Drawing a Tulip with Pencils

Basic Shape of the Tulip

In the first step we look at the basic form of the flower. It looks like an egg that would have loved to be a cube.

The stem of the flower starts directly below the egg cube in the middle.

Detailed Sketch of the Tulip

In the second step we get more specific and draw the outlines of the four petals as a sketch.

The petal on the left takes up the largest area of the flower, so we save a lot of work on the remaining petals.

Even though we’re going by the basic shape (our egg cube), it’s totally okay if the basic shape changes a little because of the petals.

Finished Drawing of the Tulip

In the third step we can now work on the details.

Tulips come in a variety of colours, some of which sometimes have strong contrasts on the individual petals. In this example, however, we are dealing with a very simple tulip and work only with a pencil.

Gentle strokes run along each petal, starting at the stem and ending at the edge of the petal. The course of the strokes is important to give the tulip its three-dimensionality. The shadow cast is also important, as the two upper petals will cast a gentle shadow on the petal below.