How to draw a flower

Flowers are forgiving: petals never need to be identical, and small wobbles make them look more natural, not less. That makes this a perfect first drawing for kids and beginners.

The only real decision is spacing. Drawing the petals in opposite pairs — top then bottom, left then right — keeps them evenly spread around the centre.

Step-by-step: how to draw a flower

1. 

   1Draw the guides

   Draw a small circle for the centre and a large circle around it to mark how far the petals reach. Add a faint line down for the stem.

2. 

   2Ink the centre

   Go over the small circle with a firm line. This is the anchor every petal grows from.

3. 

   3Add eight petals

   Draw a long rounded petal straight up, then one straight down, one left and one right. Fill the four gaps with diagonal petals so you end up with eight touching the outer guide.

4. 

   4Draw the stem

   Pull a long, slightly curving line down from the bottom of the flower. A gentle S-curve looks more alive than a ruler-straight stem.

5. 

   5Leaves and erase

   Add a leaf on each side of the stem at different heights, each with a centre vein. Draw a short ground line, then erase the guide circles.

6. 

   6Colour the flower

   Pink or white petals, a yellow centre, a green stem and bright lime leaves. Try each petal a different colour for a rainbow flower.

Tips for a better flower

• Opposite pairs first. Up, down, left, right, then the diagonals — that keeps the petals even.
• Leaves at different heights. Two leaves at the same height look like arms.
• Overlap a little. Petals slightly tucked behind each other read as depth.

Try a variation

Draw three flowers of different heights from one pot, or change the petal shape: pointed petals make a sunflower, rounded wide ones a poppy.

More things to draw

Level up

• Basic shading
• Colour theory for beginners
• Drawing ideas
• Easy things to draw