How To Draw Celtic Designs Easy

My go to book on Celtic design is George Bain's book, Celtic Art: The Methods of Construction (Dover Art Instruction) published by Dover Books.

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I spent some fourth dimension doing a Celtic screw study based on the steps illustrated past George Bain. As Celtic spirituality is rooted in nature, I reached for earth tones: terracotta, goldenrod, bronze green, and avocado. As I drew spiral later screw, I began to get a feel for the patterns and how they are constructed.

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For my final composition, I wanted to pulled together a variety of Celtic spirals. I started with the big circle in the middle and and then drew the three mid-sized circles with their companion smaller circles. Equally I constructed the designs in each circle, I referred back to my spiral study and looked to George Bain's book for other variations and decorative elements. Information technology was fun to interconnect the diverse circumvolve designs. I added a cool gray which appears blue to compliment the other colors that I had been working with. It is and then rewarding to construct my own Celtic composition.

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When I designed this mandala, I was thinking of the quote by John O'Donahue, "May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven effectually the middle of wonder." I watched A Celtic Pilgrimage With John O'Donohue [DVD] equally I worked on this mandala. Well actually I listened to it. I take watched this movie so many times. My husband and I always experience relaxed and spiritually nourished later on watching it. The Celtic landscape as O'Donahue presents it is magnificent. I highly recommend it!

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To practise my knotwork, I created this blueprint of six trefoils linked inside a Hexagon. Check out this excellent video by David Nicholls to larn how to create this pattern. Information technology looks complicated, but I found it really easy with David's practiced instruction. WATCH VIDEO

Some design tips:

Mechanical Pencil: The fine tip of a mechanical pencil is platonic for making delicate, detailed drawings.
Pentel Click Eraser: This eraser is in the shape of a pen and it makes information technology easy to erase minor areas. It also does a bang up job cleaning up pencil marks.
Larger Eraser: At that place is a lot of erasing in drawing in this style. For larger areas I similar my Paper Mate Black Pearl. I rub it across the surface in circular motions.
Markers: For these illustrations I used alcohol-based markers – a combo of some Prismacolor Markers and some generic illustration ones. Experiments with what you have on paw. You tin can as well colour your artwork in with colored pencils, acrylic paints, watercolors, etc.
Charcoal Pencil: To create a sense of depth I used a blackness charcoal pencil and composite with a blending stump.
Bristol Board: This is my favorite medium for illustrations. It has a smooth surface and handles a multifariousness of mediums.
Videos by David Nicolls: Be sure to check out these videos to acquire how to create Celtic inspired knotwork.
Videos past the Celtic Goldsmith: More how-to videos to check out.

Books to Consider:

101 Celtic Spirals
Courtney Davis, Blandford Press, 2005
Celtic Design A Sourcebook of Patterns and Motifs
Iain Zaczek, Studio Editions, 1995
Celtic Fine art: The Methods of Construction
George Bain, Constable, 1951
Great Book of Celtic Patterns: The Ultimate Design Sourcebook for Artists and Crafters
Lora S. Irish, Fox Chapel Publishing, 2007
The Lindisfarne Gospels
Janet Backhouse, Phaidon Printing, 1981
The Book of Kells
Bernard Meehan, Thames and Hudson, 1994
The Volume of Kells
Peter Brown, Thames and Hudson, 198
Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Painting: Volume Illumination in the British Isles 600-800
Carl Nordenfalk, Chatko and Windus, 1977

I desire to encourage you to do your own written report. Search YouTube and Pinterest for tutorials. Look at excellent examples of Celtic design. In your report it is okay to re-create for that is how we acquire. When it comes to creating your terminal composition however, I encourage you lot to have various design elements that you lot've learned and combine them in your own unique mode . I have to tell yous it is the most rewarding feeling to blueprint something that is wholly your own. I desire you to have this awesome experience. If y'all are inspired by someone else'south work, be sure to give them credit. In a higher place all, have fun exploring the many possibilities inside this cute craft.

100 Mandalas Design Team

I invited several artists who live in various places all over the earth to join me here on 100 Mandalas. They sent in some beautiful examples of Celtic Mandalas.

4-Celtic-Megan

"Circling the Celt"

I have always had an analogousness for all things Celtic, it is part of my heritage with my father existence born in Dublin. I am specially inspired by the The Book of Kells . I was recently introduced to the YouTube videos of David Nicholls, this has made a big impact on my understanding of the cosmos of celtic knots. This mandala is the result of my practice.

Medium: Unipin fine liner, Derwent Artist pencils in shades of green and grey to highlight.

Megan Warren, Western Australia
Megan is passionate nigh writing, art journaling, photography and creating mandalas – she is peculiarly interested in the wellness benefits of creative expression. She blogs at Four Ravens.

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"A Approval"

Wow, I found this theme challenging ! Number ane: I am not addicted of intricate and complicated designs because my easily are very shaky. Number two: I went completely out of my comfort zone and decided to exercise a blackness and white design. Colour is what I am all about and my designs e'er seem "unfinished" to me if I don't put color in them. Even so, once this pattern was completed I was so thrilled with the results – I may but make some more blackness and white mandalas.

Medium: white cardstock and various blackness markers.

Angella de Jager, South Africa
I am a self taught artist and take been a professional arts and crafts teacher for the last xv years. I cruel in dear with creating colourful mandalas last year! angelladeedesigns.blogspot.com 5-Celtic-Pattie

Untangle and Fly

There are times in life when you experience tangled upwardly…merely you must always recall… only y'all can untangle yourself and fly…

Medium: acrylic pigment and sharpie on 140 wt. watercolor paper

Patricia J. Mosca, New York, Us
Patricia Mosca is an artist and the author of "Permission Slips for your Heart and Soul," her mandala fashion journaling has been seen in several national magazines. Painting mandalas and interpreting them allows her to listen closely to the whispers of her heart. http://soulfullyjournaling.blogspot.com 6-Celtic-Maria

Medium: watercolor and ink on paper

Maria Mercedes Trujillo A., New Zealand
I enjoy playing with colors, I make fine art for fun and to feed my soul. You are welcome to follow my creative journey at www.magamerlina.com

7-Celtic-Neomi

"Family unit"

This mandala is a symbol that represents the complex relationships within the family and the sense of unity and interconnectedness.

Neomi Mor, Israel
Neomi Mor is married and a mother to three adult children living in Israel. Until recently she worked as a banker. Today Neomi is a pupil in naturopathy. She enjoys traveling, practiced food, books and interesting people, but above all, enjoys painting mandalas.

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"Fourth dimension Before and After"

This mandala is almost continuing at a crossroads between ancient times and modernity, betwixt the wish to stay connected to the past and the desire to progress without forgetting what the past offered to you.

Materials: Unipen fine liner 00.2, Sharpies (love them!! – yello, orange and cherry) and the water colour pencils Faber-Castell that my son Benjamin gave me for Christmas.

Fabienne Tossi, Switzerland
Fabienne Tosi is a freelance translator living in Geneva, Switzerland. She'due south both French and Swiss and her interests outside of her piece of work are to raise sensation about dangerous games to save young people and to accompany people nearing the end of life. She discovered mandalas through meditation.