto the canvas. That's why this first sketch looks pretty messy. I'm using my six B proprid pencil brush, and I'm just drawing freely, letting the lines overlap and figuring things out as I go. I actually like sketching this way because it takes away a lot of pressure. If something doesn't look quite right, I don't stop and erase it straight away. I just draw another line. It just shape a little and keep moving. Once I have the basic idea drawn, I slow things down a little. This is where I start cleaning up the drawing and turning that rough sketch into something I can actually build on. I'm refining the shapes, fixing proportions, and making sure everything sits where I want it before I even think about adding color. One thing I've learned is that it's really worth giving your sketch a little extra time. It doesn't have to be perfect. You are not constantly correcting shapes while you're painting because you have already worked those things out beforehand. I know it's tempting to rush through this sketch and get to the fun part. But really, a few extra minutes here you can save a lot of time later. Now that I'm happy with this sketch. I'm switching over to one of the brushes from my sweet scape climber Porcad brush bag. You can see it on the screen to start outlining the illustration. Well, this is a brush. I like using When I want my linework to feel a little softer and a little more playful, you know? Before I add any colors, I always like spending some time with the outline. It might seem like a simple step, but I think, like, the linework really sets the overall foundation or structure of this painting. Like every curve and every little detail starts becoming more defined now, and this is where the sketch slowly begins turning into a finished one. As I'm tracing over the sketch, I'm not trying to copy every single line exactly. Sometimes I will smooth a curve, simplify a shape, or make something just a little rounder than it was in the sketch. Also like keeping my hand moving at a relaxed pace, you know, instead of trying to make every stroke perfect, if I overthink every line, the drawing can start feeling stiff. I know this. So when I stay relaxed, the curves feel much more natural, and the illustrcian keeps that loose, and I really enjoy it. One thing I really pay attention during the whole process, is making sure the different elements are easy to read for me because I have to work on it, and there are quite a few toppings and little details in this illustration. So I'm trying to keep enough space between them that nothing feels crowded together. I also find this to be one of the most satisfying parts of the process because every few strokes makes such a noticeable difference. This guy slowly disappears underneath, and now the illustration starts looking more clear to me. So now I'm moving on to the filling in the wayful section. Just like before I am starting with the base colors first, I know it can be tempting to jump straight into adding shadows and all those little details. But taking a few extra minutes to build a solid foundation always makes the rest of the Illustration much easier. And that is how I work. Whenever I'm coloring something with lots of small shapes like waffle, I try not to think about every individual section all at once. Instead, I treat it as one larger shape first, once the overall color is in place. I can come back and gradually give each little square its own that tint. Corrector. I'm also paying attention to keeping the colors consistent across the whole wa full. Even though some areas will eventually become darker than others, I still want the base layer to feel unified. Something that has helped me over the years is reminding myself that base colors don't have to look impressive on their own. There are somebody there to support everything that comes afterward. If your artwork feels a little flat right now, that's completely normal. You don't need to worry about for that. I also like to work at a relax space because there are so many repeating shapes. Slowing down helps me avoid missing little areas or accidentally coloring outside the outlines. It might take a little longer, but it usually saves me time later because I don't have to go back and fix as many small mistakes. It's amazing how different an artwork can look when you stop focusing on one tiny section. This is also the point where I start imagining how the finished illustration will look. I can already picture where the darker shadows will sit, Been the waffle sections. Where the warmer tones will make everything feel more golden and where the brightest highlights will catch more light to me. Even though none of those details are there yet, you can see this. We are just working on filling background colors. But having that picture in mind makes it much easier to decide how I want to build up the next layers. One thing I always remind my students is that you don't have to finish one section completely before moving on to the next one. So now I'm moving onto the chocolate sauce, and this is one of my favorite parts because it instantly starts making the dessert look much richer. Instead of pressure the brush down firmly, I'm actually using a much lighter hand. That lighter pressure naturally gives me a softer, dark brown with a little bit of variation, which works really well for chocolate. I actually like letting the brush do some of the work for me here. Rather than trying to force every stroke to look perfectly smooth, I allow a few subtle changes in the color to happen naturally for me. One thing I try to avoid is filling every area with exactly the same shade of brown. Real chocolate, you know, isn't completely flat in color. Even when you're looking at a simple drizzle, you will usually notice slightly darker areas where it's thicker in, slightly lighter areas where the light hits it. So, you know, like, keeping those natural variations in mind makes a big difference. So right now, I'm not worried about making it look shiny just yet. Right now, actually, I'm building that rich chocolate base first. And so I'm happy with the overall dap. I will come back later with lighter tones and highlights to create that glossy finish. I know it's a small detail, but changing the pressure of your brush can completely change how texture feels. Sometimes the simplest adjustment like pressing just a little more lightly. It creates a much more natural result that constantly changing colors. So now I'm moving on to the strawberries, and this is always one of my favorite one because the illustration starts feeling much more balanced to me. I mean, adding some fruits on the top is very cool. Before I start thinking about texture or tiny details, I like to choose a red that works well with the rest of the color palette because I didn't necessarily pick the brightest red, you know, at first. Instead, I look for one that feels natural alongside with the chocolate and waffle without making one element compete too much with the others one. I think color harmony is just as important as the drawing itself because even a simple illustration can feel much more clear and structure when the colors work together. I'm also paying attention to their placement throughout the composition. Like, since there are several one of them, I want them to feel that your eye is actually moving all around the dessert rather than making one corner feel much heavier than another one, even though they are small details, but I think they play a big role in creating a whole composition. Another thing I enjoy is that strawberries aren't perfectly identical. Like, they are not same. Like, some are slightly wider, some are taller and some have softer curves than others. I try to keep those little differences instead of forcing everybody to match exactly like the same. So now I'm moving onto the ice cream, and I think this is element that ties the whole dessert together. I'll just love ice cream, even though it's only one part of the illustration, it naturally becomes a resting place for my eyes because it's surrounded by so many richer colors and textures. For the base color, I'm choosing a soft creamy yellow instead of a bright white. Even before adding any shadows, a warmer color helps to feel softer. Pure white can sometimes feel a bit flat, so starting with a gentle green tone gives me much more flexibility when it's time to add alls later, you know, all about values and arcs. The next time, we will start adding more dp, softer transitions and highlights that will make it look much more creamer and give it that finished look. But you will see all of that later, adding color to the whipped cream, and I have chosen a soft muddy bluish instead of leaving it plain white. I really enjoy introducing unexpected colors like this because they give the illustration a little more unique style, even though whipped cream is white. Using a gentle blue creates a fun stylized look while still keeping it soft and creamy. As long as the colors work together, you have a lot of freedom to experiment and create your own version of a subject. So you can definitely do a lot of experiments on your illustration. We have the golden waffle, rich chocolate, bright strawberries and warm jalous. So adding just a little cool color helps everything feel more balanced to me. I'm also adding a few chocolate drizels over the ice cream. These little details help connect different parts of the dessert together. Instead of every topping sitting separately, the chocolate acts like a thread that ties the waffle, ice cream and fruit into one complete composition. 8. Waffle Dessert Illustration Building Strawberries, Icecream and Cream: So now I'm giving some attention to the plate and a little decorative stick. These might seem like very small elements, but I think they are just as important as the dessert itself. Sometimes it's the supporting details that quietly bring everything together without drawing too much attention to themselves. The plate helps present the dessert. If it's too bright or too detailed, it can compete with the main subject, and that is the waffle. If it's too plain, the illustration can feel unfinished. So finding that middle ground is what I'm aiming for here. Make sure we always look for the balanced kind of work in artwork. So the little decorative stick is another tiny detail for this one, even though it's a very small part of the illustration, giving it its own color helps I feel intentional rather than something that was added at the last minute. One thing I always remind myself is that every object on the canvas has a purpose. Not every part needs to be bold or full of detail. Sometimes the quieter elements are what allow the main subject to shine. So after filling all of the background colors, this is the stage actually where I start looking at the artwork as one complete piece instead of thinking about individual ingredients, rather than asking, like, does this strawberry look right? Does this waffle look finish? I'm asking, does everything work together, even though it's always satisfying reaching this point because the dessert is no longer just a collection of separate objects. The plate, the decorations, the toppings, and all the little details begin working together, and I'm loving it. Now that all of the main colors are in place, I finally get to spend some proper time on the strawberries, and I think this is one of my favorite parts of the whole illustration. Yes, I love strawberries. Up until now, everything has mostly been about laying a foundation, getting the composition balanced, and making sure every element has a place to build from. But the strawberries are where I