Long neck as one diagonal stripe across a blue canvasCream, brown, sky blue. Rule two slanted lines for the neck, fill it cream, and add patches when dry.
Three giraffes in single file, the sun behind the middle oneOrange, yellow, black. Paint a yellow disc on orange and set the middle giraffe across it.
Giraffe head entering from the top corner, chewing a leafYellow, brown, green, sky blue. Paint the sky flat and bring the head and a short piece of neck in on a slant.
Back of a giraffe's head: two horns and two ears on skyTan, brown, pale blue. Paint the head as a narrow egg with the ears out sideways and the horns upright.
Face-on giraffe: two horns, two ears and a wide soft noseTan, brown, cream, pink. Stack the face from the nose up and keep left and right sides matching.
Giraffe head entering from the top corner, chewing a leafYellow, brown, green, sky blue. Paint the sky flat and bring the head and a short piece of neck in on a slant.
Giraffe leaning in from the left edge, head cocked at youTan, brown, cream. Turn the canvas a quarter turn to paint the head, then turn it back.
Giraffe peeking over a row of round tree crownsGreen, tan, brown, pale blue. Sponge the treetops along the lower half and paint one head rising above.
Long neck as one diagonal stripe across a blue canvasCream, brown, sky blue. Rule two slanted lines for the neck, fill it cream, and add patches when dry.
Neck bent down to drink, front legs spread wideTan, brown, blue, cream. Paint the legs as a wide upside-down V and drop the neck between them.
Profile with a tufted horn and one ear turned backCream, chestnut, black. Paint the horn as a short post with a dark tuft on its top.
Short upright mane tapped down the back of the neckCream, brown, rust. Tap the edge of a flat brush in a row from the head to the shoulder.
Small bird riding on a giraffe's neckCream, brown, red, gray. Paint the neck large and the bird as a thumbnail-size shape gripping it.
Three necks rising from the bottom edge at three heightsYellow, brown, turquoise. Paint three tall posts with heads on top and patch them in one brown.
Tongue reaching up to hook the highest spray of leavesTan, brown, green, sky blue. Curve the tongue out in one stroke and wrap its tip once around the twig.
Coat patterns 12
Coat close up from edge to edge, no animal shape at allCream, orange brown, dark brown. Vary the size of the patches and darken the middle of each.
Coat drawn first as a net of cream lines, then filledCream, tan, brown. Brush the net of lines onto tan and fill each cell with brown, leaving the lines.
Cork-stamped patches in clusters across a cream neckCream, chestnut. Dip the cork in paint and press it on in clusters, re-dipping every third print.
Giraffe coat inside the outline of a capital GCream, brown, teal. Paint a block letter G on teal and fill it with patches instead of flat color.
Jagged leaf-shaped patches in dark brown on tanTan, dark brown. Give every patch a ragged edge with the corner of a flat brush.
Orange, chestnut and near-black patches on one neckCream, orange, chestnut, black brown. Grade the patch color from orange at the head to dark at the shoulder.
Patches as rounded brown tiles with cream lines betweenCream, chestnut. Paint the canvas cream, let it dry, and fill it with brown shapes that never touch.
Patches stamped with a sponge cut to a pebble shapeCream, brown. Dip the sponge in brown and stamp it in rows, turning it a little each time.
Rainbow giraffe, every patch a different bright colorCream, six bright colors. Paint the giraffe cream and fill the patches in rainbow order from the head down.
Tape lines for the cream, brown painted over, tape peeledCream, brown. Paint the canvas cream, lay torn tape in a net, paint brown over it and peel.
Two-tone coat: a tan canvas with patches in one flat brownTan, brown. Paint the canvas tan and fill it with flat brown shapes, with no shading at all.
Watercolor patches dropped onto wet paper and left to bloomYellow ochre, burnt sienna watercolor. Dampen the paper, touch in the patches, and let each one spread.
Mother and calf 12
Calf gazing up as its mother's head comes down from the topCream, chestnut, sky blue. Bring the mother's head in from the top edge to meet the calf's nose.
Calf lying down, legs folded under, neck straight upCream, brown, grass green. Paint the body as a low oval and stand the neck up from one end.
Calf nibbling low leaves while mother browses the treetopGreen, tan, brown. Paint one tree and put a head at the top of its crown and one at the bottom.
Calf on new legs, all four spread for balanceCream, brown, green. Angle each leg outward and keep the neck short and upright.
Calf sniffing a butterfly on a grass stemCream, brown, orange, green. Lower the calf's head to the stem and paint the butterfly as two orange dabs.
Calf standing in its mother's shadow at noonTan, brown, gold, gray violet. Paint the shadow as a dark pool under the mother and stand the calf in it.
Calf with tufted horns peeking around its mother's legsTan, brown, black. Paint the mother's legs as tall posts and fit the small head between two of them.
Herd of mothers with three calves grouped in the middleTan, brown, gold, green. Ring the tall shapes around the small ones and overlap their legs.
Large and small silhouettes on a hill, their shadows joinedOrange, yellow, black. Blend the sky, let it dry, and paint both giraffes and the hill in black.
Mother and calf as two flat yellow shapes with brown dotsYellow, brown, mint. Paint both shapes flat, let them dry, and dot the patches with a cotton swab.
Mother and calf walking in step, the same pose in two sizesTan, brown, pale yellow. Paint the mother, then repeat her at half the height just ahead.
