Day 6 // How to Draw Hair

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Today we will top off (get it?) this weeks lessons by learning how to draw hair! This may seem intimidating, and drawing hair definitely does take some practice. But I’ve got a few basics steps that will teach you how to analyze any hairdo. Learn how to see hair as an overall shape, figure out where to put the highlights and shadows, and then add texture and details with lines. 

Basic Elements

Overall Shape

Highlights & Shadows

Texture & Direction Lines

Stray Hairs

Details

Define the hairline

Observe a hairstyle and look for strong lines to define the direction of the hair

Don’t forget about facial hair!

Homework

Sketch several hairstyles. Find some photos of hairstyles you’d like to draw. Nothing too complex, keep it basic. Do some simple pencil sketches of overall hair shape, then, using you reference photo, look for the shadows and highlights. Add lines for the hair’s texture and direction, and finish it off by drawing some stray hairs that match the texture of the hair. 

Example

Day 7 Homework

Go back to your drawings of the different facial features you’ve made over the week. Pick your favorites and put them together to make a full face illustration. You can even add color! Follow the steps in the tutorial on this page to make a full color illustration in Procreate. You can do this!

Keep researching, observing and learning! I’ve made a Pinterest board full of additional resources to help you learn about drawing hair.

This lesson is a part of a month-long series that will get you you familiar with the basics of drawing humans, and help you develop your own people-drawing style. To learn more, check out the People Skills Intro, or continue on to the next lesson below.