can slow down a little and start giving the illustration more dimension. So they are already recognizable from the base color, but right now, they still feel very flat. So my goal isn't to complete transform them with one layer. Instead, I just want to build them gradually. I will place a few strokes, look at them for a second, maybe zoom out, then decide what they need next. Sometimes they need a richer red, sometimes a softer pink, and sometimes they don't need another color at all. They just need the colors that are already there to blend together a little more. I know it's a slower way of working, but I actually enjoy it because I never feel like I'm forcing this illustration to get done. One thing I have learned about time is that strawberries are surprisingly colorful. At first glance, we think they are simply red, but when you really start observing them, there are so many little shifts happening across the surface. Some areas lean toward pink, some are warmer, some are deeper, and some cats so much light that they almost lose their red completely. I don't try to copy every tiny variation exactly, but I do borrowing that idea and bringing it into this illustration. Like, those little changes make everything feel much more natural to me, like using just one solid trade from beginning to end. I also try not to paint every strawberry in exactly the same way. Even though they are sitting together on the same dessert, I like each one to feel slightly different from the others. Maybe one catches a little more light because of where it's sitting. While another is tucked closer to the waffle, it naturally feels a little darker. So those tiny differences might not stand out individually, but together, they stop the illustration from feeling too repetitive. So it creates much more relaxed, natural look without needing anything overly complicated. Another thing I pay attention to is the size of my brush strokes. At the beginning of illustration, I don't really think about that because I'm mostly filling larger areas and my canvas size is big. So but once I reach this stage, I automatically start making much smaller marks. Instead of covering big sections all at once, that's one of the reasons illustrations suddenly start looking more detail near the end. It's not always because you are using more colors sometimes. It's simply because your brush strokes become more thoughtful than intentional. I keep moving between all of the strawberries instead of finishing one completely before touching the next one, I might brighten one, then switch to another, then come back to the first one a few minutes later, you know. So I actually prefer working this way because it really helps me compare everything together. If I completely finish one strawberry first, there's always a chance to end up looking much more detailed than the rest one. So by building all of them little by little, they grow together and stay balanced throughout the process. I also keep checking how these reds work beside all the other colors that are already on the canvas. The waffle has those warm golden browns. The chocolate sauce is much darker. The ice cream has softer creamy tones, and now these strawberries are bringing in a much brighter splash of color. If the reds become too strong, they will steal attention from everything else. So if they are too dull, they will disappear into the composition. So right now isn't only about making the strawberries look good on their own. It's also about making sure they work with every other element around them. Sometimes while painting, I notice myself wanting to add every little detail I can think of. But I have learned that illustrations don't always need every possible detail to feel complete. I mean, in fact, stopping at the right moment is often harder than knowing what to add. So while I'm building these strawberries, I'm constantly asking myself one question. Does this layer actually improve the illustration or am I adding it just because I can? Can you see the difference of these two questions? That little question has saved me from overworking so many paintings over the years. I think one of the nicest things about digital painting is that it gives you the freedom to experiment without feeling nervous. So if I try a brighter color and don't like it, I can always adjust it later. That freedom makes it much easier to enjoy this stage. Instead of worrying about getting everything perfect immediately, because of that, I feel much more comfortable slowly exploring the colors and seeing where the lustration naturally wants to go instead of planning every single step from the beginning. Strawberries are also helping create little resting points for the eye. When someone eventually looks at the finished lustration, their attention won't stay in just one place. Their eyes will naturally travel from the waffle over to the chocolate, across the strawberries, and then toward the ice cream. So, you know, that those brighter reds help guide that movement around the artwork without me having to do anything super dramatic. I also love this point in this process because it's when everything starts feeling connected instead of looking like separate pieces because we are building just one lustration, but it's all filled up so many components there. So earlier, it felt like I was painting individual objects one by one because I was feeling the base color. But now those objects are beginning to interact with each other. These strawberries no longer feel like decorations, sitting on top. They are becoming part of the overall dessert. I'm not trying to chase perfection. I'm simply trying to make each strawberry feel a little fuller than it did a minute ago. So now I'm moving over to the ice cream, and I always feel like this changes the mood of the illustration a little. Up until now, I have been working with textures that have lots of edges and little details like the waffle pattern, the chocolate drizle and the strawberries. You can see that. But the ice cream is completely different. Instead of sharp edges and tiny details and thinking about softness, I want it to look light, creamy and smooth, almost like it was slowly melt if you left it sitting there for a little while. Instead, I'm looking at the larger curves first. Those flowing folds are what make the scoop look soft and rounded. So before worrying about anything else, I spend time following those natural shapes. You know, you have to move your hand super freely for that. Once those curves feel right, everything that comes afterward becomes much easier. I'm imagining how the scoop would naturally catch the light. Unlike the waffle, which has lots of little corners or the strawberries, with their tiny seeds and uneven surface ice cream reflects light, much more gently. So the transitions between light and shadow are softer. So I try to keep my brush strokes relaxed instead of making strong. That makes dramatic changes. I also like thinking about the overall shape instead of focusing on tiny details too early. Sometimes it's easy to get excited and immediately start adding highlights. You know how peaceful it feels compared to some of the earlier parts of the illustration. Like, there isn't the same kind of persuasion that I needed for outlining or filling small sections. Here I can let my brush move a little more freely following the natural curves of the scoop instead of worrying about perfectly straight edges. You know, it's a nice change of paste, and I think it keeps the whole painting process feeling fresh. So now I'm moving on to the whipped cream, and I think this is one of those little details that quietly brings the whole dessert together, even though it doesn't take up as much space as a waffle or the strawberries. One thing I really like about painting whipped cream is that I don't approach it the same way I approach the other parts of the illustration. With a waffle, I was thinking about structure and repeating patterns. With the strawberries, I was building richness and little color variations. With ice cream, I was focusing on smooth curves and rounded volume, but whipped cream feels much lighter than all of those. My brush strokes naturally become softer because I want the texture to feel airy instead of solid. I'm imagining how whipped cream is actually piped onto desserts. It isn't perfectly smooth and it doesn't have sharp corners. Instead, it naturally twists, folds over itself, and forms soft little ridges at it settles. So those flowing shapes are what I'm paying attention to the most. I also love how the cream appears in several different places throughout this illustration instead of sitting in only one spot. So there's a real resting beside the ice cream, another on top and smaller portions stuck between the waffle pieces. Because these little sections are spread around the desert, help connect everything visually. So I'm painting and thinking about all of them together rather than treating each one as a completely separate object. Keep in mind is that whipped cream naturally sits on top of other ingredients instead of blending into them. So while I'm building these shapes, I'm paying close attention to where each fold begins and ends. I want it to look like it's gently resting on the waffle and beside the ice cream rather than becoming part of those objects. Actually, find this part of the process very relaxing because there isn't the same pressure to add lots of tiny details. Most of the work comes from slowly shaping the larger folds and letting the highlights and shadows describe the forms. It's amazing how just a few carefully paced strokes can suddenly make something feel much softer without adding a huge amount of complexity. I'm constantly looking at the overall balance instead of zooming into one little still for too long. Since there are several small portions throughout the dessert, I don't want one area to look much more finished than another one. I usually add a few strokes to one section, move to another, then come back again later. Working this way helps me everything develop at the same pace. 9. Waffle Dessert Illustration Building Waffles and Chocolate anf Final Highlights : Always enjoy reaching this point because all of those individual pieces finally begin working together as one instead of feeling like separate objects painted one after another. That's why I try to create these kind of illustrations for you folks, so you have better idea that how the way you can combine all of the elements together in one artwork. I'm just adding a lighter shade along the outline of the plate and giving the little decorative stick a lighter tone as well. These aren't big changes, but they are kind of details I always enjoy adding near the end of an illustration. Even a small adjustment like this can make everything feel a little cleaner and more finished. Like, I don't want these elements to stand out too much because they are not meant to be the focus of the artwork for now, but they are simply there to support the dessert. Like I told you before while I was feeling the color on the background. Because it helps everything feel connected. Sometimes it's surprised how saying a lighter tone can make an object look more defined without needing lots of extra shading or detail. I like keeping these finishing touches up till because they let the main subjects stay the center of my attention while still giving the surrounding elements a more cohesive look, or you can say the balanced one. I can look at the illustration as a whole and decide exactly how much each part needs. So in this case, just a gentle lighter shade is enough to complete both the plate and the