How to Draw a Bell

This bell drawing looks hard when you see the finished piece. It turns out to be a string of simple shapes. Art for Kids Hub walks you through a big gold jingle bell with a red ribbon, drawn in black marker and finished with four colored pencils. The outline takes a few minutes. The coloring is what makes it look real, and it is the part kids are proudest of.

You need a black marker, paper, and colored pencils in yellow orange, brown, black and red. Gray works in place of yellow orange if you want a silver bell.

How to make a round object look 3D

A jingle bell is a sphere, so it is a great first lesson in shading. Three things do the work.

• Highlight. A white circle near the top left, left as bare paper. This is where the light hits, and it is what makes the metal look shiny.
• Core shadow. The bottom of the bell gets dark brown, then black, fading lighter as you move up. Press hard at the edge and ease off.
• Reflected light. A thin white crescent along the bottom edge. Light bounces off the table back onto the bell, so the very edge stays lighter than the shadow above it.

The ribbon gets no highlight on purpose. Shiny metal next to dull cloth is what makes the two materials read as different things. Our how to shade guide goes deeper on light and shadow.

Pencils, paper and gold vs silver

Any colored pencils will work, but soft wax pencils blend the brown into the orange far more smoothly than cheap hard ones. A smooth, heavier drawing pad helps too. Thin copy paper tears when you layer color. Keep the marker outline bold so the shading has an edge to stop against.

For a silver bell, swap the yellow orange for a light gray and the brown for a dark gray. Keep the highlight and crescent white either way.

Jingle bell drawing ideas to try next

Once the round bell clicks, try a classic Christmas bell drawing: the tall, flared church bell shape with a clapper peeking out the bottom. Draw two bells tied together with a bow and holly leaves. Line up a row of small sleigh bells on a strap. Put a bell at the end of a candy cane drawing, or hang a few gold bells on a Christmas tree drawing in place of ornaments.

Holiday ways to use your bell drawing

A shiny gold bell looks great on the front of a folded Christmas card. Cut it out and tape it to a window, or add a loop of string and hang it on the tree next to the Christmas ornaments you made. Small bells make good gift tags too.

Common bell drawing problems

• The bell looks flat. The shadow is too light. Go darker at the bottom and fade it slowly.
• No shine. You colored over the highlight. Plan the white circle before you add any color.
• The slot looks straight. Curve it around the bell and flick it up at the end.
• The straps look like noodles. Make each S wider at the bottom and tuck the back strap behind the front one.