• 80 ideas
  • Checked October 2026

Gel Pen Art Ideas

Three gel pen drawings per press, with the paper, the number of pens and where each ink goes.

Gel Pen Art Ideas

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  1. A table name card with a green and gold twigFolded card, 2 pens. Name in the middle. One small leafy sprig in green and gold to its left.
  2. A solid gold-ink trumpet with a stripe of glareWhite paper, 2 pens. Fill the bell and tubes solid gold. A single white stripe follows the curve of the bell.
  3. A marker fishbowl with white ripples on topOver marker, 1 pen. Blue water first. White broken ovals at the surface and a glare line down the glass.

Next step Bright subjects for markersDoodles for a note or a journal

All 80 ideas

On black paper 16

  • A bicycle traced without lifting the white pen Black paper, 1 pen. Start at the back wheel and do not lift the pen until the front wheel closes.
  • A four-line cabin under big near flakes and small far ones Black paper, 1 pen. Big dots low and near, small dots high and far. The cabin is four white lines.
  • A lace doily circle in white ink Black paper, 1 pen. Rings of scallops from the middle outward, a dot in every scallop. Turn the paper.
  • A menu-board word in white ink with dotted serifs Black paper, 1 pen. Letter one short word in capitals and end every stroke with a dot.
  • A rocket trail in orange and yellow dashes Black paper, 3 pens. A small white rocket at the top. The dashes grow longer and wider apart below it.
  • A sitting cat rimmed in short white hair strokes Black paper, 1 pen. No outline. Tiny strokes along one side only, as if a lamp stood behind the cat.
  • A sleeper train: rounded yellow panes above a white rail Black paper, 2 pens. Yellow rounded windows in a row, a white line under them for the track.
  • A spiral galaxy in white specks with pastel arms Black paper, 3 pens. White dots crowd the middle. Two pale ink colors trail out along the arms.
  • A street at night drawn as yellow window squares Black paper, 1 pen. No walls at all. Rows of small yellow squares are enough to say houses.
  • A tent filled with orange lines around a dark figure Black paper, 2 pens. Fill the tent with close orange lines and leave a dark figure shape unfilled.
  • A white-ink cobweb hung with silver dew beads Black paper, 2 pens. Spokes first, then sagging threads. One silver dot wherever two threads cross.
  • A white-ink moth whose outer wing edges turn gold Black paper, 2 pens. White for the body and wing veins, gold only on the outer edge of each wing.
  • An x-ray fish with every rib a white stroke Black paper, 1 pen. Spine first, then ribs as thin curves. The outline of the body is a dotted line.
  • The fine net between a leaf's veins, in white ink Black paper, 1 pen. Midrib, side veins, then the finest net between them. Leave the leaf edge undrawn.
  • Fireflies over grass, each dot with a ring Black paper, 2 pens. Neon yellow dots, a thin ring around each, and white grass blades along the bottom.
  • Toadstools glowing in white and neon green ink Black paper, 2 pens. Green caps with white spots, and short white dashes around each cap for the glow.

Metallic and glitter 16

  • A crown with glitter-ink jewels White paper, 3 pens. Gold for the band and points. Fill each jewel shape solid with glitter ink.
  • A dragon's eye with a gold iris and glitter lids Black paper, 3 pens. A slit pupil left black. Glitter scales shrink as they near the eye.
  • A honeycomb with a few cells flooded gold White paper, 2 pens. Draw every cell in a dark pen. Fill five of them solid gold, scattered, not in a row.
  • A jewel beetle with a copper shell White paper, 3 pens. Copper wing cases, green glitter along the seam, and a white shine line on each side.
  • A key trio with three bow shapes and three metal inks White paper, 3 pens. Give each key a different bow shape as well as a different ink.
  • A knight's helmet in silver with ruled shading White paper, 2 pens. Silver all over, then black lines close together on the side away from the light.
  • A lidded chest overflowing with gold-ink ovals White paper, 3 pens. Each coin is a gold oval with a darker rim line. Overlap them in a heap.
  • A metallic medal disc under ordinary-ink stripes White paper, 3 pens. The ribbon stripes are ordinary ink. Only the disc is metallic, with a ring of dots.
  • A robot built from silver boxes with rivet dots White paper, 2 pens. Silver rectangles for head, chest and limbs. A dark dot at every corner is a rivet.
  • A solid gold-ink trumpet with a stripe of glare White paper, 2 pens. Fill the bell and tubes solid gold. A single white stripe follows the curve of the bell.
  • A sun with rays that swap gold for copper White paper, 2 pens. A solid gold disc. Long rays in gold, short rays between them in copper.
  • A tail fin in glitter teal, scale by scale White paper, 2 pens. Outline in a dark pen, then fill every scale with glitter ink, leaving a hairline gap.
  • A trophy cup with a name panel White paper, 2 pens. Gold cup with two handles. The panel on the base is left white for a name.
  • A trout side in three metallic inks White paper, 3 pens. Rows of overlapping U shapes. Change ink every row and let each row dry first.
  • Round ornaments in metallic ink, a window shine on each White paper, 4 pens. Fill each ball solid but leave a small curved square unfilled as its shine.
  • Seven silver dots joined into a pretend star pattern Black paper, 2 pens. Seven silver dots joined by thin lines. Ring the biggest in gold and give it four rays.