little decorative stick without making them feel overworked. Now I'm starting to build up the waffle itself, and this is the one where it really begins changing from a simple shape into something that feels much more dimensional. Earlier, the base colors were mainly there to map everything out, but now I'm paying much more attention to the little surfaces and how it suction relates to the next one. So here you can see that this is a part where I stop thinking about the waffle as one object and begin looking at it as lots of small sections working together. One thing I always find interesting about waffles is that they have such a recognizable texture. You don't need hundreds of tiny details for people to immediately know what they are looking at just by carefully building the rays sections and letting the little pockets become more defined, the waffle starts becoming much more believable. I think that's why I enjoy this day so much. Every few brush strokes make a noticeable difference, and it feels like the illustration slowly wakes up. Yes, more of the texture begin to appear. So I'm not trying to finish one side before moving to another. I usually move around the waffle quite a bit, adding a little here and there, then another section there, and then coming back again. I can compare different areas while they are all developing together. So if I completely finish one corner first, there would always be a chance that it ended up looking much stronger than the rest one. So I also spend a lot of time looking at the overall rhythm of the texture. Since waffles have repeating shapes, it's easy to accidentally make everything look too perfect. I actually try to avoid that. Tiny variations from one section to another make the illustration feel, I think, much more natural. Some edges become a little stronger, others say softer in some areas, naturally, you save a little more attention depending on what's happening around them. So those little differences stop the repeating pattern from feeling stiff. Other thing I really enjoy at this point is watching how the waffle begins interacting with the other ingredients instead of existing on its own. Earlier, each part almost felt separate while I was painting it individually. But now the waffle is sitting beneath the chocolate, supporting the strawberries, holding the whipped cream and connecting everything together. Instead of seeing separate objects, I'm starting to see one complete dessert taking shape, and I always think that's one of the most satisfying parts of the process. Every time I add another little section to the waffle, I naturally zoom out for a moment to see how it affects the whole composition. Sometimes a small adjustment in one era is all that's needed to make everything feel more balanced. It reminds me that texture isn't only about adding more lines or more details. Sometimes it's about deciding not to add something. Living a few quieter eras allows the more detailed sections to stand out naturally. So if every single part receives exactly the same amount of attention, I think the illustration can start feeling super py. I think building the waffle is probably one of the most patient parts of this illustration because there isn't one dramatic breast stroke that suddenly changes everything. Instead, it's a collection of lots of small decisions made one after another. So each little adjustment may seem insignificant on its own, but after repeating the process over and over, the difference becomes really noticeable. That's something I love about illustration in general. Always remember, progress often comes from many tiny improvements rather than one big change. Began noticing how much more believable the dessert feels overall. The waffle starts looking like it has thickness instead of being a flat drying, and it gives the topping something solid to sit on. That sense of structure helps every other element. Feel more convincing, as well. So I'm happy with this one. The waffle no longer feels like a simple base underneath the toppings. It actually becomes an important part of the dessert itself with enough character to support everything else without pulling your attention away from the strawberries, chocolate, and ice cream, I always enjoy taking my time here because these smaller refinements quietly strengthen the whole illustration. So now I'm spending some time building up the chocolate, and this is always one of the most satisfying parts of the illustration for me. The chocolate is already there from the early layers. But right now, it still feels a little flat. You know, this is all about giving it more richness and helping it feel like it's naturally flowing across a waffle instead of simply sitting on top as a solid shape. I don't think of chocolate as something with lots of tiny details. I think about how it moves, how it curves, and how it gently wraps itself around the surface beneath it. So as I add more layers, I'm paying close attention to the direction of every stroke. Chocolate has a very smooth flowing quality. So I want my brush strokes to follow that same movement. Instead of making random marks, I'm letting E stroke travel along the trisle almost as I'm tracing the path the chocolate would take while it slowly pours over the waffle. One thing I really enjoy is watching the chocolate slowly gain more depth without adding lots of extra colors. Sometimes it isn't about introducing something completely new. It's about strengthening what's already there. A few carefully pasted layers can completely change how rich the chocolate looks. Little by little, it begins feeling smoother, fuller, and much more believable, even though the changes themselves are quite subtle. So I'm also thinking about the overall flow across the dessert rather than looking at one drizzle at a time. Since the chocolate connects several different parts of the waffle, I like keeping that movement continues from one side to the other. Now I'm adding the highlights to the strawberries. I'm not trying to cover them with brighter colors. I'm looking for just a few places where the light would naturally catch the surface. Those little touches are enough to change how the strawberries feel a moment ago, they look nicely finished, but now they begin to feel fresher. Juicier and much more natural. Like, it's amazing how such a small step can completely shift overall impression. I also like to remind myself not to place highlights everywhere. If every part of the strawberry is equally bright, the form starts to flatten out again. Instead, I let certain areas stay deeper and richer while allowing only a few small sections to catch the light. So I pay attention to keeping these highlights soft and controlled. I'm not trying to create sharp, white spots that immediately grab all of your attention. I want them to blend naturally into the colors that are already there. I also like these final touches begin connecting all the earlier stages together. The base colors gave me something to build on. Really, the darker tones added depth, and now these lighter details help everything feel complete. So it's almost like the strawberry finally starts reflecting the light that already present throughout the illustration. This kind of work where I slow down quite a bit because every small stroke has a noticeable effect. Take your time. There's no need to rush through it or at lots of marks, sometimes just a tiny highlight in the right place can really see much more than covering half the fruit with lighter colors. I usually place a stroke, zoom out, look at the overall balance, and then decided if it really needs another one more often than that, less is actually enough. So by the time I finish these highlights, these strawberries don't just look brighter. They feel like they have gained another layer of freshness and dimension. So now I'm going to finishing the plate. I'm adding just a few soft shadows around the edges, and then balancing them with a couple of lighter highlights. It's a really simple step, but it's one of that quietly changes. Like, up until now, the plate has mostly been supporting everything sitting on top of it. Once these subtle light and shadow variations are added, it starts feeling like an actual surface instead of just a flat shape underneath the dessert. I don't want these shadows to be heavy or dramatic because the plate isn't supposed to become the main focus. It's there to support the composition. I told you earlier that not compete with it. So I'm keeping everything very gentle, letting the darker tone softly outer edge while leaving plenty of the original color visible. I come back with a lighter tone in a few places where the light would naturally catch the rim. Those highlights are intentionally soft. I'm not drying bright white lines all the way around because that would make the edge feel too sharp. Instead of that, I'm letting the lighter color appear only here and there, almost fading into the base color. So that uneven balance feels much more natural and helps the plate look smooth and rounded. I always find that these finishing details are less about adding something new and more about helping everything already on the canvas work together. The waffles, strawberries, cream, chocolate, and ice cream all have their own dep now, so the plate needs just enough dimension to belong with them. Without these final touches, it can sometimes feel like all the tension is floating above the surface. Now that all the main elements are finished, I'm finally able to step back and think about the space around them. It's really funny how the background often feels like the easiest part, but it actually has a really important job. If it's too bright, it starts competing with the illustration, and if it's too dark or too detailed, it can pull your attention away from everything you have spent time king. So instead of trying to make the background stand out, I like keeping it soft and underrated. I want it to quietly support the dessert without asking for attention itself. I'm using a very light bluish background with gentle vertical brush strokes. I love adding this kind of texture because it creates just enough visual interest for me while still feeling calm and clean. Like, everything still feels bright and open, and the dessert naturally remains the center of attention. One thing I always notice is how much the overall mood changes once the background is in place, because all the individual pieces can feel like they are floating on a blank page. Moment a background is added, they suddenly feel connected almost as if they have found a place to belong. That's why I love making the background of each illustration because it gives a very nice frame of work. I'm also keeping the color very light because I still want plenty of breathing room around the illustration. I don't always feel the need to fill every inch of the canvas with detail. Leaving some open space helps my eye rest, and it gives a painting a softer, a kind of balanced look, especially with colorful food illustrations like this. I think that extra space allows all those warm colors to shine even more instead of making the whole piece feel crowded. At this point, there's really only a little bit left before everything is complete. These are the quit finishing touches that don't seem very dramatic while you are painting them. But once they are finished, the whole artwork suddenly feels really more complete, and it's always satisfying reaching this stage because all the little decisions made along the way start coming together into one artwork. These lost highlights are probably some of my favorite details to add because they