In this tutorial I will explain how to create a mascot from a simple  sketch. No mad drawing skills are required, just a bit of attention and  Adobe Illustrator.

What you'll be creating

This is  how the final image will look like.



Scenario

Let's  say you have a sports team manager requesting a mascot for his team. He  wants a lion head, looking aggressive, bold and imposing.

As  example, he wants something similar to "Minnesota Timberwolves" mascot,  but a bit simpler.



What do you do?

Basics

First  of all, you need to make a quick analysis of what your mascot will look  like. For this, take a pen and a piece of paper and write down keywords  in the following categories:

"Positives" and "Negatives". This  part will guide your drawing in a certain direction and it will prevent  you from going astray, due to the future ideas you'll have.

Analysis

We want to create a lion head for our mascot, so we  need a couple of keywords to guide our path. Think of the feeling you  have when you hear the word "lion" and write them down.

Positives:

-  Ferocity
- Aggressiveness
- Boldness
- Majesty
- Strength

Negatives:

-  Cartoonish
- Funny
- Cute
- Detailed
- Grungy
- Too many  colors
- Glossy
- Vignette
- Turn into a character

If  you "find" even one of the "Negatives" in your final drawing, then  something went wrong at some point. So pay attention from time to time  at the direction you're heading with the drawing so you don't undo all  the time.

References

Always use references.  Look up on Google the "Minnesota Timberwolves" mascot and an image of a  real lion.

It is important to already have a finished, high  quality design as inspiration and follow that style.

Then you'll  know that your design is of high quality if you can compare it with the  reference.

Observe small details

Looking at  the "Minnesota Timberwolves" mascot, observe the simplicity, colors and  line art. Again, keywords are a must here also.

Do's:

- Thick lines
- Curved and sharp
- Spiked contour
- Few  colors

Sketching up

 Grab a piece of paper and a  pencil, look at the photo of the lion and stylize his contour, using the  criteria established earlier.

Don't get into much detail, keep  it simple. Here's my sketch. Feel free to use it if you don't have a scanner.



Turning into vector

 Now we will import  the sketch in Illustrator and use it as guides for the outlining.

STEP  1

Create a new document of 1000x1000 px in CMYK color mode.



STEP  2

Drag-drop the sketch into our canvas and click "Embed".



STEP  3

Go to Window > Transparency, click the sketch and set  Opacity to 60-65%. Then go to Window > Layers (F7) and lock the layer  - click the empty checkbox near the layer thumbnail.



STEP 4

Create  a new layer (CTRL+SHIFT+N) and name it "contour".



STEP 5

Grab  the Pen Tool (P) and trace the contour of the lion. To make sharp  corners (like the fur tips), click again on the anchorpoint to make it  sharp.
Only trace half, you'll reflect the other side later.



STEP  6

Make sure you have fill and no stroke. Go to Object > Path  > Offset Path. Set it to about 10 to 12 px. Hit OK.



STEP 7

Hit  CTRL+click outside your artwork to deselect. Select the fill of the  shape and give it another color, preferably a midtone.
Hit  CTRL+SHIFT+[ to send it to back.



STEP 8

In some areas, the  Offset created some blunt areas. Grab the Direct Selection Tool (A) and  click-drag the anchorpoints to make them sharp spikes.
Press "-"  key and click the unwanted anchorpoints to erase them. Do this for all  similar areas.



STEP 9

Select all artwork, grab the Eraser  Tool (SHIFT+E), hold ALT key and erase the unwanted areas beyond the  vertical Axis.



STEP 10

With the entire artwork selected,  go to Object > Group (CTRL+G). Copy it (CTRL+C) and paste it to front  (CTRL+F).



STEP 11

Go to Object > Transform >  Reflect (CTRL+SHIFT+T) and select "Vertical". Hit OK. Then grab the  Selection Tool (V) and place it symmetrically opposed to its original.



STEP  12

Create a new layer above the top-most layer and name it  "face". Turn off visibility of the "contour" layer.



STEP 13

Make  a trace of the facial lines: nose, nose bridge, eyes and a bit from the  forehead. Then repeat STEPS 10-11 to make the other side of the face.





STEP  14

Go to Object > Expand Appearance, then Object > Path  > Clean Up. Erase the anchorpoints shown below.







STEP 15

Select  the facial outlining and go to the Pathfinder window (Window >  Pathfinder). Click the "Merge" button.



STEP 16

Grab the  Live Paint Bucket (K) and fill the eyes with a light color. Then go to  Object > Expand, Object > Path > Clean Up.



STEP 17

Turn  on visibility of the "contour" layer. Select all the layer's content,  grab the Selection Tool (V) and make it larger, to fit the facial  contour.

To select the layer's content, click the small circle in  the layer's palette. Hold ALT+SHIFT keys to make a centered resize.



STEP  18

Create a layer below the "face" layer. Then grab your Pen  Tool (P) and draw a shape like below with a darker red color.



STEP  19

Repeat STEPS 10-11 to make the other side.



STEP 20

Repeat  STEPS 20-21 to create the eyes' shadows.



STEP 21

Select  the contour, cut it (CTRL+X), create a new layer above all layers and  paste it to front (CTRL+F).



STEP 22

Below the "face"  layer, create a new layer (click the "New Layer" button in the Layers  palette) and draw these shapes.

This will make the face to stand  out more and make the hair more suggestive.



STEP 23

Reflect  them like in STEPS 10-11. Select all artwork and click the "Merge"  button in the Layers palette.



Adjust colors

Grab  the Magic Wand Tool (Y), press Enter and set Tolerance to "0".
Select  each color and change it to any colors you like.



Done!

Here  are some of the variations you can create. The idea is to maintain a  strong base color and a dark contour, so you can be able to see it from  distance.



How about you? How do YOU create your mascots?