{"title":"How to Draw Graffiti Letters","canonicalUrl":"https://www.craftingstepbystep.com/calligraphy/how-to-draw-graffiti-letters","category":{"slug":"calligraphy","name":"Calligraphy"},"creator":{"name":"Kenwood K-8 Center Art Class","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLo5rKRvf3C3hXDo5jlejGw","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA-NJeAsj8c"},"tldr":"Draw graffiti letters in 10 easy steps: stick letters, outlines, arrow tips, a 3D shadow, a bold border and a brick wall background.","totalDurationSeconds":692,"difficulty":"easy","tools":["pencil","eraser","black fine point marker","small whiteboard (optional)","dry erase marker (optional)"],"materials":["drawing paper","coloured pencils or markers"],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Write the Graffiti Word in Spaced Capital Stick Letters","text":"Write your word in plain capital letters using single thin lines. These are the sticks, the skeleton of each letter. Spread the letters out much further apart than you normally would, because each one is going to get a lot wider. Keep the lines light so you can erase them later. A short word like ART is the easiest place to start."},{"number":2,"title":"Outline Each Stick of the Graffiti Letters","text":"Draw a line along each side of every stick, like tracing around a bone. Follow the angle of each stroke. Do not close off the ends of the letters yet. The tips stay open on purpose because you will add fun shapes to them in a later step. Outline the inside spaces too, such as the hole in the A and the R."},{"number":3,"title":"Erase the Inside Sticks to Leave Hollow Block Letters","text":"Erase the original sticks in the middle of each letter. You are left with hollow block letters with open ends. If your sticks were drawn lightly, they lift right off. On a whiteboard, a fingertip wipes them away. Now you can see the shape of the word properly and decide where each letter will overlap the next."},{"number":4,"title":"Add Arrows and Flames to the Tips of the Graffiti Letters","text":"Close off the open ends of the letters with shapes. Try arrows, flames, points, swirls or rectangles. Make some big and some small. Let letters overlap, so one letter tucks behind its neighbour. Here the R slips under the A and the T reaches back behind the R. There are no rules. Mix shapes until the word looks lively."},{"number":5,"title":"Shade the Left Side of Every Graffiti Letter for a 3D Shadow","text":"Pick one side for your shadow. In this lesson it is the left. Along the left side of every stick, draw a thicker edge and colour it in solid black. Do the same on every letter, every arrow and every tip. The shadow is what makes flat letters look like they stand off the wall."},{"number":6,"title":"Add Crowns, Hearts and Swirls Around the Graffiti Word","text":"Add small extras around the outside of the letters. A crown on top of a letter, a little heart, a swirl, a few stacked lines. These give the piece personality and make it yours. Keep them on the outside. The inside of the letters stays clean, so the colour shows up strongly later."},{"number":7,"title":"Trace a Thick Line Around the Whole Graffiti Word","text":"Draw one continuous line around the entire word. Follow the shape of every letter and every little detail you added, staying a small gap away from them. Go all the way round until the line meets itself. This outer line turns separate letters into one solid piece, the way a real tag looks on a wall."},{"number":8,"title":"Add a Second Outline and Fill the Graffiti Border Black","text":"Draw a second line around the first one to make a wide band. Then fill that band in solid. Black is used here, but any dark colour works as long as it contrasts with the letters. This thick border is what makes the word pop off the background. Take your time near the tips, where the band is narrow."},{"number":9,"title":"Draw Brick Wall Lines Behind the Graffiti Letters","text":"Now the background. Draw rows of horizontal lines across the page to start a brick wall. They do not need to be dead straight, so skip the ruler. Stop each line at the border and pick it up again on the other side. The bricks should look like they go behind the word, not through it."},{"number":10,"title":"Stagger the Brick Joints to Finish the Graffiti Wall","text":"Add short vertical lines in each row, about two finger widths apart. On the next row up, put each line between the two below it rather than on top of them. That is how bricklayers lay a real wall. Round off the brick corners when you colour, then fill the letters with bright colours."}],"recipe":null,"lastUpdated":"2026-10-10T15:33:57.869Z","published":"2026-10-10T15:33:50.140Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit Show Me Step by Step with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure."}