White highlights over marker or pencil 16

  • A colored-pencil cat with white whiskers over dark fur Over colored pencil, 1 pen. Finish the fur first. Whiskers are single fast strokes, outward from the muzzle.
  • A colored-pencil gem with white facet edges Over colored pencil, 1 pen. Shade each facet a different strength. Rule a white line where two facets meet.
  • A marker candy square with a white gloss streak Over marker, 1 pen. Brown marker, darker on two sides. One diagonal white streak near a corner.
  • A marker donut with white sprinkles Over marker, 1 pen. Pink icing in marker. Short white dashes in every direction and a curved shine line.
  • A marker fishbowl with white ripples on top Over marker, 1 pen. Blue water first. White broken ovals at the surface and a glare line down the glass.
  • A marker fox with white ear tufts and chest fur Over marker, 1 pen. Orange marker first. Flick white strokes outward inside the ears and down the chest.
  • A marker night sky with stars added last Over marker, 1 pen. Dark blue marker all over. Then white dots in three sizes, and a cross on the biggest.
  • A marker tomato with a window of shine Over marker, 1 pen. A small four-pane window shape in white, high on one side, and a thin white rim opposite.
  • A marker wave topped with lacy white foam Over marker, 1 pen. Blue and green marker for the wave. White loops and dots along the crest and down its face.
  • A mug with white steam curling over dark marker Over marker, 1 pen. Color the background dark. Three wavy white lines rise from the mug and fade into dots.
  • A pencil-shaded eye with a white-ink catchlight Over pencil, 1 pen. One white dot across the pupil's edge and a thin wet line along the lower lid.
  • A soap bubble: a pencil ring and two white panes Over pencil, 1 pen. Shade a soft ring. Two small curved window shapes in white go near the top.
  • Marker cherries finished with a curved white tick Over marker, 1 pen. Wait for the red to dry. One curved white stroke, top left of each cherry.
  • Pencil-drawn hair with single white strands Over pencil, 1 pen. Shade the hair dark. A few white lines follow the curve where the light lands.
  • Rain boots in marker with white splash marks Over marker, 1 pen. Yellow boots, gray puddle. White dashes fly up and out from each heel.
  • Raindrops on a marker-green leaf, each a white arc Over marker, 1 pen. Draw each drop as a dark outline, then one white arc inside its lower edge.

Patterns and borders 16

  • A checkerboard with glitter on every third square White paper, 2 pens. Fill squares with an ordinary ink, but swap to glitter ink for every third one.
  • A gel-ink sampler grid, three by three, no neighbors alike White paper, 4 pens. A three by three grid. No two neighbors share a pattern or a color.
  • A gel-pen rosette grown ring by ring from one dot White paper, 3 pens. Start from a dot. Add a ring of petals, a ring of dots, a ring of points, and repeat.
  • A paisley teardrop packed with rings of dots White paper, 3 pens. One big curled teardrop. Inside it, rows of dots follow the outline inward.
  • A six-band feather: stripes, dots, zigzags, scales, checks, waves White paper, 3 pens. Split the feather across its shaft. Change ink as well as pattern from one band to the next.
  • A slanted weave of two inks with gaps for the unders White paper, 2 pens. Two colors of band cross on a slant. Leave a gap in the band that goes under.
  • A tile repeat of four-petal squares in two inks White paper, 2 pens. Rule a light grid. Draw a four-petal flower in each square, swapping ink every square.
  • A vine of small leaves down a strip of paper White paper, 2 pens. A wavy green stem with a leaf on each bend. Add a gold vein to every leaf.
  • Blue curls along the bottom edge, glitter on each tip White paper, 2 pens. Blue curling waves along the bottom edge. Glitter ink only on the curl of each one.
  • Curled L-shaped brackets with three shrinking dots White paper, 1 pen. An L in each corner, a curl at both ends, and three shrinking dots beyond each curl.
  • Drops down the page side, dark blue fading to pale White paper, 3 pens. Drops fall down the side of the page, darkest blue at the top, palest at the bottom.
  • Five-point stars along the top, silver then gold White paper, 2 pens. Five-point stars in a row along the top edge, with a dot between each pair.
  • Half-circle lace along a page edge, a loop atop each White paper, 1 pen. One row of half circles along the edge, a dot inside each and a tiny loop on top.
  • String pennants cycling stripes, spots, stars and checks White paper, 4 pens. Triangles on a sagging string. Use a different ink for each fill, then start the cycle again.
  • Two wavy lines crossing as a ribbon, backs hatched White paper, 2 pens. Two wavy lines that cross and uncross. Fill the back-facing parts with close lines.
  • Your name on a panel framed by loops White paper, 2 pens. Letter the name, box it, then run a chain of small loops all the way around the box.

