1 To begin, I draw a sideways S for the cat’s gesture line, using a tighter curl for the tail. Then I establish the basic shapes using a circle for the head and ovals for the chest, body, and haunches. To create guidelines for the cat’s features, I center a cross over the face and add two dashes to indicate the position of the mouth and nose.
2 Now I draw a smaller oval over the cat’s stomach, blocking in the bulging fur of its underbelly. Then I create the full outline of the cat’s body, adding its four legs. Next I draw the triangular ears and place the eyes, nose, and mouth.
3 Next I go over the outline with short, broken strokes that better depict the fur. In addition, I define the toes and paw pads, and I add a few lines to suggest the crease at the cat’s shoulder. I also add a more detail to the face, marking the stripes and filling in the crescent shapes of the pupils.
4 Then I erase any guidelines I no longer need, and I map out the basic tabby pattern of the cat’s coat. I use curving lines to suggest the cat’s rounded form. I also scribble in the contrasting parallel lines of the carpet, and I place the first lines of the ottoman behind the cat.
5 Next I apply shading to the cat’s subtly striped coat. I go over the graphite with a blending stump to allow soft gradations, which best illustrate the cat’s fluffy fur. I also use the stump to soften edges, such as along the delicate fur of the cat’s underbelly. Next I further define the cloth-covered ottoman behind the cat.
6 I continue to build up the cat’s darker values, developing the dark stripes of the cat by applying heavier strokes in the direction of fur growth. For the carpet pattern, I smudge shading in every other stripe using graphite dust and a blending stump. Finally I apply a few broad, vertical strokes to the ottoman with the blending stump, producing a calming contrast to the busy striped patterns of the carpet and cat.