Lineart.

1. First I often do a sketchy thing to get a sense of proportions. Though it can be skipped for simpler pieces, it proves invaluable for figuring out difficult poses and perspectives. For this step, I use the pen tool on half opacity and 1 pixel size with the zoom at 100% and drawing on a middle layer (or default layer in Lascaux).

2. Next, on a layer above that, I zoom in to 200% and draw on the top layer (in Lascaux, add a layer and draw on that). I use a 2-pixel pen on half opacity to make a rough ink (in Lascaux, I use a square 2-pixel brush with full opacity and the Antialias option enabled).

3. Finally, I set the sketch layer to invisible and, after making sure I still have the ink layer selected, refine the ink lineart. Still zoomed in to 200% (or 300%, depending), I go back over the lines, alternating between the 2 pixel pen tool and Eraser2 set on 3 pixels and half opacity. For Lascaux, I use an unantialiased brush on 1/3 opacity and eraser on 1/3 opacity. I zoom out occasionally while working to see how it looks. After I'm done, I make the sketch layer visible again to see if I missed anything, and then completely erase that layer. Don't delete it, though; you'll use it again for the shading.

Note: Do not use the right-click color picker while refining your lineart; just switch between the pen/brush and the eraser.

Shading, part 1.

Making sure I'm working on what was the sketch layer, I block out large areas of color using a medium brush on full opacity. Then I go back in with a smaller brush and color the details.

Shading, part 2.

Here I add highlight and shadow to the basic shading I've set up. First I pick a direction, and then pick out tones for the highlight and shadow of each color. One might find it helpful to draw spots of these colors on the canvas so you can easily switch between them by right-clicking on them.

Background.

In Oekeki-Shi, I use the bottom layer. In Lascaux Sketch, I add a layer and move it to the bottom. The background is really up to you.