• 100 ideas

Digital Art Ideas for Neon, Layers, Symmetry and Stickers

A project a screen does better than paper, with the number of layers it needs and the minutes to allow.

Digital Art Ideas for Neon, Layers, Symmetry and Stickers

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  1. Diner sign with one letter flickering out4 layers, 45 minutes. Every letter glows except one, drawn in dull grey with no blur behind it. Invent the diner's name.
  2. Flipped canvas check on a finished drawing1 layer, 15 minutes. Mirror the canvas. Whatever suddenly looks lopsided is what to fix. Flip back and compare.
  3. Moon behind clouds with a blurred halo3 layers, 35 minutes. A hard white disc, a big soft copy behind it, and cloud edges brightened only where they cross it.

Next step Nebulae, moons and night skies to light upLandscapes to split into layers

All 100 ideas

Glow and neon 20

  • Animal drawn as one neon outline 2 layers, 20 minutes. One colour, one line weight, gaps where a real tube would bend away. Blur a copy for the glow.
  • Campfire with light falling off across the ground 4 layers, 45 minutes. Warm orange near the fire fading to blue-black. Anything standing close gets one lit side.
  • Constellation you invent, joined by glowing lines 2 layers, 20 minutes. Scatter hard white dots, join some with thin lines, blur a copy. Name it after something dull.
  • Crystal that lights the cave around it 4 layers, 50 minutes. Hard facets in pale colour, soft glow on an Add layer, and the nearest rocks tinted the same hue.
  • Diner sign with one letter flickering out 4 layers, 45 minutes. Every letter glows except one, drawn in dull grey with no blur behind it. Invent the diner's name.
  • Face lit from below by a lantern 4 layers, 60 minutes. Light lands under the chin, nose and brows, the reverse of daylight. Keep the rest near black.
  • Fireflies in a jar 3 layers, 30 minutes. Dark jar, hard yellow dots, then one soft dab of glow over each. Let two escape past the lid.
  • Glow stars on a bedroom ceiling 3 layers, 30 minutes. A dim room in dark blue, then small pale green stars with a soft halo. Dot a few peeling off.
  • Glowing jellyfish in deep water 4 layers, 50 minutes. Paint the bell in pale solid colour, then a big soft airbrush of the same hue on an Add layer.
  • Glowing mushrooms on a forest floor 4 layers, 50 minutes. Paint the scene dark blue first. The caps are the only light, so nearby leaves catch a green rim.
  • Light-painting trails on a black canvas 2 layers, 20 minutes. Fast looping strokes in a bright colour, then a blurred copy underneath. Spell a word in the air.
  • Lightning lighting a cloud from inside 3 layers, 30 minutes. A dark cloud mass, a jagged white bolt, then a soft glow on Screen that lifts the cloud round it.
  • Moon behind clouds with a blurred halo 3 layers, 35 minutes. A hard white disc, a big soft copy behind it, and cloud edges brightened only where they cross it.
  • Neon cactus in a dark shop window 3 layers, 35 minutes. Two tubes only, green and pink. A faint copy of the glow on the sill below sells the glass.
  • Neon sign of your own name in one bent tube 3 layers, 40 minutes. Write it as one unbroken line, like bent glass. Copy the layer, blur the copy and set it to Add.
  • Phone screen lighting a face in the dark 3 layers, 45 minutes. One cold blue light from below and in front. The far cheek and hair melt into the background.
  • Rainy street with neon reflections 5 layers, 75 minutes. Paint the signs, copy them, flip the copy below the kerb and smear it straight down.
  • Rim-lit figure against a sunset 3 layers, 35 minutes. Fill the figure flat and dark. Then one thin bright orange line along the edge facing the sun.
  • Sign in true neon colour: orange-red only 2 layers, 30 minutes. Real neon gas glows reddish orange. Keep the whole sign to that one colour on a black canvas.
  • Tower block at night with a few windows lit 3 layers, 40 minutes. A grid of dark windows. Fill a handful with warm yellow and give only those a blurred copy.