Tall neck and short neck together, mother beside calfCream, brown, turquoise. Paint two upright posts with heads and match their patches.
On the savanna at sunset 12
Black giraffe and acacia on an orange-to-red blendYellow, orange, red, black. Blend the sky wet, let it dry, and paint the tree and giraffe flat black.
Dust glowing gold behind a galloping giraffeGold, orange, brown. Sponge the dust cloud low behind the legs and blur its upper edge.
Evening waterhole mirroring a giraffe and one thorn treeOrange, violet, black. Mirror both shapes below the bank and break the copies with level strokes.
Giraffe browsing a flat tree crown, sun between its legsOrange, pink, black. Place the sun low and stand the giraffe so the disc shows under its belly.
Grassland in three bands with tiny giraffes on the far oneGold, olive, pale blue, brown. Paint three flat bands and stand four small shapes on the top one.
Long shadows of a herd stretching toward the viewerGold, brown, violet. Paint the herd small on the horizon and pull each shadow down the canvas.
Purple dusk, giraffes as dark shapes, first star aboveViolet, pink, black, white. Blend violet into pink, add the shapes, and dot one star with a cotton swab.
Storm sky behind sunlit giraffes, gray above goldSlate, gold, tan, brown. Paint the sky dark and light the giraffes and grass from the front.
Sun disc huge and low, one neck crossing itRed, orange, black. Fill half the canvas with the sun and cross it with a single neck and head.
Sunset through the legs of a herd, a fence of uprightsOrange, red, black. Paint the legs as a row of dark posts across a bright lower sky.
Three giraffes in single file, the sun behind the middle oneOrange, yellow, black. Paint a yellow disc on orange and set the middle giraffe across it.
Two giraffes at a waterhole, one drinking, one on watchTan, brown, blue, gold. Spread the front legs of one and keep the other at full height beside it.
Simple shapes for a first canvas 12
Cartoon giraffe in a striped scarf the length of its neckYellow, brown, red, white. Wind the scarf around the neck in four loops and let both ends hang.
Giraffe face with a bow tie in flat cartoon colorsYellow, brown, red, white. Paint a long oval face, two round eyes and a red bow under the chin.
Giraffe from a yellow L shape with brown swab dotsYellow, brown, sky blue. Paint a tall L turned around, add four short legs, and dot it with a cotton swab.
Giraffe in three shapes: wedge body, strip neck, oval headOrange, brown, cream. Paint the three shapes flat, then add stick legs and a few patches.
Giraffe looking through a round window of leavesGreen, lime, yellow, brown. Paint a ring of leaves and fit the face inside the hole.
Giraffe neck as a height chart, marks up the sideYellow, brown, black. Paint a tall patched neck and rule short marks beside it at even steps.
Giraffe outline in one white line on a brown groundBrown, white. Paint the canvas brown, let it dry, and draw the whole giraffe without lifting the brush.
Giraffe with a mane of short comb-dragged linesYellow, brown, rust. Paint a stripe of rust down the neck and drag a comb through it while wet.
Number 1 turned into a giraffe: neck, head and four legsYellow, brown, pale blue. Paint a tall number 1, add an oval head on top and four short legs below.
Paper-collage look: a giraffe from separate painted shapesYellow, orange, brown, teal. Paint the head, neck, body and legs as separate blocks that just touch.
Tall canvas giraffe: head at the top, hooves at the bottomYellow, brown, green. Turn the canvas upright and stretch the neck to fill two-thirds of it.
Yellow giraffe on turquoise, its patches as brown squaresYellow, turquoise, brown. Paint the giraffe flat and press on the squares with a small flat brush.
How it works
A giraffe is the tallest land animal alive, and three things make it: a very long neck and legs, two horn-like ossicones and a coat of dark patches on pale hair. Paint those and it reads as a giraffe.
Read the full guide
The coat is a net of pale lines
The patches run from orange through chestnut and brown to almost black, and the hair between them is pale, mostly white or cream. So paint the neck cream, let it dry, and lay the patches on top with gaps between. Patches as rounded brown tiles with cream lines between is the plain version.
Silhouettes for a first canvas
Giraffes mostly live on savanna and in open woodland and browse chiefly on acacia trees. A blended evening sky with flat black shapes is the least drawing of all: Black giraffe and acacia on an orange-to-red blend. Acrylic is fast-drying, so the sky is ready for the black soon after.
Questions and answers
Which giraffe painting ideas work in watercolor?
One is written for it: Watercolor patches dropped onto wet paper and left to bloom. Dampen the paper, touch in the patches and let each one spread on its own.
What is the easiest giraffe to paint with kids?
Simple shapes for a first canvas holds 12, and Easiest giraffes, under More filters, holds 33. Giraffe in three shapes: wedge body, strip neck, oval head needs no drawing, and Patches stamped with a sponge cut to a pebble shape needs no brush.
What colors do you need to paint a giraffe?
Cream or pale yellow for the hair and one or two browns for the patches, from orange brown to nearly black. Sun disc huge and low, one neck crossing it needs red, orange and black only.
What are the horns on a giraffe called?
Ossicones. Both sexes have them: a female's or a young giraffe's are slim and tufted with hair, while a grown male's are usually bald and knobby on top. Profile with a tufted horn and one ear turned back shows one.