How to Draw a Strawberry Step by Step (Easy Guide)
This tutorial shows how to draw a strawberry with a classic shape in six simple steps with easy-to-follow examples for each of them.
The strawberry in the example is drawn in a vertical position with a realistic, heart-like shape. The art is done with clean black outlines and solid, balanced tones.
For drawing an actual heart in a similar style, see:
How to Draw a Heart in 6 Easy Steps (Semi-3D)
While solid colors like those in the examples tend to make artwork look flat, this guide shows how to construct the line drawing in a way that conveys the berry’s curvature, creating some appearance of volume.
Although the tutorial is created in a way where, ideally, you won’t have to do any erasing, it’s still recommended that you start the drawing in pencil and make light, easy-to-erase lines (for easy corrections). You can darken them once you have all parts of the strawberry outlined.
For drawing a different type of berry in exactly the same style, see:
How to Draw a Raspberry in 8 Steps
What You Need to Draw This Strawberry
- Regular graphite pencil: For the initial outline drawing.
- Standard eraser: To correct mistakes.
- Colored pencils or markers: Red, green, and yellow (for the berry, crown/stem and seeds).
- Paper: A white sheet of paper.
- Black marker (optional): To create a black outline.
Step 1 – Draw the First Half of the Strawberry
As already mentioned, in this example, the strawberry is drawn in a vertical position, making it easy to see if both of its halves are fairly symmetrical—even though a bit of natural variation between the sides is completely fine.
Since the goal is a classic heart-like shape, define the berry’s first half with a rounded upper section, a pinched middle section, and a narrower rounded tip.
Step 2 – Draw the Second Half
Add the second half as a reflection of the first one. For a nice looking strawberry, you want it to be fairly symmetrical, but don’t worry if it’s not perfectly so.
Optionally, you can make a straight vertical line through the middle of the berry to help you see if both halves are even in width and erase it once you are done with this step of the drawing.
Step 3 – Draw the Crown on Top of the Berry
At the top of the berry, add the crown. In this case, it’s drawn as being viewed slightly from below—like looking up at an umbrella.
Show the crown as a set of little “leaves” of slightly varying shapes. Draw those near the center pointing more forward/upward and those towards the sides facing progressively more sideways. This will show the curvature of its shape.
Make the individual “leaves” shaped like spears with upward-curved tips.
For a tutorial on drawing an actual leaf, see:
How to Draw a Leaf Step by Step
Step 4 – Draw the Stem Coming Up From the Crown
Coming up from the crown, add the stem. Draw it to be slightly curved and make it wider as it goes up. Make its end (the part where it is cut off) curved to help show that the stem is cylindrical in shape and make it appear more three-dimensional.
Step 5 – Position the Seeds to Convey the Berry’s Curvature
This step is more complicated than the rest of the drawing. However, it’s also very important in conveying the strawberry’s three-dimensional shape.
Arrange the seeds so that those near the outer borders of the berry follow its contour. Also, make their outlines smaller and narrower the closer they are to the edges. Finally, draw the seeds near the center farther apart, and position them closer together as they approach the outer silhouette.
The structural reason for this layout is that surface details on a curving object are viewed at an angle, causing them to appear narrower. Also, as the berry’s surface curves away from the viewer’s eyes, it appears to slant and causes the seeds to be seen closer together. Visualizing this in art is a technique known as foreshortening.
Once you’ve added the seeds, trace over your lines with a black marker (fine-tip) or a much darker pencil stroke.
Step 6 – Color the Strawberry Drawing
Colored pencils are a good option for getting the balanced colors shown in the example. However, you can use markers if you prefer brighter visuals.
- Strawberry (main body): Red
- Crown (little “leaves”): Green
- Stem: Green
- Seeds: Light Yellow
Also, when coloring the berry, leave a little cluster of white spots along its upper left area to show highlights (light reflected from the berry). Adding these will help convey a dimpled, glossy surface. Combined with its red color, this will give the berry a ripe and fresh look.
You can either lightly outline the highlights before coloring (using a red or a regular pencil) or simply create them as you color.
Conclusion
This guide shows how to draw a strawberry with a classic heart-like shape. It explains how to construct the line drawing to create an appearance of volume and illustrates how to show a glossy dimpled texture with just flat colors.
If you like these kinds of simple but effective drawing techniques, and easy-to-follow, step-by-step examples, also be sure to try the following tutorials:
