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Based on a video by Art for Kids Hub
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This cartoon owl comes from Art for Kids Hub, where a dad and his son draw side by side at a red table. The owl sits on a branch, holds on with curly talons and stares out with huge shiny eyes. Every part is built from shapes kids already know: the letter W, curves, circles, zigzags and the letter U.
You need a black marker, a sheet of paper and something to color with. It takes about seven minutes to draw.
Most drawings start with the head. This one starts with the feet. The talons and branch go in first, near the bottom of the page, and the body grows up from there. That keeps the owl from running off the bottom of the paper, which is the most common problem kids hit with tall animals. It also means the owl always looks like it is holding on tight.
The eyes are the other big idea. Owls have enormous eyes, so draw them bigger than feels right. The rings around them make the face read as an owl and not a cat.
A fine point black permanent marker gives the bold outline in the video. If marker feels scary, sketch in pencil first and trace over it. Printer paper is fine for practice. A heavier drawing pad keeps marker from bleeding through when you color.
For color, washable markers give bright flat fills. Colored pencils are better for small kids because they are easier to keep inside the lines and you can layer brown over tan for feathers.
Size matters more than supplies. Let the owl fill most of the page, from the ear tufts near the top edge to the tail near the bottom. A big owl leaves room for the eye rings and feathers, and it is much easier for small hands to color without going over the lines.
The dad colors a classic brown owl with a tan face, blue eyes and orange feet on a brown branch. His son goes wild with a purple owl covered in brown spots, a yellow belly and bright green eyes. Both work. Owls in real life are brown, grey, white or speckled, so a snowy owl in white and grey is another easy choice. Leave the eye highlights white no matter what color you pick.
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Draw a cute cartoon owl on a branch in 10 easy steps: talons, big shiny eyes, ear tufts and feathers. An easy project: about 20 minutes. Materials cost about $5 to $10. You need 4 things, including colored pencils or markers, black fine point permanent marker and pencil and eraser. The 10 steps start with draw Two Curved W Shapes for the Owl's Talons, draw the Wavy Branch the Owl Is Holding and draw the Owl's Body Curves and Pointed Tail.
10 steps, about 9 minutes. Tap a picture to jump to that step. Your progress saves automatically.
Tick each step off as you go.
Start near the bottom of your page. Draw a letter W, but curve it as you go so it looks like a claw wrapping around something. That is one talon. Leave a gap and draw a second W next to it, curving the other way. Then connect the tops of each W with a little curve and close the bottoms. These are the owl's feet, so keep them close to the bottom.
Leave room above the talons. The whole owl body has to fit up there.
Connect the two talons with a short wavy line across the top and another across the bottom. That is the part of the branch the owl is holding. Then pretend the branch keeps going. Draw wavy lines out from each side of the talons, top and bottom, all the way to the edges of your paper. It is fine if you are close to the edge on one side.
Wavy lines look like wood. Straight lines look like a pipe.
Go way up near the top of your paper. Draw a big curve that comes down and touches the branch. Imagine it going behind the branch. Below the branch, keep the curve going toward the middle and stop halfway between the talons. Do the same on the other side, starting at the same height. The two bottom curves meet in a point. That point is the tail.
Start both curves at the same height so the owl does not lean.
Owls do not have ears that stick up. Those pointy bits are feathers, and they make the owl look like it has little horns. At the top of each body curve, draw a short diagonal line that leans in. Then connect the two tips with a line that dips down a little in the middle. Now the body is closed and the owl has a head.
Make both tufts lean the same amount. Uneven tufts make the owl look surprised.
About a third of the way down the head, start on one side and draw a line that curves down toward the middle. Make a point in the center for the beak, then come back up and go out to the other side. Let the line go a little past the body on both ends. That one line gives the owl eyebrows and a beak at the same time.
A sharper point makes a stronger beak. A soft dip looks sleepy.
Owls have huge eyes, so draw two big circles under the brow line, one on each side of the beak. Inside each one, draw a small circle near the top right. Add an even smaller circle near the bottom left. Those are the light reflecting off the eyes. Color the big circles black and leave the small circles white. Take your time around the highlights.
Your eyes do not have to match. The son's are different sizes and still look great.
Start at the brow line and draw a curve around the outside of each eye, then bring it back up to the brow. Then draw one more ring on each side. This one starts next to the beak, goes around under the eye and connects to the side of the body. These rings are the feathery disk that every owl face has.
Leave a little space between the eye and the ring. The gap makes the eyes pop.
Above the eyes, draw a small zigzag line from one side of the forehead to the other. That gives the owl fluffy head feathers. Then go to the side of the body. Starting under the eye ring, draw a zigzag line down until it meets the talon. Do the same on the other side. Now the owl has wings tucked in at its sides.
Small, quick zigzags look like feathers. Big slow ones look like teeth.
Look below the branch at the pointed tail. Draw a line straight down the middle from the branch to the point. Then add another line on one side that splits the space, and one more closer to the edge. Repeat on the other side. The lines fan out like the feathers of a closed tail. Two or three on each side is plenty.
Curve the side lines a little to follow the shape of the tail.
Between the two side zigzags is the owl's chest. Draw a small letter U there. Then draw two or three more U shapes next to it in a row. Add a second row under that one. These little U shapes look like soft belly feathers. Once the belly is done, color your owl any way you like. The dad picks brown. His son goes purple with spots.
Stagger the rows so each U sits between two above it, like shingles.
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How to Draw an Owl
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Question 1 of 5
Where does this owl drawing start?
Quick reference
5 questions, answers, and one-line explanations. Tap to expand.
1.Where does this owl drawing start?
Answer: The talons
Starting at the feet keeps the owl from running off the page.
2.What letter shape forms each talon?
Answer: A curved W
A W curved like a claw looks like it wraps around the branch.
3.What are the pointy bits on top of an owl's head?
Answer: Feather tufts
Owls do not have ears that stick up; those are feathers.
4.What makes the face read as an owl and not a cat?
Answer: Rings drawn around the eyes
The eye rings frame the huge eyes the way an owl's face does.
5.What shape makes the soft belly feathers?
Answer: Small U shapes
Rows of little U shapes look like soft chest feathers.
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