Learn how to draw a doll in two different ways with simplified steps, each offering a different style and color palette.

How to Draw a Doll: Introduction

In this tutorial, I will show you how to draw a doll created for children, with a focus on simplicity and ease of understanding.

To draw a doll, firstly, pay attention to the proportions. Keep the head large compared to the body to maintain the doll-like look. Simple shapes work best, so don’t focus too much on tiny details. Instead, concentrate on achieving smooth, clean lines.

As you add facial features, symmetry is important. Keep both eyes, eyebrows (if you draw them), and cheeks really simple. When drawing the body, use soft, rounded lines to create the doll’s cute appearance. The arms and legs should be slightly stubby.

When adding details, try to keep them minimalistic to maintain a simple look. To prevent your doll drawing from becoming overly detailed, you can incorporate subtle elements like dotted lines to represent seams. Additionally, basic shapes such as small squares can be used for patches.

Doll Drawing Tutorial

Materials

Pencil
Paper
Eraser
Coloring supplies

Time needed: 40 minutes

How to Draw a Doll

Draw the head and body shapes of the doll.
The head will be a large circle positioned at the top of the page, while the body will be an elongated oval shape connected just below the head. These two shapes form the basic framework of the doll’s figure. Drawing the head and body lightly with a pencil allows you to adjust the shapes later.
Add the facial features so the toy.
Sketch two large circles for the eyes, placing them on at the middle of the doll’s face. These circles should be relatively large to give the doll drawing a cartoonish look. Underneath the eyes, draw a small curved line for the mouth. Draw the seam using a vertical dotted line located in the center of the face.
Sketch the hair and pigtails.
Begin by outlining the hairline with a triangle or inverted V-shape on the forehead, which divides the hair into two sections. Extend the hair on each side of the head, to form the pigtails. Add a small circular shape at the base of each pigtail to represent the hair ties.
Add the neck and button.
In this step, start by drawing a small neck under the doll’s head, connecting the head to the body. Then, move on to adding a button on the chest. The button should be centered, and you can make it a simple circle with two or four small holes in the middle, just like a real button.
Draw the dress of the doll.
Start drawing the dress with the sleeves by sketching lines outward from the sides of the body, making them slightly puffy to give the outfit a soft, doll-like appearance. The dress should flare out in a wide triangular shape, starting from the waist and extending downward to form a classic doll dress.
Add the hands and legs of the toy.
At the end of each sleeve, draw simple rounded shapes for the hands. These can be small ovals or curved lines to match the soft style of the doll. Then, draw two vertical U-shapes lines extending down from the bottom of the dress to form the legs. The legs should be short and slightly rounded at the ends.
Add details to the hair and dress.
Here, add some final details to the hair and dress to make your doll drawing more polished. Add a few curved lines to the hair to give it a natural texture. These lines should follow the natural direction of the hair. For the dress, add subtle folds or creases at the waist to give it more of a fabric-like appearance.
Finalize your doll drawing.
In this final step, review your drawing and make any last adjustments to improve the overall appearance. You can go over the lines to darken them where needed and erase any extra guidelines or rough sketches. Make sure the shapes are smooth and the details are clear.
Color the doll.
Choose soft colors that match the doll’s cute appearance. You are free to use any colors for the doll, but for example, you might paint the hair light brown or blonde, and the dress a soft pink or green. You can make the button a contrasting color, like red or blue. Color the eyes black, leaving white highlights.

How to Draw a Doll: Alternative Technique

Here’s an additional tutorial that offers another method to drawing a doll. Unlike the main tutorial, this one uses a different drawing style and sequence of steps. The process is also really simpler. You’ll also notice a different color palette used to give the doll another appearance.

Begin drawing a doll by sketching a large, round shape for the head and then add a smaller, curved shape beneath it to create the body. Draw the basic outline of the hair by adding a simple, rounded hairstyle around the head. Next, draw the arms extending out from both sides of the body using smooth, curved lines.

Move on to the face by sketching the eyes as large circles with smaller circles inside for pupils, and add small curved lines for eyelashes. Add the eyebrows, a small, curved mouth, and cheeks. Complete the body by drawing the outfit: two buttons on the chest and a simple curved line to indicate the separation of the legs. Refine the hair and outfit details, adding any necessary lines for clarity. Finally, color the doll drawing.

Additional Doll Worksheets

Conclusion

This tutorial has provided two very simple methods for drawing a doll in really cute cartoon style. By following the outlined steps, paying attention to proportions, and using simple lines, you can create a neat doll drawing. Remember to maintain symmetry when adding facial features and to use soft, rounded shapes for the body and limbs. Keeping the details minimal.

As always, taking your time and practicing regularly will improve your technique and confidence in drawing. Feel free to adjust the design or color scheme to suit your preferences. Make sure to use the tips from this guide to refine your skills and create a final drawing that you’re satisfied with.

To further your learning and continue practicing your skills, feel free to check out my other lessons. For example, you can try drawing a girl with my easy step-by-step tutorial.