Learn how to draw a leaf with our step-by-step guides, bringing the beauty of nature to your artwork in a few simple strokes.

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This How to Draw a Leaf tutorials are so fun for the kids to learn the easy step-by-step drawing lessons on how to make an simple leaf drawings.

Welcome to a creative journey where art meets nature! Have you ever wondered how to draw the beautiful leaves you see on trees during the different seasons? Well, you're in for a treat because in this post, we're going to explore how to draw a leaf... leaves.

Drawing leaves is not just an art skill; it's a fantastic way to appreciate the incredible patterns and textures that nature provides. You don't need to be a professional artist to start – anyone can try their hand at this enjoyable and rewarding activity.

Learning to Draw

Learning to draw is not just about making pretty pictures. It's an exciting adventure that comes with lots of benefits. When you learn how to draw, you're not only gaining some awesome drawing skills, but its also a great way of improving your observation, patience, and problem-solving abilities. It's like solving a puzzle but with a pencil.

Drawing can be a relaxing and stress-relieving activity, just like taking a deep breath of fresh air. Plus, it's an excellent way to express your creativity and share your unique perspective with the world.

While we dive into the art of drawing leaves, remember that you're also on a journey to discover all these advantages that come with being a budding artist.

Don't miss our full list of Easy Drawings in addition to our November Drawings!

Different Types of Leaves

Before we learn how to draw leaves, let's take a moment to appreciate the incredible diversity of leaves in nature. Leaves come in all shapes, sizes, and textures, just like people have different clothing styles afor different occasions.

Each type of leaf serves a unique purpose for the plant it belongs to. Some leaves are like big solar panels, capturing sunlight to make food for the plant, while others are like tiny water-savers, built to survive in dry places. Just as we wear different outfits for different situations, leaves are like a plant's outfits, helping them thrive in their environments.

Get ready to draw and explore the wonderful world of leaves! Be sure to check out our other nature drawings including Four-Leaf Clover Drawing, Rose Drawing, and Earth Drawing.

How To Draw a Leaf

Before we start sketching individual leaves we also want to make sure you have the right tools. Here are the drawing supplies you need including drawing paper, and drawing pencils that we like to use.

As part of our downloadable drawing tutorial we have included 7 simple shapes of different leaves each with a step-by-step tutorial. The seven basic shapes include:

Lobed Leaf: The oak leaf often has a lobed leaf shape with rounded or pointed indentations along the edge of the leaf.
Obovate Leaf: The magnolia tree is an example of a type of tree with obovate leaves. These leaves are broader at the tip and narrower at the base, somewhat resembling an upside-down egg.
Sagittate Leaf: Arrowhead plants have sagittate leaves, which are shaped like arrowheads with two pointed lobes at the base and a long, slender tip.
Reniform Leaf: The common violet plant has reniform leaves, which are kidney-shaped with a rounded outline.
Linear Leaf: Many grasses, like bamboo, feature linear leaves, which are long, narrow, and elongated, similar to the shape of a blade.
Cleft Leaf: Water lilies have cleft leaves with a deep cleft or split in the center, creating a heart-shaped appearance.
Acicular Leaf: Pine trees are known for their acicular leaves, which are long, slender, and needle-like in shape.

Start by downloading the leaf step-by-step guide at the bottom of the blog post.

Lobed Leaf Drawing

The first leaf is the lobed leaf. Draw a slightly curved line as the stem of the leaf. As with most leaves, the stem tends to be thicker at the bottom and thinner at the top. You can achieve this with thicker pencil lines at the bottom and then lighter at the top of the stem.

The next step is to draw the outline of the leaf. The bottom of the leaf starts slightly up the stem. Draw a wavy line for the leaf outline around the top of the center stem and continue down the other half of the leaf back to the starting point. Draw in smaller veins down each of the wavy parts of the leaf.

Obovate Leaf Drawing

The first step is to draw a slight curved line for the center of the leaf. Starting on the left side, draw the side of the leaf with small slight rounded curves with the tip of the leaf with a v shape. Then continue with similar rounded curves down the other side of the leaf. The bottom of these leaves have u shapes. Add the smaller veins with slight curve off the central line.

Sagittate Leaf Drawing

The sagittate leaves are teardrop shapes with a u shape curved in at the bottom. For this leaf, we recommend starting with the outline of the leaf then straight lines down the middle for the stem. The veins of this leaf are rounded y shapes towards the bottom and then smaller curved lines towards the top of the stem.