Layers and parallax 19

  • Day turned to night with one blue layer 3 layers, 40 minutes. Add a dark blue layer on Multiply over a daytime scene. Mask holes in it where windows are lit.
  • Exploded view of a sandwich 6 layers, 45 minutes. Each filling floats on its own layer with an even gap between. Label them with thin leader lines.
  • Fish tank you can rearrange 5 layers, 45 minutes. Every fish, rock and weed on its own layer. Move them until the tank looks right, then merge.
  • Five-layer mountain range fading into haze 5 layers, 45 minutes. One ridge per layer. Make each ridge further back lighter, greyer and bluer than the one in front.
  • Fog drifting between tree trunks 5 layers, 45 minutes. Alternate layers of trunks and soft white airbrush at low opacity. The far trunks end up pale.
  • Galaxy showing only inside a cat silhouette 3 layers, 35 minutes. Paint the galaxy large, then use a layer mask shaped like a cat. Black on the mask hides the rest.
  • Glass jar of marbles 4 layers, 50 minutes. Marbles first. The jar goes on top as a few pale streaks and an ellipse rim at low opacity.
  • Line art above, flat colour below 2 layers, 30 minutes. Ink on the upper layer, colour on the lower. You can repaint everything and never harm a line.
  • One character, three outfits on hidden layers 5 layers, 60 minutes. Draw the figure once. Each outfit lives on its own layer, to switch on and off like a wardrobe.
  • Paper-cut forest with a deer four layers back 6 layers, 60 minutes. Flat shapes only, one tone per layer, with a thin soft shadow under each so it reads as cut card.
  • Parallax street you can slide sideways 4 layers, 60 minutes. Lamp posts, shops, far towers, sky. Slide the front layer furthest and the back one least.
  • Pop-up book spread seen from the front 5 layers, 60 minutes. A fold down the middle, then flat shapes standing up in rows, each with a paper tab at its foot.
  • Puddle reflection from a flipped copy 3 layers, 35 minutes. Duplicate the subject, flip it upside down below, lower the opacity and rub out a few ripples.
  • Shadows brushed on a Multiply layer 3 layers, 40 minutes. Paint the flats, add a Multiply layer and brush one purple-grey over every shadow side.
  • Shoebox diorama of your street 5 layers, 60 minutes. Draw the box walls, then stand flat cut-outs inside at different depths, each with a small shadow.
  • Torn paper revealing a second drawing 3 layers, 40 minutes. Two finished layers. Erase a ragged hole in the top one and add a white torn edge with a shadow.
  • Underwater scene in three depths 4 layers, 50 minutes. Dark weed in front, fish in the middle, pale shapes behind. Lower the contrast at each step back.
  • View through a window: room, glass, outside 4 layers, 60 minutes. Paint the outside, then faint streaks on a glass layer, then the dark frame and a plant in front.
  • Your own photo traced on the layer above 2 layers, 30 minutes. Drop the photo's opacity, draw on a new layer over it, then hide the photo and see what survived.

Symmetry, repeats and loops 19

  • Blinking eye loop in three frames 3 layers, 30 minutes. Open, half shut, shut, then back. Onion skinning shows the last frame under the one you draw.
  • Bouncing ball loop in eight frames 8 layers, 45 minutes. Space the ball wide in mid-air and close at the top of the arc. Squash it on the frame it lands.
  • Candle flame loop in four frames 4 layers, 30 minutes. Same candle, four slightly different flames. Loop them and the flicker looks real.
  • Clock face with twelve-way symmetry 2 layers, 25 minutes. Twelve segments place the hour marks for you. Turn symmetry off to draw the hands at your bedtime.
  • Crowd made from one penguin 3 layers, 35 minutes. Draw one penguin, then copy, flip and resize it thirty times. Give five of them a small change.
  • Eight-segment mandala with the symmetry guide on 1 layer, 25 minutes. Set radial symmetry to eight and start at the centre. Every mark appears eight times. Go slowly.
  • Gingham from two see-through stripe layers 3 layers, 20 minutes. Stripes at half opacity, then a copy turned a quarter turn on top. The crossings darken unaided.
  • Kaleidoscope from a single scribble 1 layer, 10 minutes. Twelve segments, one loose scribble near the rim, fill the closed cells. Ten minutes, no plan.
  • Moth drawn as one half, mirrored 2 layers, 30 minutes. Vertical symmetry on. Draw the left wing and body half. Turn symmetry off to add one odd mark.
  • Robot face built on a mirror line 2 layers, 30 minutes. Symmetry gives you matching bolts, vents and eyes for free. Break it last with a bent aerial.
  • Rose window in twelve segments 2 layers, 40 minutes. Black lead lines first with radial symmetry on, then flat colour in the panes on a layer below.
  • Row of vases, each drawn as half 2 layers, 25 minutes. With a mirror line on, a vase is one wobbly stroke. Draw six and pattern each one differently.
  • Seamless pattern tile of scattered fruit 3 layers, 50 minutes. Draw in the middle, shift the canvas by half its width and height, then fill the seam that shows.
  • Snowflake in six mirrored segments 1 layer, 15 minutes. Six segments, because real snowflakes have six arms. Draw one arm with side branches and stop.
  • Stamp brush made from your own doodle 2 layers, 30 minutes. Draw one leaf in black on white and save it as a brush tip. Then paint a whole hedge in a minute.
  • Tiled floor pushed into perspective 2 layers, 30 minutes. Draw a flat checkerboard, then drag its top corners inward with distort. Put a chair on it.
  • Wobbly line loop from three tracings 3 layers, 25 minutes. Trace one drawing three times on three frames and loop it. The small differences make it shiver.
  • Wrapping paper for an oddly specific occasion 3 layers, 45 minutes. Pick the occasion first: a passed driving test, a new fridge. Three motifs, repeated as a tile.
  • Wreath from one leaf, rotated 2 layers, 20 minutes. Draw a single leaf, then copy and rotate it round a circle guide. Vary the size every third leaf.

