Creative Visual Diary: Learn to Draw Your Life
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
- 99% positive reviews (166)
- 5,481 students
- 15 lessons (2h 24m)
- 25 additional resources (7 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English, Spanish (Latam), French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
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
Pepita Sandwich
A course by Pepita Sandwich
Pepita Sandwich is a fashion and textile designer turned illustrator and cartoonist from Buenos Aires, Argentina She’s been drawing all her life but, growing up, she thought drawings had to be realistic to be good and so she pursued fashion design at university. This gave her the tools to understand creative processes and work with different mediums. After graduating, Pepita moved to Milan on a photography scholarship. It was there she realized that drawing in her sketchbook was her favorite thing to do, and that illustration was her true passion all along.
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
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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U2
Getting Ready
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What Is a Visual Diary?
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Materials and Techniques
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Creative DNA
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Draw Yourself
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U3
Getting Ideas
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What’s inside Your House
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Drawing Safari
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Time Travel
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U4
Laying Out Your Stories
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Create a Single-Panel Visual Entry
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Creating a Multi-Panel Entry
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Creating an Hourly Multipage Diary Entry
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Experimental Freestyle Drawing
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U5
What’s Next for Your Visual Diary?
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Digitize and Share
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Make a Collection of Stories
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FP
Final project
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Creative Visual Diary: Learn to Draw Your Life
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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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.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
Pepita Sandwich ist einzigartig und dadurch gelingt es ihr ganz neue Inhalte zu vermitteln, wie zb. Feminismus mit Cartoon zu verbinden. Sehr lehrreich!
Muito interessante e interactivo, muito bom curso para expandir a mente e aprender novas técnicas.
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!
Questo corso mi sta piacendo molto, lo trovo molto interessante.
Bello e brava Pepita Sandwich ;)
Excellent course! Pepita is so generous and encouraging, thank you!!