I’ve been trying to study faces before starting the actual wool shape, so I made some rough structure sketches over reference photos.

I’m not doing this to make a beautiful drawing. It’s more like a map before felting.

The more I look at cat faces, the more I realize they are not just a round head with ears added on. A lot of the expression comes from the bigger structure first:

* the center line of the face
* the angle and spacing of the eyes
* the nose bridge
* the muzzle volume
* the cheek planes
* the direction of the ears
* how the side of the face turns away from the front

I’m realizing this step is useful because needle felting is not only about copying colors or fur texture. If the main face planes, muzzle shape, and eye placement are off, the portrait can still feel unlike the animal even if the colors are close.

So I’m trying to think of the process in layers:

1. understand the head volume
2. build the muzzle and cheek structure
3. place the eyes
4. shape the nose bridge and nose
5. add color areas
6. add fur direction and surface texture last

I’m still learning, but doing this kind of structure study makes the animal feel less overwhelming before I start poking wool.

For people who make realistic or semi-realistic animal portraits, do you study the face structure first, or do you build more intuitively as you go?

What I’m learning from sketching cat face structure before needle felting