Drawing Ideas by Surface and Medium

A skin-safe marker and the back of your hand. A box of pavement chalk.

127 pages

0–9, A 10

3D Pen Art Ideas72 things to make with a 3D pen: flat shapes to trace and peel, panels joined into models, shells drawn over a form, useful things and jewelry.
Album Cover Art Ideas80 cover concepts for a square, sorted by the sound to suggest and by how the cover is made: drawn, painted, collage, your own photo or lettering only.
Altered Book Art Ideas60 things to do to an old book: painted and collaged pages, cut windows and niches, folded pages, covers, and pockets, flaps and pull-outs.
Aluminum Foil Art Ideas60 things to make from kitchen foil: embossed reliefs, squeezed figures, marker and paint on foil, foil prints and foil rubbed over glue lines.
Art Club Poster Ideas60 designs that say art club: 20 join-us posters, 20 logos that read small in one or two colors, and 20 T-shirt prints in two colors at most.
Art Installation Ideas60 installations for a room, a corridor or a yard: hung from above, on the floor and walls, light and shadow, interactive, and easy ones.
Art Journal Prompts120 art journal pages in mixed media, moods, memories, words and found things, each with its page count and what to use.
Art Logo Ideas72 logo ideas for someone who makes art: monograms, signature marks, tools, small mascots, stamps and marks for a class or a studio.
Art Trading Cards Ideas72 ideas for artist trading cards: series of nine, tiny portraits and creatures, miniature landscapes, patterns, methods that suit the size, backs and swaps. Three ridges in one color, each layer a shade darker toward the front
Assemblage Art Ideas90 found-object projects sorted by what you gather: kitchen drawer finds, wood offcuts, toys, packaging, boxes and shadow boxes, altered objects and cardboard.

B 8

Beads Arts and Crafts Ideas60 things to make with beads: threaded animals and key rings, glued mosaics, sun catchers, wire figures and patterns sorted by color.
Bible Art Journaling Ideas72 margin designs for a journaling Bible, by where the passage is, each naming the verse and what to letter or draw beside it in pencil.
Bike Wheel Art Ideas60 things to make from an old bicycle wheel: woven wheels, garden trellises and wind spinners, clocks and wall pieces, wreaths, mobiles and racks. A spiderweb of one cord looped once around every spoke
Blackout Poetry Drawing Ideas60 ways to draw over a found page so the kept words still read: shapes that carry the words, pictures over the page, pattern blackouts, color and collage.
Bookmark Drawing Ideas for Strips and Folded Corners72 bookmark designs for a 5 by 15 cm strip or a folded corner, each with the medium that suits it and how it fills the tall shape.
Bottle Art Ideas60 things to make from bottles: plastic bottle animals and planters, base stamps and flowers, wrapped glass bottles, filled bottles and mini bottles.
Bubble Art Ideas60 pictures made from prints of blown paint bubbles: the prints themselves, flowers and trees, sea and sky, cards and wrapping, and animals with scales and fleece.
Button Art Ideas60 button pictures: trees and flowers, initials, hearts and numbers, animals, seasons and holidays, balloons, rainbows and skies, on canvas, on card or in a frame.

C 12

Candy Art Ideas60 pieces of art made with candy and wrappers: mosaics laid from wrapped candy, wrapper collage and weaving, built models, seasonal pieces and color patterns.
Chalk Drawing Ideas for Drives, Patios and Pavements100 pavement chalk projects: photo spots, hopscotch courts, toy-car towns, giant pictures and messages, each with a size and a time.
Chalk Pastel Art Ideas70 chalk pastel subjects sorted by what the chalk does: finger-blended skies, black paper, torn-paper stencils, side-of-the-stick textures and glue lines.
Chalkboard Art Ideas for Menus, Welcome Signs and Weddings60 chalkboard sign designs: menus, welcome and kitchen signs, wedding boards, seasonal borders, banners and laurels, each with a layout and a lettering pairing.
Charcoal Drawing Ideas and Pencil Subjects, Sorted by Technique100 tonal subjects for charcoal and graphite pencil, each with the tool or grade to use and the one technique it practises.
Circle Art Ideas to Draw, Paint or Build With a Compass60 ideas that start from one traced circle: round scenes, round objects, compass patterns and colour studies, each with its size and time.
Clay Art Ideas for Air-Dry and Polymer Clay100 small makes for air-dry and polymer clay, from trinket dishes to mini food, each with a size and a making time.
Coffee Filter Art Ideas60 things to make from coffee filters: color bleeds with washable markers, flowers, butterflies and animals, snowflakes and sun catchers. A lollipop swirl whose spiral line softens when wet
Collage Art Ideas for Magazines, Torn Paper and Mixed Media72 collage projects for magazines, torn paper, keepsakes, colour and mixed media, each with a base size and a time.
Cotton Swab Art Ideas65 things to make with cotton swabs: glued skeletons and snowflakes, snipped-tip sheep and snow, tip pieces, printed pictures and smudged drawings.
Craft Stick Art Ideas65 things to build from whole craft sticks: plank doors and piers, stacked pots and furniture, puppets, woven and hinged pieces, ornaments.
Crayon Melting Art Ideas40 pieces made by melting wax crayons: drips down a canvas, shapes kept clean by a mask, and shavings pressed between two sheets.

