How to Draw a Heart

שריט־פֿאַר־שריט

1. שריט 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.

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

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

2. שריט 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.

   װײַז אױס Putting the widest line halfway down.

   באַשטעטיק The horizontal should sit in the upper third.

3. שריט 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.

   װײַז אױס Starting to draw curves before the landmarks exist.

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

4. שריט 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.

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

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

5. שריט 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.

   װײַז אױס Drawing the second lobe freehand and hoping.

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

6. שריט 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.

   װײַז אױס A perfectly straight side.

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

7. שריט 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.

   װײַז אױס Two sides meeting slightly off the centre line.

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

8. שריט 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.

   װײַז אױס Skipping the check and finding the error after inking.

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

9. שריט 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.

   װײַז אױס Shading right up to the outline, which flattens it.

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

10. שריט 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.

    װײַז אױס A big glossy highlight, which reads as plastic.

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

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.