are so small, yet they completely change the way the waffles feel. Up until this point, all the colors, shadows, and textures have been doing the heavy lifting. Like the waffles already have their shape. The little pockets are defined, and everything is starting to look finished. Those final highlights are what make the surface feel like it's actually catching more light. So it's almost like the illustration takes one last deep breath before it's complete. I'm being really selective about where I place brighter strokes. I don't want every edge or every square to be highlighted because then the light wouldn't feel believable anymore. Like, instead, I'm imagining where the light is gently touching the raised areas of the waffles and letting only those places receive a little extra brightness. So I also like keeping these highlights soft instead of making them too sharp or too bright. So they are here to lift the texture, not overpower it. If the highlights become too strong, they can start competing with the strawberries, the chocolates, the creamy stuff, and I still want the whole dessert to feel balanced. So I'm adding them little by little, stepping back every few moments to make sure everything still feels natural. One thing I really enjoy about reaching this stage is seeing how every earlier layer starts working together. The base colors gave me the foundation, the shadows added dp, the textures build character. And now, these highlights quietly connect everything. So, you know, none of these taps would have the same impact on their own. But together, they create something that feels much richer. And I think than any single layer could so with these final highlights in place, this illustration is officially finished. I always love taking a moment to simply look at the completed piece before moving on to the next one. After spending all this time slowly building every part, from the first sketch all the way to these last tiny details, it's satisfying to see everything come together into one finished one. So every layer, every texture, every shadow, and every highlight has played its own role. And together, they have created a dessert that feels colorful, warm, full of dab and ready to be part of the final collection. You know what, sometimes the biggest reward is in adding one more detail. It's knowing exactly when the artwork is complete and simply letting it be finished. 10. Kiwi Waffle Illustration Sketch, Background Colors and building Cream: So I'm going to start this illustration by using one proct brush from my sweet ski glomerPcd brush bag. So let's get started. I'm starting with a loose free hand sketch using six B Procde pencil brush. At this point, I'm not thinking about perfect lines or perfect proportions. My only goal is to get my idea onto the canvas. I want to understand where everything is going to sit, how large each element should be, and how they relate to one another. When I stop expecting the first sketch to look super fine, it becomes a much more relaxed experience for me. Like I can simply focus on exploring the illustration instead of worrying about getting everything right on the first try. If you are painting along with me, I would really encourage you to sketch freehand. Don't worry if your first lines look a little uneven or if you end up drawing over the same era a few times. That's something I do all the time. A rough sketch isn't a sign that you are doing something wrong. Simply part of finding your composition. You'll probably notice that I keep making little adjustments while I'm sketching. Sometimes an object needs to move slightly to the left. Another element might need to become a little larger. Or maybe I decide that something looks better from a different angle. I don't try to force everything to work immediately. I give myself permission to change things as I go because that's often how the strongest sketches are built. Instead of trying to predict every decision before I start drawing, I let this sketch guide me toward the final arrangement. So once I have all the main elements roughly placed, I slow down and begin refining them. This is where I start cleaning up my lines, making the proportions, feel more balanced and checking that everything gets together naturally. I'm not adding any details yet. I'm simply making sure that the overall drawing feels solid enough to support all the painting that comes next. One piece of advice I would really give is not to rush this part just because you are excited to start painting. I know it's tempting to jump straight into colors, especially when you already have them picked out in your mind. But every extra minutes you spend strengthening your sketch really saves you much more time later. When the drawing underneath feels clear, you won't have to strap halfway through painting to fix proportions or redraw shapes. Instead, you can simply focus on color, texture, and lighting because all those earlier decisions have already been made. Something I've learned over time is that a good sketch doesn't have to look beautiful on its own. It just has to answer the questions you will have later. Like, where does this edge go? How large should the object be? Or how much space would I leave between these elements. When your sketch answers those questions early, the painting process really becomes much smoother because you are no longer trying to solve everything at once. So don't put pressure on yourself to finish your sketch quickly, give yourself permission to erase, redraw, and adjust as many times as you need. Every illustration is a little different and some simply need a few more changes before everything feels balanced. I also find that sketching becomes much more enjoyable when I stop treating it like a test. It's really just the beginning of a conversation with the artwork. Sometimes the illustration changes quite a bit from the very first few lines, and other times it stays almost exactly the same. So now I'm switching to one procad brush from my suitscGlmur procad brush pack now that I'm happy with this sketch underneath. I can trace over it with a lot more confidence. I don't feel like I have to keep second guessing every line anymore because I've already spent the time building and refining this sketch. Also try not to rush through the outlining, even though it can be tempting. Every line I draw here will become part of the finished illustration. So I like moving at a comfortable pace instead of trying to finish as quickly as possible. If my hand needs to slow down around a curve or a small detail, I let it. Taking an extra second often gives me a smoother line than trying to force it in one fast movement. One thing I really enjoy about outlining is watching the illustration slowly become more defined. A few moments ago, it still looked like a sketch full of construction lines. Now every clean outline starts separating the different elements from one another. The plate feels more distinct, the waffles become easier to recognize, and all the little details begin finding their own place within the composition. While I'm outlining, I'm also paying attention to keeping the line work consistent. I don't want one area to feel very heavy while another fails to delicate unless I am doing it intentionally. Keeping a similar rhythm throughout the drying helps everything feel connected. And it gives the finished illustration a nice balanced look that I really like it. This is another reason I like spending time on the sketch first because the planning has already been done. I don't have to stop every few seconds wondering where a line should go. I can simply follow the drawing I have already built. It makes the outlining feel much more relaxed, and I can put my attention into creating smooth, confident lines instead of solving composition problems at the same time. If you're falling along, don't worry about making every single line absolutely perfect. Even after years of drawing, I still make little adjustments here and there. If something doesn't feel quite right, I simply redraw that section and keep going. By the time the outlining is finished, the illustration already starts feeling complete even without any color. So once these clean lines are in place, adding colors becomes much simpler because every shape is clearly defined. And I can focus entirely on building light, shadow, texture, and all the little details that will bring the illustration to life. The first thing I wanted to establish here was to waffle because it's really the heart of this illustration. Before adding all the little details, I like seeing one of the main elements take shape first. Once this warm bese color goes down, it immediately gives me something to react to. Suddenly, I can start imagining how the strawberries will stand out against it, how the chocolate will flow across it, and how the cream will sit between all those little pockets. So when I'm choosing this first color, I'm not trying to find a perfect finish waffle color. I'm thinking about what will support all the layers that are still coming. I know this a is eventually going to have darker toasted sections, lighter edges, tiny highlights, and plenty of texture. So I'll leave room for all of that if I make the base too dark now. I don't have much space left to create that. If it's too light, I'll lose that one big feeling I'm after. So this first layer is really about giving myself flexibility rather than chasing the final look right away. I also enjoy seeing how the line art slowly starts disappearing behind the color. At the beginning, the outlines are doing most of the work, but once the base colors are added, the art now begins relying more on color than on lines. That's always a nice transition to watch, you know? One thing I pay attention to while filling larger areas like this, keeping the color feeling consistent without making it perfectly uniform. Like, I actually don't mind tiny variations that happen naturally from the brush because they stop everything from looking too digital or too flat. I started paying attention to the overall balance of this illustration instead of just one simple subject. So now I'm filling in is the kiwi, and I always enjoy reaching the fruit because it starts bringing a completely different energy to the illustration. Up until now, I have mostly been working with warm browns from the waffle. So introducing this fresh green immediately changes the overall color balance. It's really interesting how adding just one new color can make everything around it look a little different. The waffle suddenly feels warmer and the white cream starts standing out even more. For the kiwi, I'm not trying to capture every tiny detail yet. Just like the waffle, I'm beginning with a simple base color first. I want the whole slice to have one consistent layer before I start thinking about the lighter center, arger edges, or all those tiny little seeds that make a kiwi so recognizable. I actually find it much easier to build those details when I already have a clean foundation underneath. Once the kiwi slices have their first layer of color, I move on to the lease. I actually think about these a little differently. The leaves aren't meant to become the main focus, but they quietly help frame the dessert and connect everything together. They are almost like little resting places for your eyes between all the waffles, fruit, cream and chocolate. Even though they are small details, they help make the whole illustration feel fuller and more complete. Now I'm filling the cream and the honey, and I like working on these together because they are both soft elements, but they behave very differently. The