D 8

Decoupage Art Ideas60 decoupage projects sorted by the object: boxes and trays, jars and bottles, canvas and board, stones and shells, and paper napkins and tissue.
Digital Art Ideas for Neon, Layers, Symmetry and Stickers100 projects in glow, layers, symmetry, stickers and palette challenges, each with a layer count and a time.
Digital Drawing Practice75 exercises that need a tablet: line and pressure, layers, selection and transform, brushes, colour and blend modes, each with what to look for. Five tries at one arc, undoing the first four
DIY Driftwood Art Ideas51 pieces made from found wood: animals and fish, boats, houses and trees, wall pieces and mobiles, and painted driftwood, each with its join or its paint.
Doily Art Ideas60 projects with paper doilies: lace stenciled with a sponge, snowflakes and flowers, prints on cards, collage animals and lace painted on wood.
Dot Journal Ideas80 page layouts for a dotted notebook: month and week calendars, habit and mood trackers, task pages and lists, each with its size in squares. A month tracker as a ring of 31 slices
Dot Marker Art Ideas60 pictures for dot markers: shapes to fill, patterns to carry on, animals built from dots, seasons and holidays, and counting and letters.
Drawing Dragon Puppet Ideas for a Paper Dragon80 designs for a paper dragon puppet: element themes, cute dragons, scale patterns, horns and wings, and eyes and faces.

E–F 9

Easy Doodles to Draw When Bored in Class150 patterns, borders and tiny shapes for a notebook margin, each with its height in ruled lines and the minutes it takes. Pretzel knot with overs and unders
Egg Carton Art Ideas60 things to make from egg cartons: animals from the cups, flowers and wreaths, masks, glasses and hats, boats, trains and treasure chests, and a carton painted as a picture.
Envelope Art Ideas70 drawings for an envelope: built around the stamp, with the address as part of the picture, on the flap and back, for occasions, and small doodles.
Fabric Art Ideas80 pieces made on or from cloth with no sewing machine: fabric paint and markers, dye and resist, printing, scrap collage, wall hangings and wearable pieces.
Fashion Sketchbook Ideas, One Page at a TimePages for a fashion design sketchbook: research and mood, figures, developing one idea, line-ups and layouts, each with how to lay it out.
Felt Art Ideas60 things to make from craft felt: flat pictures, layered animals and food, garlands and ornaments, finger puppets, and boards with pieces that move.
First Page Sketchbook Ideas120 ideas for page one and the covers of a new sketchbook: name pages, pages about you, ways to break the blank, plans and cover designs.
Folder Drawing Ideas70 ideas for the cover of a school folder, a binder or an art-class portfolio: by subject, name and label, borders and corners, whole-cover scenes.
Folding Surprise Drawing Ideas60 drawings for one folded sheet: big mouths, things that get longer, what is inside, pictures that change and cards for someone.

G–I 8

Gel Pen Art Ideas80 drawings for gel pens: white and neon ink on black paper, metallic and glitter fills, white highlights over marker, patterns, and notes and cards.
Glitter Art Ideas60 glitter pictures drawn in glue first: night skies and fireworks, snow and ice, water, scales and wings, names and cards, ornaments and keepsakes.
Golf Ball Drawing Ideas84 marks and small drawings for a golf ball: marks of your own, funny faces, aim lines, gift ideas and animals.
Grid Drawing Ideas for Graph Paper, Sized in Squares76 designs for graph paper: counted pictures, mirrored creatures, tessellations, cubes, maths patterns and grid enlargements, each sized in squares.
Henna Drawing Ideas64 henna-style designs to draw on paper: motifs, placements on a traced hand or foot, three styles and practice rows, each with its strokes.
Highlighter Art Ideas60 drawings for highlighters: one color and a black pen, two or three colors layered, glow shapes and neon signs, notes and page corners, and lettering.
Index Card Art Ideas72 things to make on a ruled 3 by 5 index card: the ruled lines, the red top line, the blank side, cut and fold, a card a day, and sets that join. A matching game: six cards cut in half, twelve drawings to pair
Ink Art Ideas72 pieces in bottled black ink: brush washes, tilted drips, folded blots, dip pen and stick line, wax and tape resist, and pen over a dry wash.

