How to Draw a Heart

Алхам алхмаар

1. Алхам 1

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

   This is the fold line, and it is the entire method. Every measurement you make from here on is a distance from this line, which is what turns symmetry from a knack into arithmetic.

   Ажиллах Skipping it because a heart looks simple. This is exactly the drawing where it matters most.

   шалгах It should be vertical and run the full height of your intended heart.

2. Алхам 2

   Add a horizontal line where the heart is widest.

   Roughly a third of the way down, not halfway. A heart's widest point is high, and putting it at the middle is what makes hearts come out looking like spades.

   Ажиллах Putting the widest line halfway down.

   шалгах The horizontal should sit in the upper third.

3. Алхам 3

   Mark the tip on the centre line, and the top of each lobe.

   Four marks: the point at the bottom, the two lobe tops, and the dip between them. Placing them before drawing any curve means the shape cannot drift, and drift is what ruins freehand symmetry.

   Ажиллах Starting to draw curves before the landmarks exist.

   шалгах Both lobe marks should be the same distance from the centre line.

4. Алхам 4

   Draw the left lobe: up from the centre dip and over.

   Start at the dip, go up and around in one motion, and come back down to the widest line. One committed stroke beats six careful ones - a lobe assembled from small strokes has flat spots you cannot get rid of afterwards.

   Ажиллах Drawing the lobe in short segments, which leaves it lumpy.

   шалгах The curve should be smooth from the dip to the widest line.

5. Алхам 5

   Draw the right lobe, checking it against the left at three points.

   Not by feel. Check the lobe's top height, its widest point, and where it meets the dip, and compare each to the left side. This is the habit the whole lesson exists to teach.

   Ажиллах Drawing the second lobe freehand and hoping.

   шалгах Cover the left lobe with your hand. The right one should look like its mirror image.

6. Алхам 6

   Run the left side down to the point.

   It curves inward at first and then straightens as it approaches the tip. A dead-straight line from the widest point to the tip gives you an arrowhead; a fully curved one gives you a balloon.

   Ажиллах A perfectly straight side.

   шалгах The line should be curved at the top and nearly straight at the bottom.

7. Алхам 7

   Run the right side down and make sure it meets at the same point.

   Both sides must arrive at exactly the same spot on the centre line. If they miss each other, move the LINE rather than the point - a heart with a blunt or forked tip is instantly visibly wrong.

   Ажиллах Two sides meeting slightly off the centre line.

   шалгах The tip should be a single sharp point on the centre line.

8. Алхам 8

   Turn the drawing upside down and check it.

   Rotating the page stops your brain reading 'heart' and makes it see shapes, so any asymmetry becomes obvious. Fix whatever jumps out now, while the lines are still light. This trick works on every drawing you will ever make.

   Ажиллах Skipping the check and finding the error after inking.

   шалгах Upside down, both halves should still look the same.

9. Алхам 9

   Pick a light direction and shade the far side.

   A heart is a rounded solid, so one side is lit and the other is not, with the darkest band just inside the edge rather than at it. Lay the strokes in one direction and build up in passes rather than scrubbing.

   Ажиллах Shading right up to the outline, which flattens it.

   шалгах There should be a thin lighter strip between your shading and the edge.

10. Алхам 10

    Add a highlight on the lit lobe and a shadow in the dip.

    One small highlight, off-centre, on the lobe nearest the light. Then a soft dark note in the dip between the lobes, because that crevice is in shadow from every direction. Those two marks do most of the three-dimensional work.

    Ажиллах A big glossy highlight, which reads as plastic.

    шалгах One small highlight, and a visible dark note in the dip.

11. Алхам 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.

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

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