Uhm... I don't like how the female base looks but I'll do a better one if anybody asks for it. This is a basic anime girl figure (hourglass shape or whatnot.)

This isn't how I draw females (all the circles and stuff). Usually it looks a lot cleaner, and I usually wing it, but the joint circles help sometimes if you're doing more abstract poses.

I'm not exactly accurate, of course, but this is how I see things. XD; You may, in any way, disagree with how I teach.

These are like the little mannequin things that people use, except in 2D form. Use this the same way you'd use the mannequin. :3

Just some tips. I'll give more help to anybody who needs it. XD

The body:
-Align your shoulders to the hips.
-Ladies, I know you hate your thighs like all the other women, but yes, they ARE bigger than your shins/calves. We don't want them looking like peglegs now do we?
-The circles represent joints- its helps to show how and where things connect, and how not to bend them.
-Your hands stop halfway past your hips, about mid-thigh ish. And when I say stop, I don't mean by your wrists- only your middle finger reaches the half-way mark at your thighs.

Hands:
Use a large circle to represent the palm, and smaller ones to represent the shape of the fingers (use 2-3 per finger). Where the circles overlap should be your joint. use a smaller, more oval-shape to represent the wrist- note: on the opposite side of the thumb is your wristbone; when you draw it, don't make it apparent- it IS there though. (I may be wrong; I can see my own wristbone, which is why I draw it. People vary.)

Feet:
For the ankle, use a vertical oval (not too large). You can erase one half and you can see the ankle's basic shape. Use three circles- one for your heel (should be a rather large circle/oval, egg kinda shape), one for the middle of your foot, between your heel and toe knuckles, and the last one, a smaller ovular shape for where your toes will connect to the rest of your foot. Sadly, I don't have a guide on how to draw toes- Personally, I just wing it. x_X

Any questions, feel free to ask.