J–M 10

Journal Doodling Ideas120 small doodles for a journal: headings, dividers, icons for lists, boxes and corner doodles, each with the pens it needs. A heading on a paper aeroplane's wing
Land Art Ideas60 pieces to lay out outdoors and leave there: leaves and petals, stones and pebbles, sticks, bark and cones, sand, mud and snow, circles and rings.
Last Page of Sketchbook Ideas for a Book You FinishedIdeas for the last page of a finished sketchbook: looking back, signing off, the book in lists and handing over to the next one.
License Plate Art Ideas60 things to make from old license plates: words in cut letters, maps and shapes, birdhouses and boxes, whole plates on the wall, and plates to design on paper.
Lunch Bag Drawing Ideas80 drawings for a brown paper bag: lunch jokes, creatures peeking over the fold, a series for the week, paper bag puppets, and notes for the day.
Map Art Ideas60 pieces of map art: shapes cut from old maps, maps you draw, folded and layered maps, paint and ink over a map, and places that matter to one person.
Mark Making Ideas72 single marks for an art journal or a sheet of boxes, sorted by the tool: brush, found tools, prints, pencil and pen, scraping, and layers.
Mask Ideas for Art60 masks to build for an art project, sorted by material: paper plate and card, cardboard, papier-mache, clay, and found things.
Messy Art Ideas60 messy art projects sorted by how the paint moves: splatter and flick, drip, pour and squirt, roll, stamp and stomp, bubbles, foam and spray, and outdoors only.
Mosaic Art Ideas72 designs to build from small pieces: paper squares, bought tiles, seeds, beans and pasta, eggshell and found pieces, borders and patterns, animals and faces.

N–P 22

Notan Art Ideas for a Black Square, Scissors and White Paper50 black-and-white designs for one paper square: symmetric, asymmetric and double-flip cuts, plus ink studies of negative space.
Oil Pastel Art Ideas, Each With Its Sticks and Technique70 oil pastel subjects sorted by technique, from blended sunsets to scraped stars, each with the colours to pick up and how to lay them down.
Painting Ideas for Sketchbook PagesIdeas for painting inside a sketchbook: taped boxes, pictures across the fold, paint with pen on top, colour charts and easy one-colour pages.
Papel Picado Ideas60 papel picado designs for folded tissue and scissors: first banners, flowers and birds, suns, stars and hearts, skulls and candles, and borders.
Paper Art Ideas90 things made from paper and little else: folded, cut, rolled and curled, woven and layered, pop-up cards, newspaper makes and paper straws.
Paper Mache Art Ideas60 things to build in paper mache: bowls and masks over a mold, animals over a balloon, wall pieces on card, small figures over foil and shapes pressed from pulp.
Paper Plate Art Ideas60 things to make from paper plates: animals from the fold, masks and hats, the rim as a frame, plates that spin and move, and woven and sewn plates.
Pebble Art Ideas61 pictures made by arranging unpainted pebbles on card: Father's Day, families and friends, birds and animals, Christmas and other dates.
Pen Drawing Ideas Sorted by Hatching, Stippling and Line80 ink-only subjects sorted by the mark that suits them: linear hatching, cross-hatching, contoured hatching, stippling or contour line, each timed.
Penny Art Ideas60 things to make with pennies: mosaics and pictures, crayon rubbings and prints, patterns sorted by shade, and framed years and keepsakes.
Phone Case Drawing Ideas80 designs for the back of a phone case: round the camera, tall designs, small repeats, names and words, and paper inserts for a clear case.
Pine Cone Art Ideas56 things to make from pine cones: animals and people, wreaths, garlands and table pieces, prints and drawings, and pictures from loose scales.
Pipe Cleaner Art Ideas60 things to bend from pipe cleaners: animals and bugs, flowers, things to wear, letters and mobiles, and makes with beads and pom-poms.
Plastic Bottle Cap Art Ideas60 things to make from plastic bottle caps: mosaics and murals, animals and flowers, stamps and prints, games and magnets, mobiles and wind chimes.
Playdough Art Ideas60 things to make from playdough and then squash: rolled and coiled, pressed and printed, faces and creatures, pretend food, and pictures on a mat. A town of snake roads · A lion with a mane of strands · A rainbow of bent snakes
Plexiglass Art Ideas60 ideas for painting on clear acrylic sheet: pictures on the back, scenes layered over several sheets, window hangings, tracings and wipe-out drawings.
Poem Drawing Ideas60 ways to draw for a poem you bring: shape poems, one line illustrated, borders and frames, hand-lettered verses, and a poem as a small book or strip.
Pom Pom Art Ideas60 things to make with pom-poms: animals, pictures and mosaics, garlands and mobiles, prints made with a pom-pom dabber, and things to wear.
Pop Art Ideas for Dots, Comic Words, Repeats and Packaging70 exercises in dots, comic lettering, repeats, bold food and invented packaging, each with a colour count and a time.
Postcard Art Ideas60 drawings for a blank postcard: the picture side, borders and airmail edges, stamps and postmarks to draw, message-side doodles and sets to send.
Printmaking Drawing Ideas60 designs that work as a print: lino and soft block, a foam plate pressed with a pencil, monoprints, stamp repeats and two colors from two blocks.
Puff Paint Ideas60 pictures for paint that dries raised: clouds, snow and foam, raised outlines, frosting and food, wool, fur and scales, and plates to take rubbings from.

