Drawing a chestnut

Autumn brings a lot of colors and therefore inspiration. Nature gives you new insights to develop your creativity. Take a look around which plant or flower you would like to draw.

Create your own

In this step-by-step plan, we show you how to draw a chestnut with Bruynzeel fineliner/brush pens, a watercolour brush and a pencil. The goal of this botanical drawing is to show specific characteristics of the plant or flower, as realistic as possible.

What you need

  • Bruynzeel Fineliner/Brush pens set of 12 colours
  • Bruynzeel HB pencil and eraser
  • Tear-off palette or plastic sleeve containing a white A4 sheet
  • Good sturdy paper, e.g. Van Gogh watercolour paper 300 grams
  • Watercolour brush
  • Paper towel
  • Cups of water for mixing and to clean the brush during and after use

First, make a rough sketch.

Step 1

Use a Bruynzeel HB pencil for this. Sketch lightly with a Bruynzeel HB pencil. Erase any excess graphite, as pencil stripes remain visible under the light colours.

Draw over the lines with fineliners of the correct colour and fill in the larger sections with the brush side.

Step 2

Erase any remaining pencil marks.
Paint stripes with the water colour paintbrush on the tear-off palette/sleeve. Try to make some nice blends with the brush. Also look at the mixing chart for matching colours.

Test these on the edge of your paper, on the back or on a piece of waste paper. This will give you an idea of what the colour and the water do together on the paper.

Play with colours and water.

Step 3

When switching between the fineliner and the brush pen, be sure to allow sufficient drying time in between. Carefully apply some water to your drawing using the water colour paintbrush. Do this stroke by stroke and enjoy the watercolour effect that is created.

If necessary, you can apply some more of the original colour directly from the pens or blends from your tear-off pallet/sleeve. Allow each piece to dry thoroughly before applying the next layer. Play with colour, add water and dab with kitchen paper every now and then.

Use the fineliners to add the finishing details.

Step 4

Leave to dry thoroughly overnight. Place the drawing in a frame behind glass with passe-partout for a professional result.

And we're done! We hope you enjoyed this drawing tutorial. Have fun and good luck!

Fancy more inspiring step-by-step plans?

Check out the blogs using the same technique!