One striped leg and one starred legLeg. One shin all stripes, the other blue with stars, so the pair reads as a flag when you stand with feet together.
A hot dog with a zigzag of mustardTwo long rounded buns with a longer sausage between them, poking out at both ends. One yellow zigzag along the top.
A single blue star on the side of the calfLeg. Outline the five points in blue and fill them. Trail white dots down towards the ankle, largest first.
A blueberry pie with a star cut in the crustA circle with a crimped rim. Cut a five-pointed star from the middle so the dark filling shows. Two steam lines.
A bunch of three balloons, one of each colourDecorations for the day are generally red, white and blue. Three ovals, three knots, strings meeting in one fist.
A firework burst made of straight lines and dotsMark a centre and flick lines out like clock hands, long then short. End each in a dot. Two lengths make it look round.
A five-pointed star drawn without lifting the penFive straight strokes that cross and end where they began. Every star on the flag has five points, so learn this one.
A hot dog with a zigzag of mustardTwo long rounded buns with a longer sausage between them, poking out at both ends. One yellow zigzag along the top.
A pinwheel in red, white and blueA square cut in from each corner, every other point folded to the centre pin. Four curved blades and a stick.
A red, white and blue ice pop on a stickA rounded rectangle in three bands with a flat stick below. Add one drip and a small bite out of a top corner.
A rocket firework on a long stickA tube, a cone on top, a thin stick three times as long and a short fuse. Stripe the tube; put one star on the cone.
A slice of watermelon with a bite out of itA wedge: red triangle, thin white line, green rind. Scallop one corner for the bite. Seeds are teardrops, not dots.
A sparkler with forking orange sparksA thin wire with a bright knot at the tip. Iron in the coating gives orange sparks that branch, so fork every line.
A swag of pleated bunting under a porch railA half circle pleated like a fan: blue with stars at the centre, then a white band, then red. Hang three in a row.
Uncle Sam's top hatHe is usually drawn in a white top hat whose blue band has white stars. A tall cylinder, a flat brim, a row of stars.
Cute 12
A bike dressed for a parade, streamers flyingCrepe paper woven through the spokes, streamers from the grips, a small flag at the back. Draw the wheels first.
A cat watching fireworks from a windowsillDraw the cat from behind: a pear shape, two ears, a curled tail. Keep the bursts small and far off over the roofs.
A cupcake with a paper flag on a toothpickA pleated case, a swirl of white icing, red and blue sprinkles. The flag is a tiny rectangle with dots for stars.
A firefly holding a tiny sparklerA bug with a glowing tail and a smaller glow in its hand. Two lights, so everything else stays deep blue.
A hot dog and a burger holding handsStick arms, dot eyes, small smiles placed low. The burger is a stack: bun, lettuce frill, patty, cheese corner, bun.
A marshmallow toasting on a stick, looking worriedA rounded cylinder with a face, one side going golden. Two wavy heat lines and one raised eyebrow do the rest.
A pie-eating contest, every face down in a tinA long table and a row of heads, each face hidden in a pie tin. Show hair, ears and flying crumbs. One winner looks up.
A puppy in a stars and stripes bandanaBig head, small body, the knot to one side. Keep the pattern simple: a blue corner with two stars, three red stripes.
A smiling watermelon slice in sunglassesPut the face low on the red part with the glasses on top. The seeds become freckles. Do the rind in two greens.
A teddy bear dressed as Uncle SamWhite goatee, blue tailcoat, red bow tie, red and white striped trousers, starred top hat. Make the hat too big.
A toddler in ear defenders watching the skyTwo big cups and a band over the head. Head tipped right back, mouth open. Light the face from above in pink.
A young bald eagle looking crossYoung birds are brown with messy white streaks; the white head comes at about five years. Round body, heavy brow.
Detailed 12
A bald eagle landing, wings up and talons forwardDark brown body, white head and tail; yellow beak, feet and eyes. The wingspan is about two metres, so fan the feathers.
A bald eagle soaring, seen from belowIt soars with its wings held flat, not in a V. A dark plank with a white head at one end and a white tail at the other.
A Betsy Ross flag with thirteen stars in a ringThe ring showed the states as equals. Scholars doubt Ross made the first flag; the story was first told in 1870.
A fireworks finale over a small-town water towerTower and rooftops first, as one flat dark shape. Overlap bursts of three sizes above; let the largest leave the page.
A parade float towed by a pickup truckA flat trailer hidden by a fringed skirt, a big star on top, riders waving. Draw the truck small and the float large.
A pyramid of barrels stacked for a bonfireNew England towns once competed to stack the tallest barrel pyramid for the night before. Salem's reached forty tiers.
A quill, an inkwell and a sheet of parchmentThe parchment copy was signed mainly on 2 August 1776, not 4 July. Curl the sheet's corners and split the quill tip.
The Great Seal eagle with arrows and olive branchOlive branch in its right talon, 13 arrows in its left, head turned to the olive. The scroll reads E pluribus unum.
Independence Hall from the frontRed brick, Georgian and symmetrical: a central block with a bell tower and steeple, and a lower wing on each side.
The Liberty Bell with its crackThe wide gap is the crack filed wider so the bell could ring; a hairline runs on above it. The yoke is American elm.
The Statue of Liberty's tablet, close upThe tablet in her left hand reads JULY IV MDCCLXXVI. Letter it in plain Roman capitals and shade the robe folds.
The Statue of Liberty's torch and raised armThe torch is in her right hand. Her copper skin went from red-brown to green within twenty years, so mix verdigris.
