Stylish Illustrated Portraits with Mixed Media
A course by Karen Savard Klassen, Illustrator
Combine fashion and portraiture to create eye-catching illustrations filled with texture and personality using both traditional and digital techniques
Want to explore the creative possibilities of paint and pixels?
Karen Klassen is an award-winning freelance illustrator who specializes in fashion portraiture with mixed media. She’s collaborated with companies like Folio Society, Bankers Hall, and RedBloom Salons, and her work has been featured in magazines such as Rolling Stone, LA Weekly, The National Post, and The Sunday Times.
In this online course, she teaches you how to illustrate stylish portraits using both traditional and digital techniques. Experiment with pencils, paint, and other analog mediums to create detailed compositions, then turn them into unique works of art with digital tools. Combine fashion and portraiture to create eye -catching illustrations!
What will you learn in this online course?
20 lessons & 20 downloads
What's included in this course?
Get to know Karen Klassen as she tells you about her creative journey to becoming an award-winning illustrator and why she gravitated towards fashion and portraiture. Discover her biggest influences and how they’ve shaped her style.
First, brainstorm ideas to find inspiration for your project before going over the materials you need to complete it. Search for reference images, choose your favorite, and start working on a set of sketches.
Next, transfer your reference photo to paper and make it our own. Create a stencil using frisket film and fill in your portrait with black paint, from the base layer to the finer details. Bring your illustration to life by adding texture as well as decorative elements like flowers and accessories.
Finally, scan your work into Photoshop and assemble all the layers into a single image. Karen gives you some expert tips on how to refine your composition and export the finished illustration to share with the world.
- 95% positive reviews (41)
- 1,690 students
- 20 lessons (4h 53m)
- 20 additional resources (5 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English, Spanish
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish · Romanian · Indonesian
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
Recommended software & tools for this course
Adobe PhotoshopWhat is this course's project?
Create an illustrated fashion portrait using both traditional media and digital techniques.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
Anyone interested in illustration who wants to explore mixed media techniques.
Requirements and materials
Basic drawing and painting skills, as well as experience with Adobe Photoshop, are required for this course.
In terms of materials, you need:
- - A computer with Photoshop and a scanner
- A Wacom tablet or iPad
- Sturdy paper, a pencil, and an eraser
- Paintbrushes and acrylic paint
- A gel medium
- Frisket film
- A craft knife
Reviews
Karen Savard Klassen
A course by Karen Savard Klassen
Karen Klassen is a freelance illustrator from Calgary, Canada, with a degree in design from the Alberta College of Art and Design. Shortly after graduating, she launched her freelance career and has since collaborated on projects in a range of fields such as publishing, advertising, pattern design, and, most notably, fashion and lifestyle, which have become her expertise. She was initially attracted to fashion and portraiture because they give her a sense of freedom and allow her to experiment with different techniques and mediums, searching for the best way to render a particular type of fabric, silhouette, or pattern.
She’s always shared her personal work on social media, which has led to commissions from a wide variety of clients including Folio Society, Bankers Hall, RedBloom Salons, and magazines such as Rolling Stone, LA Weekly, The National Post, and The Sunday Times. She’s also received numerous illustration awards from American Illustration, Communication Arts, and Applied Arts, as well as AR100 and the Society of Illustrators.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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U2
The First Steps
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Getting Inspired
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Materials and Tools
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Sourcing a Reference Image
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Digital Sketching and Composition 1
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Digital Sketching and Composition 2
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U3
Drawing and Painting with Acrylic
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Transferring the Image
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The Magic of Frisket
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Painting the Portrait’s Details 1
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Painting the Portrait’s Details 2
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Flowers, Textures, and Personality
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U4
Finishing the Image
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Digital Assembly: The Face 1
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Digital Assembly: The Face 2
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Digital Assembly: The Face 3
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Digital Assembly: Jewelry and Floral Elements 1
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Digital Assembly: Jewelry and Floral Elements 2
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Digital Assembly: Jewelry and Floral Elements 3
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Digital Assembly: Jewelry and Floral Elements 4
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Final Touches, Exporting, and Sharing
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FP
Final project
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Illustrated portrait with a fashion focus
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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 intermediate artists who want to deepen their skills in fashion illustration, sketchbook practice, and integrating traditional and digital techniques.
You'll need a sketchbook (like a Moleskine), pencils, brushes, gouache, acrylics, frisket film, old brushes, and access to digital tools like Photoshop and a scanner or iPad.
Yes, the course bridges both traditional and digital methods, making it accessible to artists with experience in either area who want to expand their skills.
You’ll learn to mix drawing and painting, experiment with new mediums, translate fashion photography to illustration, use abstraction and figure distortion, and create hand-drawn patterns and graphic edges.
Yes, the course guides you through daily sketchbook practice, brainstorming, and experimenting with various materials and techniques to help you build a unique artistic voice and workflow.
You’ll learn to transfer sketches between paper and digital formats, use Photoshop for layering and texture, digitize analog textures, and organize files for efficient workflow.
Yes, some lessons require Photoshop or similar digital art software, along with basic knowledge of scanning or photographing artwork for digital editing.
Adobe Photoshop
Excellent course. Very well explained. This provides a painter with the skills to use a combination of their painting skills and the computer to create very beautiful art that can be reproduced in print or for social media.
Great course – easy to follow and full of useful information. Fantastic instructor.
I Would've liked for this course to be more 'traditional' art-focused, but still helpful in the creative craft.
Muito bom.
Muy buen curso bien explicado facil de entender!! Gracias por su maravillosa clase!!