Stickers and profile pictures 20

  • Badges for achievements nobody awards 3 layers, 45 minutes. Replied to an email. Watered the plant. Round badges, a ribbon under each, mock-serious lettering.
  • Chat reaction stickers with one word each 3 layers, 45 minutes. A small character and one hand-lettered word: nope, yay, hmm, brb. Thick border, no background.
  • Faces for feelings that have no icon yet 2 layers, 30 minutes. Round yellow faces for: forgot why I came in here, pretending to have read it, quietly pleased.
  • Food with faces, sticker set 3 layers, 45 minutes. Six foods with the same two-dot eyes and tiny mouth. One of them is worried about being eaten.
  • Header banner on a long thin canvas 3 layers, 45 minutes. Five times wider than tall. Keep the interest in the middle third, since the ends get cropped.
  • Houseplant sticker sheet, every pot different 3 layers, 50 minutes. Eight plants. Colour goes in the pots. Keep the leaves to two greens so the sheet hangs together.
  • Icon for an app that does one silly thing 3 layers, 35 minutes. A rounded square, one bold symbol, a soft gradient behind. It must read at fingernail size.
  • Labels for jars and drawers 2 layers, 25 minutes. Rounded rectangles with a small picture and one word each: tea, rice, cables, mystery keys.
  • One avatar in four seasons 5 layers, 60 minutes. The face stays on one layer. Scarf, sunglasses, falling leaves and blossom each get their own.
  • Pair of profile pictures that join side by side 3 layers, 60 minutes. One wide drawing cut in two: a cat on the left reaching for a fish on the right.
  • Profile picture of you as an animal 3 layers, 45 minutes. Keep your own hair, glasses or hat on the animal so it still reads as you at a glance.
  • Profile picture of your face in three flat colours 3 layers, 45 minutes. Dark, mid and light shapes only, with no outline. Pick a background colour that is none of them.
  • Profile picture tested at thumbnail size 3 layers, 40 minutes. Work inside a circle guide and zoom right out often. If the eyes vanish, make them bigger.
  • Shiny foil-look star sticker 3 layers, 30 minutes. Fill the star with a rainbow gradient, then lay slanted white streaks over it at low opacity.
  • Six moods of your pet as stickers 3 layers, 60 minutes. Same head shape six times. Only the eyes, ears and mouth change. White border on every one.
  • Sticker of the shoe you are wearing 3 layers, 35 minutes. Draw it from life: flat colour, thick outline, white border. Ordinary things make good stickers.
  • Sticker sheet of nine snacks 3 layers, 60 minutes. Draw each snack, then add a thick white border round it and a faint grey shadow under that.
  • Tiny landscape inside a sticker shape 3 layers, 30 minutes. Draw a circle or arch, mask a small sunset scene inside it, then add the white border.
  • Weather sticker set for a planner 2 layers, 40 minutes. Sun, cloud, rain, snow, wind, fog, all the same size and line weight. Keep to three colours.
  • Your initials with a thick outline and shadow 2 layers, 20 minutes. Fat letters, a dark outline, a white border outside that, and a hard shadow down and to the right.