cream has a light airy feeling with a gentle folds, while the honey is much smoother and heavier. Even though they are sitting right beside each other, I want them to blend into one shape. So giving each one its own base color helps separate them before I begin adding any depth. For the cream, I'm choosing a warm creamy tone instead of using pure white. I almost never begin with bright white because once you do that, there's hardly any room left to make the highlights stand out. The honey is a little different. I want it to feel rich without becoming too dark at this point, since it's going to have shadows, reflections, and the little glossy highlights later. I only need a warm golden base for now. I like thinking of this color as the middle of the illustration rather than the ending one. Now I'm filling in the plate, and I actually like leaving this until after some of the main ingredients already have their base colors. So by this point, I have a much clearer idea of the overall palette. So choosing the color for the plate feels much more intentional. Instead of guessing what might work, I can look at the waffle, the ivy, the cream, and the honey together and pick a color that quietly supports all of them rather than competing for attention. I decided to go with a soft blue because I wanted something that would create a gentle contrast against all the warm dessert colors. Most of this illustration is filled with oranges, golden browns, creamy yellows and fresh greens. So introducing a cooler color underneath helps those warmer tones stand out naturally. It's not about making the plate the star of this illustration. It's simply giving the dessert a calm place to sit, so the food remains the first thing you guys notice. As I move on to the cream, my focus shifts almost completely from color to values. The base color has already done its job. So now I'm thinking about how to make this look soft enough that you can almost imagine the texture just by looking at it. I always find this part really satisfying because it's where the illustration starts gaining that three dimensional feeling. Until now, everything has been built with simple shapes and flat colors. But this is a point where those shapes begin turning into something that feels much more believable. Whenever I pinch whipped cream, I stop thinking of it as one big object. Instead, I see it as dozens of tiny ribbons wrapped around each other. Every ribbon catches light in a slightly different way. Some curves as the light directly while others naturally fall into shadow. Looking at it like that makes the whole process feel much less overwhelming. I'm simply falling one fold after another, letting each little section tell me what it needs. One thing I really enjoy about painting cream is that it's surprisingly far giving. You don't have to make every stroke absolutely perfect. As long as your strokes follow the direction of the srill, they naturally begin describing the form. I let my pencil move with those curves instead of cutting across them, and that simple change makes the cream start feeling light and fluffy rather than flat, I think. So direction matters just as much as color here because those flowing strokes become part of the texture itself. It's tempting because adding white instantly makes something pop. But I like earning those highlights first. Before I ever reach for the brightest value, actually, I'm slowly building the softer shadows and gentle mid tones. So those quad your values are actually doing most of the work. They create little valleys kind of stuff between each fold so that later on the highlights have something to contrast against. I'm constantly zooming in and out of the canvas. When I'm zoomed in, I'm paying attention to individual folds and making sure the strokes feel natural. Then I zoom back out to ask myself a different kind of question like, does the cream still read as one soft srillO have I accidentally made it look too busy? So that kind of balance is really important. Something I always notice while painting white objects is that they are really actually white. Most of what we are seeing is a collection of warm creams, cold grays, pale yellows and very soft shadows. So the brightest white only appears in a few tiny places where the light hits most directly. So realizing that completely changed the way I paint cream because I stopped relying on pure whites to create volume. Instead, I started relying on value relationships, and the results immediately felt much softer. I also like allowing some areas to see quieter than others. Every fall needs dramatic contrast, really. Some parts can gently blend into each other while other areas become the main focus with stronger lights and deeper shadows. That kind of variation is what keeps a cream from looking mechanical kind of stuff. In real life, whipped cream isn't perfectly uniform. And I enjoy bringing a little bit of that natural randomness into my illustrations. As more layers go down, I can already feel the cream becoming the highest point of the dessert, even though the waffle is physically larger, the cream naturally draws the eye because it's sitting at the top and has the strongest value contrast. That's something I keep in mind while painting. I'm not only thinking about making the cream look realistic. Actually, I'm also thinking about how it guides your eyes through the composition. Another thing I'm paying attention to is the softness of the transition. Cream doesn't usually have hard edges between light and shadow. Most of those changes happen very gradually. So I'm blending values together instead of separating them with sharp lines. Whenever I notice a transition becoming too harsh, I soften it with another layer. So I think those little adjustments may not seem very noticeable one by one, but together, they completely change the feeling of the cream. 11. Kiwi Waffle Illustration Building Kiwis and Waffles: As I start working on the caves, I always notice how much they change the feeling of the whole illustration now. Up until now, we have mostly been surrounded by warm colors from the waffles, honey and cream. The moment I begin building these fresh cranes, everything suddenly feels brighter and more balanced. Whenever I paint fruit, I don't immediately think about details. Before anything else, I'm asking myself whether the fruit already has a nice sense of volume. I can't feel that rounded shape yet, I know I need to spend more time with the values before worrying about sees or highlights. I always like solving the bigger questions because once the farm feels convincing, the smaller details naturally fall into place. One thing I really enjoy about kiwis is that they aren't simply green. The more you look at them, the more colors you begin noticing. These are color greens, warmer yellow greens, I mean, richer olive tones and tiny shapes between all of them. Instead of depending on one single color, I slowly layer several greens together. Those gentle changes keep the fruit feeling fresh, I think, and they stop it from looking flat or artificial. I pay close attention to the direction of every brush stroke rather than brushing across the kiwi randomly, I let E stroke follow the way the fruit naturally grows. So those little directional strokes begin creating the soft fibers. Instead, the kiwi without me having to draw every single one. I know it's a subtle detail, but it makes such a difference because the texture starts appearing naturally instead of feeling forced. I also find myself flowing down around the outer edge of the kiwi, that darker green ring is one of the things that gives the slightest identity. Like, I don't make it exactly the same thickness all the way around because real fruit isn't perfectly even. Some areas become a little richer, others stay softer, and those tiny changes help everything feel much more natural. I'm constantly comparing the lighter greens with the darker ones instead of thinking about the color separately. I'm asking myself simple questions while I paint. Does this side feel too heavy? Does this section need a little more light or could this shadow be slightly softer? So those little questions guide almost every decision I make, and painting becomes much easier when I stop searching for perfect colors and start paying attention to how the values are working together. The center of the kiwi is probably one of my favorite areas because that's where so much of its personality live. As I begin developing it, I'm careful enough to make the middle feel too dark all at once. Instead, I slowly build that richness through several layers. I find that gradual changes almost always create a softer result than trying to reach the darkest value immediately. So little by little, the center begins drying your eye without feeling too harsh. Now I begin placing the tiny seeds, and I honestly think they are one of those details that people notice without realizing they are noticing them. I don't count them. I don't space them perfectly, and I definitely don't try to make every seed the same size. I like allowing them to feel a little random because that's exactly what gifts a fruit its natural appearance. So sometimes I will even make a few slightly darker than others just to break up the pattern. Another thing I'm watching is how the seed sits within the fruit rather than on top of it. If they all look like tiny black dots floating on the surface, something feels off, so I gently deepen some of the surrounding values, allowing the seeds to settle into the kiv instead. Every few minutes I zoom out from the canvas and stop looking only at the kiwi. Instead, I look at the dessert as a whole. It's very easily to become attached to one little section and accidentally overwork it. Looking from a distance helps me decide whether the kiwi already has enough detail or whether it still needs another layer. So I think those little pauses are just as important as the painting itself because they help me making better decisions. I notice how it changes the colors around it, the war waffles suddenly appear even toastier. The cream feels softer and the honey seems a little richer, simply because this fresh crane is now sitting beside them. I love moments like this because they remind me that colors are always having conversations with each other. I'm also careful not to make every KV slides identical. Even though they are all at the same fruit, I like letting each one have its own little kind of personality, you know? So one slide might catch slightly more light. Another might have a deeper kind of outrage, while another could have softer transitions through the center. When I began introducing the highlights, I don't think of them as decoration. For me, highlights are simply another kind of value. So their job is to help explain the form, not to make everything sparkle. I place them only where the fruit naturally catches light, and I keep them quite restrained. So one thing I really enjoy about painting fruit is that it teaches patients without feeling repetitive. Every layer feels small while you're working on it, and sometimes it even feels like nothing is changing, but then you stop for a second zoom out and realize how far the illustration has actually come. By the time I'm happy with these kiwis, they have become much more than little green slices sitting beside the waffle. Through all those layers of values, carefully place breaststrokes, tiny seeds, soft highlights, and gradual color shifts, they now feel fresh, juicy and full of texture. None of those effects came from one single technique. They appeared because every small decision supported the one before