Airbrush a Mascot: T-Shirt Step by Step

In this tutorial I will show you my process on how I usually airbrush a mascot on a black t-shirt. I normally use the Iwata revolution airbrush and wicked colors from Createx and sometimes Aquaflow.

 

Step 1

 Have a sketch ready. In this step by step, I will be using an evil squirrel that I sketched out for this demonstration.

 

 

Step 2

 I use a projector to scale and position the sketch on the t-shirt.

Using a white charcoal pencil, I proceed to sketch the lines.

 

 

Step 3

 Since my t-shirt is black, I must use white as a base for my colors to have foundation, otherwise the black cotton will consume the colors and they will appear very dark and dull.

Using white as the base, I proceed to define the lights and shadows of the body of this squirrel.

 ..and this is what it looks like:

Step 4

I then start to apply color but first I prepare 3 colors for the body:

1. Light yellowish-brown
2. Mid orange-brown
3. Dark brown

These 3 colors will be used for the main body.

I will start by laying down the Light yellowish-brown first:

 

Step 5

Now I add the following colors from lightest to darkest using mid orange-browns and the dark-browns.

I also add the other remaining colors: eyes, background, teeth, etc...

 

Step 6

 Next I use black paint to define the outlines and darken up some more of the shadows.

  

Step 7

Using white paint, I proceed add a base for the reflected primary and secondary lights to the entire character. In this case, the reflected light is coming from the right side (the character's left)

 

Step 8

Having a white base for the reflected light makes the color blend easily.

Here I airbrushed a transparent lime green and yellow on every reflected light to the right side of the character.

  

FINAL IMAGE

You may use a transparent sealer and heat press the t-shirt for maximum lifetime.