Q–S 26

Quilling Art Ideas64 designs in rolled paper strips: flowers and leaves, animals and insects, letters and monograms, cards and tags, snowflakes and ornaments.
Readymade Art Ideas60 everyday objects to show as art, sorted by the one move: turn it, pair it, rename it or place it. Each comes with a title to try.
Recycled Art Ideas62 pieces made from the recycling bin: bottle caps and lids, plastic bottles and jugs, cardboard tubes, newspaper and junk mail, and sculpture.
Resin Art Ideas60 pieces to cast or pour in craft resin: coasters, jewelry, keepsakes set inside, ocean and geode boards, and first pours of one layer. For adults.
Resist Art Ideas60 pictures made by blocking the paint: crayon and oil pastel under a wash, tape that peels off, glue lines, leaves and ferns, stickers and paper shapes.
Ribbon Art Ideas60 things to make from ribbon: woven panels, flowers and bows, hangings and mobiles, and ribbon pictures glued on card.
Sand Art Ideas60 things to make with sand: layered jars, glue and sand pictures, beach sculptures and raked patterns, sand tray drawings, and sand you color yourself.
Scratch Art Ideas for Rainbow Paper and Scratchboard71 subjects for bright lines on black, each with the paper it suits, a time and the stroke that does the work.
Sculpture Ideas for Art Class96 sculptures to build with classroom materials: cardboard and paper, wire and foil, papier-mache, found objects, soap, clay, giant everyday things and mobiles.
Shadow Doodle60 shadow doodles: stand a fork, a leaf, a key or a pair of glasses by a lamp and draw its shadow into something else. Each says what to draw first. A maple leaf's shadow as a crown for a small king
Shaving Cream Art Ideas60 things to make from shaving cream marbling: sheets by stroke, cards and tags, paper eggs and planets, sky and sea scenes, and wings, shells and petals.
Shrink Art Ideas60 designs to draw on shrink plastic: keyrings and bag charms, earrings and pins, zipper pulls and bookmarks, ornaments and gift tags, and sets.
Silk Painting Ideas48 designs for stretched silk, sorted by technique: resist outlines, wet blends and washes, salt textures, and scarves and borders.
Simple Watercolor Pencil Drawing Ideas, With the Pencils to UseSubjects for watercolor pencils sorted by what the water does: draw then wet, wet the point, lift from the point, dry on top, plus easy three-pencil ideas.
Sketch Notes Ideas90 building blocks for a page of visual notes: layouts, title banners, containers, arrows, five-stroke people and icons for ideas.
Sketchbook Front Cover Ideas96 designs for the outside cover of a sketchbook: name covers, cute, aesthetic, alt, collage and clever ones, each with the pen or material to use.
Sketchbook Ideas That Fill a Whole Page150 page ideas for a blank sketchbook: first pages, page fillers, daily habits, interactive pages and spreads, each with a time.
Sketchbook Prompts120 sketchbook prompts to look closer, imagine, redesign, tell a story or invent a character, each with its page count and a way in.
Sketchbook Study Ideas: Draw It Again With One Thing ChangedStudy pages for a sketchbook: one object turned, light, surfaces and nature, each saying what to change between drawings and what to note.
Snow Art Ideas60 things to make in and from snow: colored water sprayed on snow, stamped tracks and prints, snow sculptures, colored ice, and snow scenes on paper.
Spin Art Ideas60 spin art ideas: spun paper plates, shapes to cut from a spin, color pairs that stay bright, cards and garlands, and where to drop the paint.
Stamp Art Ideas72 things to print with a stamp: potato and vegetable prints, eraser and foam stamps, found stamps, ink-pad pictures, repeats and borders.
Stencil Drawing Ideas60 designs that hold together when cut: one-piece shapes, letters and numbers with bridges, repeat borders, two layers, and faces in light and shadow.
Sticker Ideas to Draw100 small motifs to draw as stickers: cute animals, food, plants and weather, word labels, everyday things and matching sheets.
Stippling Art Ideas72 subjects to shade in dots, from a sugar cube to a face, each saying where the dots crowd and where the paper stays bare, with 12 in pointillist color.
String Art Ideas64 nail-and-thread designs: first boards, hearts and initials for a gift, straight-line curves, nature and animals, symbols and signs.