it. That's something I always love about painting is really one moment that transforms an illustration. It's hundreds of thoughtful little choices that quietly come together until almost without noticing, the artwork begins to feel complete. One of the reasons I like leaving the waffles until this point is because I finally have something to react to. Earlier, I was mostly thinking about individual ingredients on their own. But now I can actually see how the waffles are sitting beside the cream, the kiwis, and the plate. That changes the way I approach the color completely. Instead of asking myself what color is a waffle, I'm really asking, what color does this waffle need to be so everything around it feels balanced? It's a small shift in thinking, but it changes so many of the decisions I make. The waffles became the warm center of the illustration, so I want them to feel rich enough to hold everything together without becoming so dark that they overpower the fruit and cream. Almost imagine I'm slowly carving the form out of the flat base color instead. Every darker value I introduce is helping describe another little plane of the waffle while every lighter value reminds the eye where the surface catches light. So I enjoy thinking about it almost like sculpting rather than coloring. Instead of feeling shapes, I'm slowly revealing thickness, edges, little corners, and all those tiny surfaces that make waffles look so satisfying. Even though the structure is made up of repeating squares, I don't want them to feel repetitive. Each little section ends up catching the light slightly differently, and that's what keeps everything feeling so natural. One thing I always notice about waffles is how interesting they become once the light starts moving across them. The raised edges brighten first while the little pockets naturally become deeper because they receive less light. That difference is something I really enjoy building slowly. Rather than outlining every square, I let the values explain the structure for me. Sometimes a slightly darker stroke besides a lighter one is enough to create the illusion that one section is sitting higher than another. It's amazing how our eyes begin reading height and depth from such small value changes. I don't need dramatic shadows everywhere, just enough contrast to gently separate one surface from the next. I also start paying attention to the personality of the waffle itself. Like, I don't want it looking perfectly smooth because that's not what makes waffles appealing. They are big, slightly uneven, a little crepes around certain edges and softer in other places. So I allow my bra strokes to reflect that sort of character. Some strokes stay quite soft while others becomes a little more textured, almost suggesting those lightly toasted surfaces without me having to paint every tiny crumb. I think that's one of my favorite parts of illustrating fruit. You don't have to explain every detail literally. Sometimes suggesting a texture is much stronger than describing every single piece of it. I'm constantly thinking about how these warm golden colors are interacting with the cooler colors that are already finished. The bright greens of the kiwi naturally make the waffles appear warmer, while the cool blue plate quietly pushes those golden browns forward. That's something I genuinely love about this painting. Colors never exist by themselves. Every decision affects the colors beside it. So sometimes I will slightly warm one edge of the waffle simply because it's sitting near the cream, while another section might become just a touch darker because it's tucked underneath another layer. So those are the little observations that happen naturally while I paint, and I think they would slowly turn a simple flat illustration into something that feels much richer and more dimensional. I stopped thinking about Daffo as one large object and begin looking at it one little section at a time. Every square has its own tiny story to tell, you know, because some of them naturally sit a little higher, some disappear slightly underneath the cream, while others are partially hidden beneath the kiwi slices or the drizzle. So instead of trying to make every swear identical, I enjoy giving each one a slightly different sort of balance of light and shadow. That little bit of variation makes a waffle feel much more believable because in real life, big food is never perfectly even. Some edges become a little darker in the oven, some corners stay softer, and those natural imperfections are exactly what make it look delicious. I think if everything were perfectly symmetrical, it would actually lose a lot of charm. So I welcome those little differences rather than trying to correct them. One thing I notice while painting is that the raised ridges of the waffle almost act like tiny little bridges touching the light because they are sitting higher than the pockets. They naturally become the brightest parts. I don't make those highlights pure white or overly bright, though. Instead, I slowly build them with warm, creamy yellows and soft golden tones that still belong to the waffle itself. So keeping those highlights warm helps everything stay cohesive. If the highlights become too cool or too bright, they start looking disconnected from the big texture I'm trying to create. I'm constantly asking myself whether the light still feels warm enough to match the rest of the dessert. Those are the kinds of small questions running through my mind while I paint, and they quietly guide almost every breaststroke. The little pockets inside the waffle are probably my favorite area to develop because they are where so much depth begins to appear. As I deepen those recess sections, I'm not simply filling them with a darker color. I'm thinking about how light gradually disappears as those surfaces move farther away from it. That means the shadow aren't all the time, have the same darkness. Some pockets stay fairly open and receive more reflected light, while others become deeper because they are tucked closer to another waffle layer. Or hidden beneath the chocolate. So those kind of subtle differences make the whole structure feel thicker. I love watching that happen because the waffle slowly stops feeling like a flat drawing and starts looking like something you could actually reach out and pick up. Every now and then I pause for a second and look at the illustration. Without painting anything. Those little pauses are surprisingly helpful because they let my eyes reset. When you have been staring at one area for several minutes, it's very easy to lose track of whether you have added enough contrast or maybe a little too much. So looking away for even a few moments helps me come back with very fresh eyes. Quite often, I will notice something very simple like one edge needing to be slightly lighter or one shadow looking a little stronger than the others. So those aren't dramatic changes, but they are usually the adjustments that make everything feel more balanced. I actually think about these quiet moments of observing are just as important as the painting itself because they stop me from adding details that don't really need to be there. So I began noticing how all these tiny value changes are working together. None of them seem specially impressive on their own. One slight, brighter edge, one warmer highlight, one softer transition, one deeper pocket, they are all very small decisions. But once they begin sitting beside one another, they completely change the feeling of the waffle. It suddenly has weight, thickness, warmth and that light toasted appearance I was hoping for from the very beginning. That's probably my favorite thing about building textures like this. The final result isn't created by one clover technique or any sort of dramatic breaststroke. It's actually created by hundreds of little observations and thoughtful adjustments that quietly build on each other. So by simply staying patient and paying attention to those small relationships between light, shallow, color, and form, the waffle slowly grows into the heart of the dessert, naturally becoming the piece that brings every other ingredient together. So as I move into the final refinements, I stop looking for obvious things to paint and begin paying attention to much quieter details. At this point, the waffle already has its overall color structure in depth. So now it's more about asking myself where the lustration could feel just a little softer, a little brighter, or a little more balanced. So sometimes there's only one tiny edge that needs to catch a bit more light or one shadow that feels slightly too heavy compared to the rest. So those little adjustments don't seem very exciting while you are making them, but they are often the reason an illustration suddenly starts feeling complete. I actually enjoy this part because it becomes less about adding more and more detail and more about carefully listening to what the painting is asking for. You know, actually, every illustration reaches a point where it almost tells you what it needs next. And I always try to slow down enough to notice those little moments. The way the different waffle layers overlap each other, even though this is a stylized illustration, I still want those tack pieces to feel like they have real thickness. Upper layer should naturally feel closer while the lower suction gently tuck underneath. So I create that feeling mostly through values rather than outlines. A slightly darker era where two waffles meet instantly creates illusion that one is resting on top of the other than by allowing a soft highlight to run along the upper edge. That thickness becomes even more convincing. 12. Kiwi Waffle Illustration Building Leaves, Honey,Plate and Finishing Details : I'm moving on to one of the smallest parts of the illustration, but I really think these little leaves do much more than people often realize. They aren't just there to fill empty spaces. They help connect all of the ingredients together and give the whole dessert a fresher and lighter feeling. After spending so much time working with warm waffles, creamy whites in the bright kiwi slices, introducing these greens almost feel like taking a deep breath. They quietly frame the dessert without asking for too much attention. I always enjoy painting little details like this because they are often the finishing touches that help everything feel complete rather than separate pieces sitting next to one another. When I begin painting the leaves, I don't think about them as individual shapes first. Look at them as a small group, even though every leaf has its own direction and size, together, they create one flowing cluster. So instead of finishing one leaf completely before moving to the next one, I naturally move around the group, adding little bits here and there, that keeps all of them developing together instead of having one finished leaf besides several unfinished ones. So I find this approach helps me keep the colors and values much more balanced because I can compare each leaf with the ones beside as I'm painting. Green is one of those colors that becomes much more interesting the longer you look at it. It's tempting to grab one shade and fill everything. But leaves really work that way. So naturally lead toward a warmer yellow green where more light reaches them. While others become deeper and cooler as they turn away from the light or tuck underneath another leaf, so I enjoy letting those little shapes happen gradually instead of making dramatic color changes, I gently introduce slightly lighter and darker greens. So each leaf begins feeling separate