Creative Visual Diary: Learn to Draw Your Life
A course by Pepita SandwichIllustrator and Cartoonist
A course by Pepita Sandwich, Illustrator and Cartoonist
Practice your drawing skills with prompts and ideas that will help amplify your creativity
Drawing is a universal language that allows us to delve into our life, memories, and thoughts. Illustrator and cartoon artist Pepita Sandwich uses illustrations to share feelings and observations through a visual diary. She has built a career communicating both personal and universal experiences through pictorial storytelling, and creates illustrated essays for _The Washington Post _ and The New Yorker. Pepita has also worked with brands including Adidas and Facebook, and has published two books, Survival Diaries and Women Move Mountains.
In this course, develop your drawing skills, and learn to observe daily life as an illustrated journal. Pepita teaches you how to express yourself as a character, and document your days and experiences that resonate with others. First explore chronicling in your sketchbook and then as a digital version for social media. Let people see through your lens.
What will you learn in this online course?
15 lessons & 25 downloads
What Is a Visual Diary?
8 minutes, 22 seconds
Materials and Techniques
8 minutes, 6 seconds
What’s inside Your House
8 minutes, 55 seconds
Drawing Safari
12 minutes, 9 seconds
Time Travel
12 minutes, 59 seconds
Create a Single-Panel Visual Entry
9 minutes, 34 seconds
What's included in this course?
Get to know illustrator and cartoonist Pepita Sandwich. She walks you through the journey that she took from fashion design to illustration. She also discusses the artists and references that inspire her and have influenced her work.
Delve into what a visual diary is as Pepita shows examples and describes the details of the final project. Discover how to use various materials and techniques in the making of your visual diary and how each can create different results. Then understand your unique ‘creative DNA’ by gathering personal references and inspiration to build a mood board. Pepita then gives advice and sets exercises on how to represent yourself as a drawn character.
Explore ways to stimulate creativity through learning to observe things in different ways. Begin by looking at what’s in your home, sketching everyday objects and accompanying your drawings with a short sentence or poem. Pepita introduces you to the practice of going on a drawing date with yourself by visiting somewhere fun and sketching what catches your eye. Then, travel back to your past, reliving memories and nostalgic experiences for inspiration.
Start creating your visual diary. Choose an idea from earlier in the course to first turn into an individual entry, or ‘panel’, before learning how to create a sequence of entries both on a single page, and across multiple pages. Experiment with different mediums and techniques including collage and abstract doodling as a means of thoughtful, meditative practice.
Learn how to digitize your work using Photoshop and Procreate for sharing on social media. Understand how to identify themes and patterns in your diary that can be used together as a comic-style collection of stories. End the course with advice on how to keep going with visual journaling and develop your personal style.
What is this course's project?
Begin an ongoing visual diary, documenting different aspects of your life through a series of drawings and illustrations in a sketchbook.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
This course is for anyone looking to explore drawing and writing as an expressive medium.
Requirements and materials
No previous experience is required.
In terms of materials, you will need a sketchbook or paper, a ruler, pen, pencil, something to color with, and a scanner, phone, or iPad. Access to Procreate and Photoshop is recommended but not obligatory.
Reviews
- 2 months ago
Pepita Sandwich ist einzigartig und dadurch gelingt es ihr ganz neue Inhalte zu vermitteln, wie zb. Feminismus mit Cartoon zu verbinden. Sehr lehrreich!
- 8 months ago
Muito interessante e interactivo, muito bom curso para expandir a mente e aprender novas técnicas.
- 8 months ago
It was really cool and helpful to just start drawing again. The lessons are good, and the course is all in all really well organized. Props!
- otta05PLUS8 months ago
Questo corso mi sta piacendo molto, lo trovo molto interessante. Bello e brava Pepita Sandwich ;)
- 9 months ago
Excellent course! Pepita is so generous and encouraging, thank you!!
In 2013 Pepita began publishing her sketchbook drawings of relatable life observations with a focus on feelings, friendship, and self-discovery. As the popularity of this content grew, she challenged herself to post a drawing a day on Instagram. This online visual diary caught the attention of publications and brands, and in 2016, she published her first book Survival Diaries with Penguin Random House. She creates illustrated essays for The Washington Post andThe New Yorker, and has worked with Adidas, and Facebook. In 2019 she published her second book, Women Move Mountains.
Content
- U1
Introduction
- About Me
- Influences
- U2
Getting Ready
- What Is a Visual Diary?
- Materials and Techniques
- Creative DNA
- Draw Yourself
- U3
Getting Ideas
- What’s inside Your House
- Drawing Safari
- Time Travel
- U4
Laying Out Your Stories
- Create a Single-Panel Visual Entry
- Creating a Multi-Panel Entry
- Creating an Hourly Multipage Diary Entry
- Experimental Freestyle Drawing
- U5
What’s Next for Your Visual Diary?
- Digitize and Share
- Make a Collection of Stories
- FP
Final project
- Creative Visual Diary: Learn to Draw Your Life
What to expect from a Domestika course
Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
Certificates
PLUSIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Yes, this course is designed for beginners and guides you step-by-step through starting and maintaining a sketchbook or visual diary, even if you have little or no prior experience.
You’ll need a portable sketchbook, basic drawing tools like Muji gel pens, watercolors, washi tape, and everyday materials. Digital tools like a smartphone or tablet are optional for digitizing your art.
You’ll learn how to tell personal stories through comics, visual essays, and illustration. The course covers character design, storytelling techniques, and how to express emotions and memories visually.
Yes, you’ll learn strategies for compiling your sketchbook art into publishable formats like illustrated books, zines, or mini-comics, and tips for sharing your work online.
The course includes guidance on creating comics for Instagram, building an online presence, and using social media for feedback and portfolio development.
Yes, you’ll explore experimental animation, paper cutouts, collage, and layering mixed media to create unique and dynamic sketchbook pages.
Absolutely. The course provides prompts and techniques for using daily sketchbook practice as a tool for managing anxiety and expressing emotions creatively.