Notes and cards 16

  • A birthday card with glitter icing and gold flames Folded card, 3 pens. One cake drawn big. Glitter ink for the icing drips and gold for each candle flame.
  • A card for a teacher with a gold-ink pencil Folded card, 3 pens. One long pencil drawn across the front, gold body, white shine line, a short message above.
  • A cheer-up card with a gold sun rising from its bottom edge Folded card, 2 pens. Half a gold sun sits on the bottom edge, with rays reaching up to the words.
  • A dark page marker with one word in white capitals Strip of black card, 1 pen. One word down the strip in capitals and a row of dots along both edges.
  • A door note in bubble letters with white shine Colored paper, 2 pens. Two words in fat outlined letters. Add a white shine mark at the top left of each letter.
  • A folded note closed with a silver star seal Folded paper, 1 pen. Fold the note in three. Draw a solid silver star across the join where the flap ends.
  • A gift tag with a gold name and a silver string loop Card tag, 2 pens. The name in gold across the middle. Draw the string in silver, even if you add a real one.
  • A lunchbox note with a metallic star and three words Small slip, 2 pens. A solid star in one corner. The three words are in ordinary ink beside it.
  • A one-word card under a glitter firework Dark card, 2 pens. Lines burst from a point with a glitter dot on the end of each. The word sits below.
  • A party invitation with a starburst around the time Folded card, 3 pens. Write the time first. Short and long rays in two inks burst out from it.
  • A pretend stamp: a zigzag-edged square and three wavy lines Any paper, 2 pens. A small square with a zigzag edge in one corner and three wavy lines running off it.
  • A study card with one key word boxed in metallic ink Index card, 2 pens. Write the note in ordinary ink. Only the word to remember gets a metallic box.
  • A table name card with a green and gold twig Folded card, 2 pens. Name in the middle. One small leafy sprig in green and gold to its left.
  • A thank-you heading in white ink on a dark card Dark card, 1 pen. Two words in tall capitals with a white line above and below.
  • A wobbly glitter circle with an initial, as a letter seal Envelope, 2 pens. A wobbly circle of glitter ink over the point of the flap, with one initial inside it.
  • Lemons and leaf pairs taking turns along a card's top Index card, 3 pens. Small lemons and leaf pairs take turns along the top edge only. The rest stays clear.

How it works

Gel ink is thick and opaque, so it shows up on dark paper. These 80 gel pen art ideas use that: white on black, metallic and glitter ink, and white highlights added over marker or pencil.

Read the full guide

What each group uses the ink for

On black paper draws with white, pastel, neon and metallic ink. Metallic and glitter fills solid shapes: a crown, a jewel beetle, a honeycomb. White highlights adds the last bright marks to a finished marker or pencil drawing. Patterns and borders decorate a page edge, and Notes and cards are made to give away.

Easy ones first

Easy marks the drawings with the fewest lines to place, such as fireflies over grass, each dot with a ring, or a street at night drawn as yellow window squares.

  • Let one layer of ink dry before another line crosses it.
  • The pen count is the fewest that will do. Swap in any colors you own.

Questions and answers

What are easy gel pen art ideas?

The 26 marked Easy. Try a bicycle traced without lifting the white pen, a sun with rays that swap gold for copper, or a checkerboard with glitter on every third square.

Do gel pens work on black paper?

Yes. Gel ink is opaque, and its pastel, metallic and glittery colors show up clearly on dark paper. On black paper has 16 ideas, from a white-ink cobweb hung with silver dew beads to a tent filled with orange lines.

What can you draw with a white gel pen?

Highlights over a finished drawing: a curved white tick on marker cherries, single white strands in pencil-drawn hair, stars added last to a marker night sky. White highlights over marker or pencil has 16.

How is gel pen ink different from ballpoint ink?

Gel ink is pigment held in a water-based gel. Because it is opaque and thick, it shows better on slick surfaces than the usual ballpoint or felt-tip ink, and its pastel and metallic colors show on dark paper.

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