while still belonging to the same little cluster. I'm also paying attention to their movement just as much as their color. Every leaf has a gentle curve instead of sitting completely flat. So I let my brush strokes follow that natural flow from the base of the leaf toward the tip. Even though these strokes are very simple, they quietly suggest the shape of the leaf without needing heavy outlines or lots of extra detail. I think following the natural direction of the farm is one of the easiest ways to make something feel more belivable. One thing I really enjoy doing this part is watching how the leaves begin separating from one another. At first, they can look like one green shape, but with each little adjustment, they slowly start finding their own space. Sometimes all it takes is a slightly darker value leaves overlap or a brighter edge catching the light. So those tiny differences help you understand which leave is sitting in front and which one is stuck behind. So I don't have to draw thick outlines around everything because the values naturally explain that sort of relationship. Now I'm ready to build a honey, and this is one of those details that can completely change a feeling. Right now it's simply sitting across the waffles as a flat, yellow shape, but honey has a personality of its own. It stretches, gathers, slowly drips, catches the light, and becomes thicker where our gravity allows us to collect. So that's exactly what I'm thinking about while painting it. So the first thing I begin adjusting is the overall value of the honey. Even though honey looks bright, it actually contains many different golden tones. Some areas lean towards warm yellow, others become deeper amber, and a few tiny sections almost look caramel where the honey is thicker. Instead of treating everything as one solid color, I slowly introduce those gentle changes across each drizzle. I don't separate them with the harsh lines. I simply allow one warm tone to melt softly into another. Those smooth transitions are important because honey naturally flows without sudden changes. And I want that same softness to appear in this illustration. I start paying attention to the thickness of every ribbon of honey. Not every part should feel identical. Some drizzles become thinner as they stretch across the waffle, while others gather into slightly thicker pools before continuing downward. Whenever I see those thicker sections, I deepen the values just a little. It is only because the honey suddenly changes color, but because thicker syrup naturally blocks more light. So one thing I always keep reminding myself while painting glossy subjects is that light behaves differently on smooth surfaces than it does on something rough like the waffles. So the waffles scatter light in many directions because of all their texture, but honey reflects light much more plainly. Because of that, I keep the surface smoother. Allowing the breast strokes to follow the direction of the honey naturally flows, and every stroke becomes slightly longer and more fluid. Instead of building texture and building movement. As the darker values settle into place, I begin noticing something interesting. The honey slowly starts separating from the waffles beneath it. Earlier, it almost blended into the warm colors underneath, but now those gentle value differences allow it to sit on top instead of becoming part of the waffle itself. That little bit of separation is exactly what I want. Honey should always feel like an extra layer resting over the surface rather than being painted directly into the waffle. So those overlapping forms make the illustration, I think, feel much more dimensional. Honey really has perfectly stiff outlines, even when it drips, the edges stays soft and rounded because it's constantly flowing. Let my brush follow those rounded curves, smooth ankle corners, and avoiding anything that feels too sharp. Now I'm turning my attention to the plate, and even though it sits quietly underneath everything else, I never think of it as just a background object. A good plate does much more than hold the food. So it frames the entire illustration, supports every color sitting on top of it, and helps separate the dessert from the white background. If I leave it as one flat blue color, the whole illustration would suddenly lose that no matter how detailed the waffles the cream or avis become. That's why I like giving just as much care to the plate as I do to the main subject. Unlike the waffles with all their little pockets and rough edges, the plate has long flowing curves. Because of that, my breast strokes also become much longer and smoother. Instead of making lots of short textured marks, I let the color glide gently around the oval form, so those strokes follow the direction of the plate itself helping reinforce its rounded shape. Rather than immediately making one side dark and the other side light, I slowly introduce gentle values shapes across the entire plate. So some sections receive a slightly color blue while others stay lighter. The changes are subtle because ceramic usually reflects light in soft transitions instead of sudden dramatic jumps. I spend quite a bit of time adjusting these middle values because they become the foundation for everything that comes later. One thing I really enjoy about painting simple objects is that they teach you how important restraint can be. Like, it's very easy to think about every object needs dramatic shadows to look realistic. But sometimes the opposite works much better. On display, I purposely avoid making the darker blues too strong. I want the dessert to remain the star of this illustration. So the plate should support everything sitting above it without competing for attention. At this point, the illustration is almost finished, and this is usually where I slow down even more. The big decisions are already made. The colors are in place. The values are working together, and the main elements already have plenty of detail. So now it's all about those quiet little refinements that often don't stand out individually, but make a huge difference once everything comes together. I'm also adding a soft background because I don't want the illustration to sit on a completely empty white canvas. A gentle background helps frame the subject without stealing attention from it. So I purposely keep the color very light and subtle, so it quietly supports everything that's happening in the foreground. Since the dessert already contains warm golden waffles, bright green kiwis, creamy white, and cool blues from the plate, I choose a soft lavender tone that complements those colors rather than competing with them. My brushstrokes become much broader than they were while working on the dessert itself. I'm not thinking about tiny details anymore. Instead, I'm thinking about smooth coverage and consistency. Want the color to feel calm and even across the canvas, so the eye naturally settles on the illustration first. If the background become too textured or too detailed, it would start asking for attention that really belongs to the waffles and toppings. Sometimes simlicity is exactly what allows the main subject to shine. Now I begin looking across the entire illustration when more time instead of focusing on individual objects, ask myself little questions while at work. Like, you know, that does one Kiwi suddenly feel brighter than the others? Is one corner of the plate attracting too much attention, or are the highlights balanced or does the cream still feel soft beside the crips texture of the waffles. At this stage, I like slowing down and looking at the artwork as a whole instead of thinking about individual objects. So the first adjustment I'm making is adding a soft shadow underneath the plate. Even though the plate already has its own lights and darker values, it still needs something to anchor it to the background. Without that shadow, the entire dessert feels likes floating slightly above the canvas. I don't want a harsh or dramatic shadow because the lighting throughout this illustration has remained soft from the very beginning. Then I'm adding a soft white outline around the upper edges of the illustration. I don't think of it as drawing another outline around the objects. Instead, I see almost like a delicate rim of light that helps separate the dessert from the background because the background is a gentle lavender. I'm also taking another look at the whipped cream because bright objects often benefit from one final pass of highlights after everything else has been completed. Now that all the surrounding colors are finished, it's very much easier to judge exactly where the brightest highlights should sit. Sometimes highlight that look perfect earlier suddenly feels too dull once the rest of the illustration is complete. That's completely normal. Instead of making the cream brighter everywhere, I carefully placed a few crips highlights only where the light would naturally cast those rounded folds. So those tiny adjustments help the cream look softer, lighter and much more dimensional without losing all the gentle value changes I have built. They are simply about giving yourself the time to notice the little details that help everything finally feel at home. 13. Conclusion And Project: Thank you so much for painting along with me. So far, this was the very first waffle illustration we created together in this class, and I had so much fun bringing this illustration to life. I really love building up those warm golden tones and adding in those thake pintly strokes for the chocolate topping. It gives a whole illustration a cozy rich feel. There is something really comforting about the textures here, and I hope you enjoy exploring this color palette and brush technique with me. Let's keep this creative momentum going. We have got more delicious waffle ideas to paint next. This is a close up view of the waffle illustration. We just finished. I really enjoy how the brush strokes look up close. The thick lines and soft texture really pop. When you zoom in like this. The war golden tones and layered strokes bring out a lot of depth, and it's always interesting to see how everything comes together when you focus on these small sections. This is a slightly angled look at our finished waffle, and I really love how the pintly texture adds warm to the golden tones and choclat browns. You can really see the variation in pressure and strokes from the brush here. It gives such a cozy handmade feel. I think this illustration helps capture the overall form and yummy details all at once. This was the finished illustration we created together, and now it's your turn to give it a try. Use what you have learned. Trust your brash strokes and feel free to bring your own twist to it. Whether you stick closely to what we painted or explore your own color choices and textures, the process is where the fun truly lives. Just enjoy playing with those painterly textures and don't worry about making it perfect. You have got everything you need now. So go ahead and start your own waffle illustration. We have already made this frutty waffle illustration together in class, and I love how it shows the transformation from a simple sketch to a colorful finished illustration. You can see where it all began just lines and outlines, and on the right, we brought it to life with layers of color shading and those fresh fruit details on top. Now it's your turn to try this for yourself. You can follow along with the same steps or put your own twist on it. Maybe swap in different fruits at syrup or experiment with your own favorite toppings. The fun of this project is saying how