Palette and redraw challenges 22

  • Abandoned sketch, finished at last 3 layers, 45 minutes. Open the oldest unfinished file you have. Spend no more than 45 minutes and then call it done.
  • Childhood drawing redrawn with every odd choice kept 3 layers, 60 minutes. Photograph it and place it beside the canvas. The six-legged dog stays six-legged.
  • Drawing made with only lasso and fill 2 layers, 30 minutes. No brush at all. Select a shape, fill it, move on. You get crisp cut-paper edges for nothing.
  • Drawing planned for its time-lapse replay 3 layers, 40 minutes. If your app records a replay, plan the order: big shapes, a surprise in the middle, outline last.
  • Finished piece with the hue slider dragged 2 layers, 10 minutes. Duplicate an old drawing, slide the hue all the way round and save the strangest stop on the way.
  • Flipped canvas check on a finished drawing 1 layer, 15 minutes. Mirror the canvas. Whatever suddenly looks lopsided is what to fix. Flip back and compare.
  • Greys first, colour on an Overlay layer 3 layers, 50 minutes. Paint it all in greys, then brush colour on a layer set to Overlay. The greys keep the shading.
  • One brush at one size from start to finish 1 layer, 25 minutes. Pick a round brush and leave the size slider alone. Small things get simpler and big things bolder.
  • One line drawing coloured three ways by fill 2 layers, 20 minutes. Close every gap in the lines, then tap colour in with the fill tool. Three copies, three moods.
  • One sketch in three palettes 4 layers, 45 minutes. Line art on top. Three colour layers beneath it: warm, cool, and one you would never choose.
  • One tree through four seasons, recolour only 5 layers, 40 minutes. Draw the tree once and copy it to four layers. Change colours only, never a line.
  • Orange fox on blue snow 3 layers, 40 minutes. Blue and orange are opposites, so each makes the other look brighter. Keep every other colour out.
  • Palette picked from a photo of your breakfast 2 layers, 30 minutes. Lift five swatches from the photo with the colour picker, then paint something unrelated.
  • Pastel version and neon version of one object 3 layers, 35 minutes. Same line art twice. One palette pale and chalky on white, the other saturated on black.
  • Redraw your oldest saved drawing 3 layers, 60 minutes. Put the old one beside the new canvas. Keep the idea and the pose. Change whatever you would now.
  • Room painted in shades of one hue 2 layers, 40 minutes. Pick teal. Only lightness and saturation may change. It looks moodier than you expect.
  • Sunset in five flat bands 2 layers, 20 minutes. Make a gradient from yellow to deep purple, pick five colours along it and paint hard stripes.
  • Three-colour limit, swatches picked first 2 layers, 30 minutes. Choose three colours and dab them in a corner. Pick only from those dabs until the piece is done.
  • Two old drawings with their palettes swapped 3 layers, 35 minutes. Lift the swatches from each with the colour picker, then recolour each with the other's set.
  • Whole piece with undo off limits 1 layer, 20 minutes. No undo and no eraser. Mistakes stay in and get drawn round, as they would in ink.
  • Whole piece without zooming in 1 layer, 25 minutes. Stay at full view from start to finish. Detail you cannot see at that size was never needed.
  • Wrong colours on purpose: green sky, pink grass 2 layers, 30 minutes. Keep light and dark where they belong and get only the hues wrong. It still holds together.

How it works

Glow, layers, symmetry guides, copying, and colour you can change afterwards: these 100 digital art ideas are chosen for what a screen does better than paper. Each one gives a layer count, a time and the tool to reach for. They work as things to draw on Procreate or in any app that has layers and blend modes.

Read the full guide

How glow works

The neon drawing ideas share one trick. Draw the tube as a hard bright line on a dark canvas, copy the layer, blur the copy and set it to Add or Screen. Both modes only lighten, and black changes nothing, so the blur reads as light. Real signs are bent glass tubing, so write the word as one line. True neon glows reddish orange.

Layers, depth and parallax

Layers stack, and their order decides the picture. A parallax landscape is five ridges on five layers, each one further back made lighter, greyer and bluer, as haze does to real distance. Slide the front layer furthest and the back one least and the scene gains depth, a trick from the multiplane cameras of 1930s animation. Shadows go on a Multiply layer, which darkens the colours beneath wherever you brush.

  • Flip the canvas left to right now and then. A mirrored view shows a lopsided face at once.
  • The sticker drawing ideas share one recipe: flat colour, thick white border, faint grey shadow. Zoom out to check each reads small.
  • Name layers as you add them. Line, flats, shadow, glow is enough.

Questions and answers

Stuck on what to draw on Procreate or another app?

Start with what the app does for you. With the symmetry guide on, a snowflake takes 15 minutes. Blur a copy of a line and you have neon. The list uses general feature names, such as layer mask, Multiply and onion skinning, so these digital drawing ideas carry over to any program.

What is worth drawing on a screen and not on paper?

The best things to draw digitally lean on undo, copy or light. A crowd copied from one penguin. A day scene turned to night with one dark blue Multiply layer. A finished sunset recoloured with the hue slider. On paper each means starting again. On a screen it is a few taps.

How many layers should a beginner use?

Fewer than you think. 76 of the 100 ideas need three layers or fewer, and the 30 digital art ideas for beginners under the Beginner group need two at most. The classic setup is line art above and colour below, so you can repaint without touching a line. The most any idea asks for is eight, for a bouncing ball loop with a layer per frame.

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