Reniform Leaf Drawing

For the reniform leaf, start with a outline with each half being a broad rounded oval shape. The stem is thick and rounded at the bottom and then draw a vertical line right up the middle to a point. There are four main veins off each side, with smaller veins curving off each of those.

Linear Leaf Drawing

The linear leaves have a different look than other leaves. They are thin small leaves. The first line is the stem of the leaf. Then draw the outline of the leaf. It is thin and meets at the top of the leaf in a point. Then draw small straight lines for the veins fairly close together all the way up the leaf.

Cleft Leaf Drawing

The cleft leaf is a fun leaf to draw. Start with a curved line up the left side. Then draw the fan like edge of each side of the split leaf with small crinkled line and then it comes down in the middle. The leaf split has a sort of heart shape with a v in the middle, so create the right leaf similar to the left and then bring the line drawing into the stem and down.

Acicular Leaf Drawing

The final shape is the acicular leaves which are needle-like leaves that come together in bundle with the bottom piece called a fascicle. Start with a small bundle shape. Then draw out a number of thin needle like shapes all coming from the fascicle.

The last step is to outline each of the your leaves with a black marker and erase any of the extra pencil lines. Then using your colored pencils, markers, crayons or even paints color in your leaves.

Depending on the time of year, we recommend a bright color palette. As you know, Fall leaves definitely have more warm colors which will give your leaf doodles a fun autumn feel. Spring means new growth with bright green leaves. Regardless, have fun!

We hope you enjoy this tutorial as much as we did making it!

Happy Drawing!

We highlighted this Fall Drawing and Fall Craft along with some other fun kid's crafts in our November Craft along with our 101+ Easy Crafts for kids.

Other Leaf Crafts You'll Enjoy

Leaf Drawings

Learn how to draw a leaf with our step-by-step guides, bringing the beauty of nature to your artwork in a few simple strokes.

Course How To Draw Tutorials

Cook Time 20

Total Time 20

Author Alli Ward

Equipment

Drawing Pencils

Ingredients

Paper
Leaves Drawing Tutorials

Instructions

Start by downloading the leaf step-by-step guide at the bottom of the blog post.
Lobed Leaf Drawing
The first leaf is the lobed leaf. Draw a slightly curved line as the stem of the leaf. As with most leaves, the stem tends to be thicker at the bottom and thinner at the top. You can achieve this with thicker pencil lines at the bottom and then lighter at the top of the stem. The next step is to draw the outline of the leaf. The bottom of the leaf starts slightly up the stem. Draw a wavy line for the leaf outline around the top of the center stem and continue down the other half of the leaf back to the starting point. Draw in smaller veins down each of the wavy parts of the leaf.
Obovate Leaf Drawing
The first step is to draw a slight curved line for the center of the leaf. Starting on the left side, draw the side of the leaf with small slight rounded curves with the tip of the leaf with a v shape. Then continue with similar rounded curves down the other side of the leaf. The bottom of these leaves have u shapes. Add the smaller veins with slight curve off the central line.
Sagittate Leaf Drawing
The sagittate leaves are teardrop shapes with a u shape curved in at the bottom. For this leaf, we recommend starting with the outline of the leaf then straight lines down the middle for the stem. The veins of this leaf are rounded y shapes towards the bottom and then smaller curved lines towards the top of the stem.
Reniform Leaf Drawing
For the reniform leaf, start with a outline with each half being a broad rounded oval shape. The stem is thick and rounded at the bottom and then draw a vertical line right up the middle to a point. There are four main veins off each side, with smaller veins curving off each of those.
Linear Leaf Drawing
The linear leaves have a different look than other leaves. They are thin small leaves. The first line is the stem of the leaf. Then draw the outline of the leaf. It is thin and meets at the top of the leaf in a point. Then draw small straight lines for the veins fairly close together all the way up the leaf.
Cleft Leaf Drawing
The cleft leaf is a fun leaf to draw. Start with a curved line up the left side. Then draw the fan like edge of each side of the split leaf with small crinkled line and then it comes down in the middle. The leaf split has a sort of heart shape with a v in the middle, so create the right leaf similar to the left and then bring the line drawing into the stem and down.
Acicular Leaf Drawing
The final shape is the acicular leaves which are needle-like leaves that come together in bundle with the bottom piece called a fascicle. Start with a small bundle shape. Then draw out a number of thin needle like shapes all coming from the fascicle
The last step is to outline each of the your leaves with a black marker and erase any of the extra pencil lines. The