your waffle illustration becomes uniquely yours as you work through it. Take your time, enjoy the process, and let each layer built into something that feels playful and full of energy. I can't wait to see your version of this project come to life. Now, here's another one we made together during this class, a vibrant plate filled with dripped waffle illustration. Each one busting with its own personality from colorful sprinkles to rich choclaty textures. This illustration is all about playful details and letting your creativity shine. If you have followed along with the step so far, you already know how fun it is to build up these textures layer by layer. This illustration was such a joy to create with each dip and sprinkle adding its own flavor. The pattern tray underneath brings in a pop of bold color, and the soft ripples around the plate make the whole illustrations feel so much fresh. Just remember, it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful. Every little imperfection adds chump. And that's the best part of making art like this. You have already seen how we took it from sketch to full color. Now, you go ahead and try your own version or use this as a reference to add your own twist. This is the Waffle illustration. We completed it together in this class, topped with layers of color and delicious little highlights. You can really see how each fruit slice and texture grid came together with patience and playful brushstrokes. If you have been watching the process and feeling unsure, don't worry. You have already seen how it unfolds step by step. You are not starting from scratch. You are just continuing what you have already seen done. This is a great time to open up your canvas and give it a try. You can stick to the same color palette or completely make it to your own. Let the brush flow and have fun with the shapes. The idea is to enjoy the process while you build something colorful and cozy one illustration at a time. Now, Dad, we have walked through each step and explored how all the colors and textures came together. It's your time to try this for yourself. You have already seen how we started with a simple sketch and slowly built it up layer by layer until it became something rich, thoughtful strokes. If you have never tried something like this before, that's completely okay. This is your space to explore, to practice to see what happens when you follow along with your own rhythm. Whether your colors turn out bright or more muted, whether your strokes are soft or bold, what matters is that? It's your version. So take a deep breath, set your own pace, and begin. You have seen what we created in the class, and now it's time to let your version unfold. Need more ideas, let's play a little. We have already painted some lovely dessert illustrations together in this class, but creativity doesn't really stop there. It builds on itself. That's the fun part. You can always take what you have learned and spend it in a new direction. Here I added a couple of extra waffles just to spark your imagination. I played with a slightly different layout, switched up the toppings and added fresh fruit and whipped cream on top. This is where you get to start adding your own personality into the mix. Want to try strawberries, dipped in chocolate or maybe a whole stack of waffles with jam in between. What if you add a drizzle of honey or minced leaf on top? There are so many ways to make this illustration your own. You could even experiment with backgrounds like colorful napkins, a cafe tabletop, or a tray ful of berries beside your waffles. Don't worry about doing it exactly the same. This is more like a gentle suggestion, a nudge to say, you can totally take this and make it yours. If your brain is buzzing with ideas now, go ahead and sketch something new. Pull inspiration from this extra treat and let your hand follow what excites you most. Go ahead and get creative with your own waffle illustration. This illustration is just one Yumi idea out of many. Now it's your turn to play with the possibilities. Try changing the layout, switching up the toppings, or adding your own twist with new colors and textures. Maybe you imagine a pile of whipped cream with a cherry on top, or even a shrill of syrup that flows across the plate. Anything goes. Don't feel limited by what you see here. You can mix strawberries with blueberries, layer on chocolate, or even invent toppings from your imagination. Real fun begins when you start exploring your own vision and making choices that feel exciting to you. Remember, the goal isn't to make it perfect. It's to make it yours. So have fun, follow your curiosity and enjoy each step as your waffle treat comes to life in your own unique style. Need a little boost. Sometimes all it takes is a small push to keep the creativity flowing. And this stack of waffles is here to do just that. After completing your own version of this illustration in class, you are probably already full of ideas, but don't stop there. This example is meant to open the doors to new experiments. Look closely at the textures, the layering of those dripping pink toppings, the curves, and the edges of the waffle squares, and how they overlap one another. These elements can be just the beginning of your own unique creation. You can explore different color palettes. Maybe you want to try a cooler tone for the syrup or give your waffles a soft pastel wipe. You could add srills, extra toppings, even some imaginative elements like sprinkles, fruits or something completely unexpected. There's no limit here. Let your ideas overflow just like the syrup in this illustration. This isn't about copying. It's about building your own twist on a theme. Think of this as a gentle starting point, something to glance at, and then take in your own direction. If you feel like your energy is dipping or you are unsure what to add next, remember that making art doesn't always need a plan. Sometimes you discover your favorite results just by playing around. Take a break, look at this illustration and come back to your sketch with a fresh perspective. Maybe it will be topped with shrills of chocolate or floating in a pastel colored background. However you choose to go forward, it will carry your touch, and that's what makes it beautiful. There's no such thing as wrong or right when it comes to your imagination. What matters is that it feels fun, expressive and true to you. This little waffle is just a reminder that creativity is meant to be light hearted and free. You don't have to stick with perfect shapes or expected toppings, play around with lines, play with color, play around textures, or even add something totally unexpected. Your art doesn't need rules to be meaningful. As you paint, allow yourself to smile. Let your inner child explore what feels exciting. Whether your waffle is draping with chocolate, topped with sprinkles or has a wild color palette no one's ever seen before. That's a beauty of it. It's yours. Celebrate the quaky, the messy, the gold, the soft. Every version you create is an extension of your join. So don't hold back, explore it all. There's room for every idea you have. Just keep going and most importantly, have fun. Now it's your turn to bring your imagination to life. Take everything you have learned and loved throughout this class. You don't need to follow any rules. This is your chance to take the techniques that felt the most fun or natural and make something entirely your own. Think about how you want your waffle to feel cozy, creaky, vibrant, soft, playful, or even a little wild. You are welcome to mix and match styles, change up the shapes, or try toppings you haven't drawn before. You could go realistic, cartoon style, pastel, or even abstract. Anything that feels joyful and expressive is the right choice. Most importantly, don't worry about perfection. This is all about exploring what you enjoy, practicing your creative voice and simply playing with art in a way that feels relaxing and rewarding. So go ahead, let your creativity guide you and make a waffle that reflects your own delicious style. You are invited to follow my steps or go off on your own path and design a waffle that feels fun and personal to you. Think about colors you love, toppings that make you smile or a syrup drizzle that flows in a way that feels satisfying to draw. This is your space to be bold or subton. Neat or messy, classic or completely unexpected. You could layer fruit, add chocolate, or try something playful like a stacked shape or dripping detail, whatever feels doyful to create. This is a Waffle illustration I created as my final class project, and I had so much fun bringing it to life. I use the exact same procreate brush that we explored throughout this class, layering and building the textures slowly to give the waffle its cozy and comforting look. You will notice how the golden colors blend softly into one another, giving that fresh off the pen feel. I added banana slices and strawberries on top, along with a little syrup to complete the breakfast scene, something that feels warm, sweet, and cheerful. This project wasn't just about drawing a waffle. It was about expressing a mood, capturing a little story, and feeling the joy simple shapes and soft strokes. Now, Dad, you have seen my artwork as your class project. I hope you feel excited to begin your own, whether you follow similar steps or come up with something totally different. The most important part is to let your creativity guide you. So give it a try, enjoy the process and make your version of a Waffle illustration feel just right for you. Thank you so much for joining me in this cozy, waffle theme class. It truly means a lot that you choose to spend your creative time here, and I hope this class brought you a little joy, calm, and inspiration. Throughout this class, my goal was to make the process light, fun and unapproachable. If at any point you felt a spark of excitement, a sense of calm while painting or simply smiled looking at your progress, that's a beautiful win in itself. And now I would love to see what you made. Your Waffle illustration doesn't need to look like mine, and it doesn't need to be perfect. So if you are wondering whether your artwork is good enough to post, I'm here to tell you it is more than that. It might be just the thing that inspired someone else to try. The project section of this class is a space for encouragement and connection, and your submission could make someone else feel brave enough to create two. I would truly love to see what you have made. So go ahead and upload your project. Let's continue making this a creative space filled with warmth and positivity. 14. Thankyou: You so much for joining me in this sweet and cozy class. It's been such a joy creating these different waffle illustrations with you. Each one filled with its own textures, colors, and playful toppings. Throughout this class, we explored not just drawing waffles, but adding personality to each one through details, shading and softness in color. Whether you followed along step by step or just watch the process to soak up inspiration, I'm truly glad you were here. My hope is that this clause gave you a peaceful space to create, even if just for a few minutes at a time. I know how busy life can be, and it means a lot to me that you took the time to paint with me. There are many more illustration classes and creative projects coming up, and I would love for you to keep joining me as we build a library of cheerful, comforting art together. Until next time, keep illustrating, keep exploring. And most of all, keep enjoying your creative process. See you in the next class.