How to Draw a Butterfly

שריט־פֿאַר־שריט

1. שריט 1

   Draw a light vertical line down the middle of the page.

   Everything in this drawing is measured from this line, and it is the only reason the two halves will match. Draw it lightly - it runs right through the finished butterfly, so you will want it gone at the end.

   װײַז אױס Pressing hard, so the guide survives into the finished drawing.

   באַשטעטיק It should run the full height of your drawing area.

2. שריט 2

   Draw a long thin body on the line.

   A narrow oval, longer than you think - roughly three times as tall as it is wide. The body is what the wings attach to, so getting its length right sets the scale for everything.

   װײַז אױס Drawing the body short and fat, which leaves nowhere for four wings to attach.

   באַשטעטיק It should be about three times taller than it is wide.

3. שריט 3

   Add a round head at the top of the body.

   A small circle, clearly narrower than the body is long. Keep it modest - an oversized head turns the butterfly into a cartoon character.

   װײַז אױס Making the head as wide as the wings' attachment.

   באַשטעטיק The head should be smaller than a third of the body length.

4. שריט 4

   Draw the upper left wing, big and rounded at the top.

   Start at the body and sweep out and up, then come back down to the body. This is the wing you will copy, so take your time - every error here gets doubled in the next step.

   װײַז אױס Starting the wing away from the body, so it looks detached.

   באַשטעטיק Both ends of the wing outline should touch the body.

5. שריט 5

   Draw the second wing to match the first.

   Compare it to the one you just drew rather than to your idea of a wing: same size, same angle, same distance from the centre. This is the comparison habit that fixes proportion everywhere, and a pair is the easiest place to practise it because the error is obvious once you look for it.

   װײַז אױס Making the second wing smaller - it usually happens because your hand is more cramped on that side.

   באַשטעטיק Both should sit the same distance from the centre line.

6. שריט 6

   Draw the lower left wing, smaller and rounder.

   It attaches just below the upper wing and hangs down and out. Keep it clearly smaller - the size difference between the pairs is what makes a butterfly read as a butterfly rather than a clover.

   װײַז אױס Making the lower wing the same size as the upper one.

   באַשטעטיק The lower wing should be noticeably smaller than the upper.

7. שריט 7

   Draw the second lower wing to match the first.

   Compare it to the one you just drew rather than to your idea of a lower wing: same size, same angle, same distance from the centre. This is the comparison habit that fixes proportion everywhere, and a pair is the easiest place to practise it because the error is obvious once you look for it.

   װײַז אױס Making the second lower wing smaller - it usually happens because your hand is more cramped on that side.

   באַשטעטיק Both should sit the same distance from the centre line.

8. שריט 8

   Add two antennae with a small club at each tip.

   They curve out and away from the head, roughly as long as the body. The little club at the tip is what distinguishes a butterfly from a moth - straight bare lines read as the wrong insect.

   װײַז אױס Drawing them straight and clubless.

   באַשטעטיק Each antenna should curve, and end in a small blob.

9. שריט 9

   Put two or three shapes on the left wing as pattern.

   Simple shapes - a circle, a band - placed with space around them. Pattern works by contrast with empty wing, so leaving most of the wing alone is what makes the marks read as decoration.

   װײַז אױס Filling the whole wing, which turns pattern into texture.

   באַשטעטיק More than half the wing should still be empty.

10. שריט 10

    Mirror exactly the same pattern onto the right wing.

    Same shapes, same sizes, same distance from the centre line. This is the whole lesson in one step: not drawing a nice pattern, but reproducing a specific one on the other side.

    װײַז אױס Drawing a similar-but-different pattern, which reads as damage rather than design.

    באַשטעטיק Measure from the centre line - both patterns should sit the same distance out.

11. שריט 11

    Go over the lines you want to keep, and lose the guides.

    This is the step that turns a construction drawing into a finished one, and it is the one most people skip. Press harder on the outline and the features; leave the small stuff light. That difference in weight is what makes a drawing look deliberate rather than traced, and it costs thirty seconds.

    װײַז אױס Going over everything at the same weight, which flattens the drawing back out.

    באַשטעטיק The outline should be clearly darker than the smallest details.