T–W 14

Things to Draw on a Balloon60 things to draw on a blown-up balloon: faces, animals matched to the balloon's color, names and numbers for a party, games, and seasons.
Things to Draw on a Sticky Note80 drawings for a square sticky note: notes to leave for someone, cute ones, ones made for a mirror or a monitor, note chains and games.
Things to Draw on a Whiteboard at School, Work or Home86 whiteboard ideas: countdowns, welcome boards, wipe-off games, big simple animals, board gags and weather icons, each with colours and minutes.
Things to Draw on Your Hand, Fingers, Wrist, Arm and Leg159 small doodles for the hand, fingers, wrist, arm and leg, each with its size in centimetres and the minutes it takes. Swirl of wind carrying leaves round the calf
Things to Draw With Colored Pencils, and Which Colours to Layer72 subjects chosen for layered colour, each with three to five pencils to use and the skill it practises, plus a group of bold ideas for crayons.
Things to Draw With Markers80 bold subjects sorted by the marker in your hand: flat colour, alcohol blends, acrylic paint layers or one black marker, each with a colour count. Jellyfish glowing on black paper
Tissue Paper Art Ideas60 things to make with tissue paper: flowers, stained-glass windows, color that bleeds, collage and layered pictures, and scrunched mosaics.
Twig Art Ideas60 things to make from fallen twigs: frames and stars, woven twigs, stick figures and animals, painted and wrapped sticks, mobiles, wreaths and wands.
Vision Board Drawing Ideas to Draw by HandThings to draw on a hand-made vision or mood board: goals as objects, lettering, whole-board layouts and mood pieces, each with a drawing hint. A mountain with a dotted route to the flag
Wall Drawing Ideas for a Bedroom, a Classroom or a Ceiling Tile80 designs for a wall: whole-wall murals, small doodles for corners, ideas round doors and windows, school walls and ceiling tiles.
Washi Tape Art Ideas72 pieces where tape is the material: washi tape pictures on a card or page, masking and painter's tape on windows and floors, and duct tape makes.
What to Draw on a Poster, by What the Poster Is ForWhole posters for a sheet of poster board: school projects, club and election posters, signs to hold up, wall posters and class-sized ones. A long river that flows across every board
What to Draw With Watercolor Brush Pens, and How to Move the InkSubjects for water-based brush pens sorted by the move: straight from the pen, pulled out with water, two colours meeting, lifted from a palette, or over an ink line. Lake fed by colour pulled off the far shore
Wire Art Ideas for Beginners60 things to bend from craft wire: one-line wire drawings, figures and animals, trees, words and names, and mobiles and hanging pieces.

More about these tools

A new sketchbook with a frightening first page. A stick of charcoal, a whiteboard, a sheet of graph paper. What you draw on and what you draw with decide what is worth drawing, so each list here is written for the limits of one surface or one medium. A sketchbook has several: its first page, its last, studies, paint and fashion. Skin ideas are tiny and work in a single colour. Chalk ideas are big and blocky enough to read from an upstairs window. Charcoal ideas are about tone rather than detail, and graph paper ideas are built one square at a time. Every idea carries a note on how the medium handles it. Pick what is in your hand right now and press the button.