To paint 12
A bald eagle portrait against a flat blue skyPaint it: burnt umber, white, yellow ochre and sky blue on 8 x 10 in. Dark feathers first. The white head goes on last.
A chrysanthemum burst with trailing sparksPaint it: navy, red, silver and white on 8 x 8 in. Unlike a peony, every star leaves a trail. Pull each stroke outward.
A flag painted across three rough boardsPaint it: barn red, cream and slate blue on 12 x 12 in. Dry brush so the grain shows. Stamp the stars with a cut sponge.
A gold willow firework drooping over waterPaint it: black, navy, gold and cream on 8 x 10 in. Long-burning stars fall in a soft dome. Drag each line down, dry.
A harbour of boats dressed in buntingPaint it: white, red, navy and sea green on 10 x 8 in. In 1777 ships in port were decked in red, white and blue bunting.
A main street with a flag on every lamp postPaint it: red, white, navy and warm grey on 10 x 8 in. Shopfronts as flat blocks first, then the flags, small to large.
A palm firework with a thick rising tailPaint it: black, orange, gold and white on 5 x 7 in. A few big arching arms, and a trunk of sparks beneath them.
A single peony burst on a black groundPaint it: black, gold, red and white on 8 x 8 in. The peony is the common round burst with no trails: dots in rings.
A sparkler lit against a dusk skyPaint it: violet, peach, orange and white on 5 x 7 in. Blend the sky wet. Flick the sparks on last with a stiff brush.
A white porch hung with flags and buntingPaint it: white, blue-grey, red and leaf green on 10 x 8 in. Shade the white boards with blue-grey, never with black.
The flag filling the canvas, all fifty starsPaint it: red, white and navy on 10 x 20 in, close to the flag's 10:19 shape. Nine offset rows of stars: six, then five.
The Statue of Liberty in silhouette at sunsetPaint it: orange, pink, violet and deep green on 8 x 10 in. Blend the sky wet, let it dry, add her in one dark tone.
Leg paint 12
A band of white stars round the ankleLeg. A blue band two fingers wide. Let it dry, then set five-pointed stars on it in white, points just touching.
A firework burst on the calfLeg. One dot, long red lines flicked outward, shorter blue ones between them, a white dot on every tip.
A painted-on sock of stars with a striped cuffLeg. Blue from the ankle to mid-shin with white stars scattered over it. The cuff is a band of red and white stripes.
A rocket firework climbing the calfLeg. A small striped tube near the ankle, a dotted trail curling upward, and a burst of short lines below the knee.
A shooting star from the knee to the ankleLeg. A white star at the ankle end and three tapering tails in red, white and blue streaming back up the shin.
A single blue star on the side of the calfLeg. Outline the five points in blue and fill them. Trail white dots down towards the ankle, largest first.
A small waving flag above the ankle boneLeg. A wavy rectangle no bigger than a matchbox. Blue corner, three red stripes, and dots standing in for stars.
A string of bunting round the calfLeg. A sagging white line right round the calf with small triangles hung from it: red, white, blue, then repeat.
One striped leg and one starred legLeg. One shin all stripes, the other blue with stars, so the pair reads as a flag when you stand with feet together.
Red and white stripes running down the shinLeg. Seven red stripes with white between, from below the knee to the ankle. Use a flat brush as wide as one stripe.
Three short bars below each knee: red, white, blueLeg. Finger-width bars across the top of the shin, red on top. It takes a minute, which suits the queue before a parade.
USA lettered down the shin in block capitalsLeg. One letter per hand-width, red with a blue shadow to the right. Set the spacing with three white dots first.
How it works
Fireworks named by shell type, flags with the right stripe count, picnic food, parade floats and bald eagles: these 4th of July drawing ideas stay with the day itself. All 60 come with a hint on how to start. Twelve add a palette and a canvas size, and twelve more are leg paint designs.
Read the full guide
Draw fireworks by shell type
The peony, a common shell, is a round burst of dots with no trails. A chrysanthemum is the same sphere, but every star leaves a trail, so draw lines. A willow droops in long gold strokes. A palm has a few thick arms and a rising tail for a trunk. The Fireworks group holds 14 subjects.
4th of July painting ideas: night skies, flags and a harbour
The To paint group holds 12 subjects. Each hint starts with Paint it, then the colours and a size in inches. The flag filling the canvas, all fifty stars goes on 10 x 20, close to the flag's own 10:19 shape. A harbour of boats dressed in bunting borrows from 1777, when ships in port wore red, white and blue.
Count before you colour. The flag has thirteen stripes, red top and bottom, and fifty stars in nine offset rows: six, then five.
Most Fourth of July painting ideas are night scenes. Let the dark ground dry fully before the gold goes on, or it turns to mud.
The story that the Liberty Bell rang on 4 July 1776 comes from a short story of 1847. Draw the bell, not the ringing.
Questions and answers
What are easy things to draw for the 4th of July?
The day is mostly stripes and five-point stars, so the 12 under Easy need hardly a curve. A firework burst made of straight lines and dots is a centre point with long and short lines flicked outward.
Are there 4th of July leg painting ideas here?
Yes. Choose Leg paint for 12 designs sized for a shin, a calf or an ankle, such as Red and white stripes running down the shin. Every one stays on the leg, from the knee down. Use only paint sold for use on skin and follow its label. Craft acrylics and markers are not made for skin.
Which of these work as patriotic art ideas on other days?
The ones with no fireworks or picnic in them. The Great Seal eagle with arrows and olive branch, the flag subjects, the Liberty Bell and both Statue of Liberty studies suit any national day. The Veterans Day list has more patriotic drawing ideas, laid out as cards, posters and lettering.