Drawing: Christmas Trees & Corn

First of all, merry Christmas and happy holidays! Over this break, I took advantage of my time to draw a couple slightly more detailed pictures. The first one I drew was a Christmas tree. Now, I know there are multiple ways to draw them, and some pretty simple ways too. But, as I am following instructions from my book, I had to go a little tougher route. I started out drawing multiple triangular layers. Then I added ribbons moving diagonally side to side down the tree, and placed a star at the top. The last step was the decorations - circular ornaments, ribbons, candy canes, and stars (Umoto 78). Overall, I was pleased with the outcome of my tree, even if it doesn't look like one that I would normally draw. For the next image, I chose corn, because it is one of my favorite vegetables. This one was tricky. The outline was simple, but once I began to draw the kernels and the husk, I ran into trouble. According to the book, I was supposed to "Draw the lines on the calyx at the base, the husk wrapping the ear of corn and the lines running along the cob. Draw each kernel of corn and the bushy corn silk. Arrange the kernels alternately" (Umoto 96), but I'm not sure how well I did. Similar to my last post, I was not happy with the result on my first attempt, so I tried again and again. Eventually, I was able to create something that somewhat resembled the picture in the book, but it wasn't perfect. Of course, it doesn't have to be perfect, but I still struggled to make myself believe this. Even though these pictures were a challenge, I am glad I chose them. The process helped me realize that there are more ways than one to draw almost anything, and also helped me to have a higher appreciation for complex drawings. 

When you draw something, do you always draw it in the same way? If so, I encourage you to try a different approach. How do you think people who only see one option in any situation in life differ from those who are open minded and can see multiple solutions? What qualities might one group possess that the other doesn't?

Umoto, Sachiko. Illustration School: Let's Draw Plants and Small Creatures. Quarry Books, 2010.