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Follow this simple guide to draw a beautiful realistic or cartoon feather
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Feathers could be used as pens as well as decorations. Do you want to draw your own personal feather? Here are easy steps on how to draw one!
How to Draw a Realistic Feather
- Sketch an elongated oval with a line going through the middle lengthwise.
- Add another line to thicken the middle one and sketch short lines away from the middle.
- Outline the feather, penciling in more strands and defining the edges.
- Erase the oval guidelines and color in the feather.
Steps
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QuestionWhat if it's hard to add the fluff?Community AnswerFor the fluff, you may need to use a different pencil. Make sure the pencil is really sharp, and use small motions.
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QuestionHow do I keep the drawing from looking too shaded?Community AnswerRefrain from smudging the paper with your hands, and if that doesn't work, use an eraser to lightly erase any over-the-top shading.
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QuestionHow do I draw a twisted feather?Community AnswerTry to look at images of ribbons and how they're twisted. Draw the basic shape of the feather as you would a ribbon, then add the actual feather.
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About This Article
Article Summary
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To draw a feather, start by sketching a long oval with a line going lengthwise through the center. Next, sketch in the center quill and add details like each strand on the feather. Then, outline your drawing and erase the guidelines. Once you’re happy with your drawing, add some color to it, or sketch in shading to make it look more realistic. For tips on how to make a more cartoonish-looking feather, read on!
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Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 370,618 times.
Reader Success Stories
- "It was helpful to see the shape bisection as the starting point for tackling such a visually complex structure. Outlining the direction of the barbs from the center, and the idea of roughing then cleaning the barbs later instead was genius. Thank you." ..." more
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"It was helpful to see the shape bisection as the starting point for tackling such a visually complex structure. Outlining the direction of the barbs from the center, and the idea of roughing then cleaning the barbs later instead was genius. Thank you."
..."
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"I was working on a calligraphy project for fun and I wanted some feathers for the background. I am a very amateur artist, so I knew I would need some help. I looked it up and found this, and it has been very helpful."
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"I've always wanted to know how to draw feathers. Before reading this, I just drew a line with smaller lines coming out of it! Reading this article really helped."
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"It was very helpful with the pen and pencil markings to show the difference between what was done and what the step tells you to do. Thank you!"
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"I wanted to draw an ancient ink pen, so I searched for a feather. It was an easy peasy thing to draw, I drew in 1 minute."
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