Seven Kwanzaa candles laid out beside their holderOne black, three red, three green. Lay them side by side with the black one a little apart.
Three books to give, a ribbon around eachKwanzaa gifts are called zawadi. Three flat boxes with their spines facing you.
Seven boxes from December 26 to January 1Kwanzaa runs for these seven days. One small symbol in each box: a candle, a cup, an ear of corn.
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Hanukkah 14
A box of candles for all eight nightsCounting the helper each night, Hanukkah uses forty-four candles. Thin rods in tidy rows.
A dreidel standing on its pointA four-sided top: a box with a point below and a stem above. One Hebrew letter on each side.
A Hanukkah menorah with all nine lights burningEight lights in a row and a ninth, the helper candle, set higher or lower than the rest.
A menorah glowing on a windowsill after darkThe lights are set at a window or by the door to the street. Darken the room behind the flames.
A menorah on the first night: the helper and one candleTwo flames only. The first candle stands at the right-hand end as you face the menorah.
A mesh bag of chocolate coins tied at the topHanukkah gelt is sold this way. Criss-cross lines make the net, coin edges showing as short arcs.
A pile of chocolate coins in gold foilChildren are often given Hanukkah gelt. Flat circles overlapping, one with the foil peeled back.
A plate of jam doughnuts under powdered sugarSufganiyot, eaten at Hanukkah, are fried doughnuts filled with jam. Stipple the sugar, let some jam show.
A small jug of olive oil with a stopperThe Hanukkah story tells of one day's oil burning for eight. A round jug, a narrow neck.
A spinning dreidel, its letters blurredTurn the corners into curved lines and keep the stem sharp. Its shadow is a small oval.
A stack of latkes with a spoon beside itLatkes are potato pancakes fried in oil for Hanukkah. Rough-edged ovals, each a little off the one below.
An oil-lamp menorah with eight wicks and a helper lightSome families burn olive oil in place of candles. Each small cup holds one wick and one flame.
Eight small menorahs in a row, one for each nightAdd one candle each time, from one to eight. The helper candle stands in every drawing.
Four dreidels, each showing a different letterOutside Israel the four letters are nun, gimel, hei and shin. Copy each from a printed alphabet before you ink it.
Kwanzaa 14
A band of kente pattern along the edge of the pageAt Kwanzaa homes are decorated with African cloth such as kente. Blocks of stripes and zigzags.
A basket of fruit and vegetables for the harvestThe Kwanzaa crops are called mazao. Overlap the round shapes and let one leaf hang over the rim.
A goblet-shaped drum with rope lacingA Kwanzaa gathering may include drumming. A wide head, a narrow waist and cords down the sides.
A kinara holding all seven candlesThe Kwanzaa candle holder: three red on the left, one black in the center, three green on the right.
A kinara on the first day, with only the black candle litAt Kwanzaa the center candle is lit first. Give it the one flame and leave six wicks bare.
A unity cup standing on the matAt Kwanzaa the kikombe cha umoja is one shared cup. A wide bowl on a short stem, seen from above.
A woven mat with the Kwanzaa symbols set on itThe mat is called a mkeka. The candle holder, the cup, the corn and the crops all sit on it.
Ears of corn, one for each child in the familyAt Kwanzaa the corn stands for the children. Rows of small rounded squares, the husk peeled back.
The Karamu feast: dishes down the middle of a long tableThe Kwanzaa feast called Karamu usually falls on the sixth day. Draw it from above, plates as circles.
Seven boxes from December 26 to January 1Kwanzaa runs for these seven days. One small symbol in each box: a candle, a cup, an ear of corn.
Seven kinaras in a row, one more flame in eachOne more candle is lit each day of Kwanzaa. Keep the holder the same and change only the flames.
Seven Kwanzaa candles laid out beside their holderOne black, three red, three green. Lay them side by side with the black one a little apart.
Three books to give, a ribbon around eachKwanzaa gifts are called zawadi. Three flat boxes with their spines facing you.
The weave of a straw mat, close upThe Kwanzaa mat, strips going over and under. Shade each strip just where it dips below the next.
More winter festivals 12
A beam of sunrise reaching down a stone passageAt Newgrange in Ireland the rising sun lights the inner chamber at the winter solstice.
A book of poems open beside a dish of nutsYalda Night is spent reading poetry until after midnight. Two curved pages and a few ruled lines.
A bowl of tangyuan for the Dongzhi festivalSticky rice balls in a sweet soup, eaten at the winter solstice in southern China. Circles in a bowl.
A cut pomegranate and a watermelon slice for Yalda NightOn the longest night families in Iran share fruit and nuts. Draw the seeds as small teardrops.
A lit doorway with a small crowd singing outsidePosada means lodging. Each night of Las Posadas the procession goes to one house, singing.
A Lucia procession in white gownsThe leader wears the candle crown and a red sash. The others follow in line with one candle each.
A star boy holding a star on a stickStar boys walk in the Lucia procession in white gowns and tall paper cone hats.
A street of nine houses, a door standing open at oneLas Posadas lasts nine nights, December 16 to 24. A different house lets the singers in each night.
A tray of saffron buns and gingerbread held in both handsIn the Lucia procession the buns and cookies are carried in. Show the tray from the front, thumbs on top.
The low noon sun of the winter solstice over bare treesThe sun takes its lowest path of the year. Keep it near the horizon and stretch every shadow.
Saffron buns curled like the letter SLussekatter are eaten on St Lucia's Day. Roll each end into a spiral and press a raisin in the middle.
Standing stones with the solstice sun setting between themStonehenge lines up with the winter solstice sunset. Two uprights, one lintel, the sun in the gap.
Happy Holidays cards 15
A greeting written in the frost on a windowpaneFern shapes creep in from the corners. The letters are clear glass, so color them dark.
A knitted hat with earflaps and long braided tiesA dome with two flaps. Fill it with bands of zigzag and end each tie in a tassel.
A knitted scarf running around all four edges of the cardThe scarf is the border. Stripe it, add fringe at both ends and leave the middle for the greeting.
A pine cone, a cinnamon stick and a slice of dried orangeThree small things in a row. The cone is rows of scales, the orange a wheel of wedges.
A row of mittens pegged up to dry, no two alikeThumbs point every which way. Give each mitten its own pattern and one wooden peg.
A saucepan of cocoa on the stove, a ladle in itAn oval top with a long handle. Marshmallows float as small rounded squares.
A sled propped against a front doorTwo curved runners and a slatted deck, leaning. A rope hangs from the front bar.
A snow shovel and two boots left by the doormatThe shovel leans, the boots slump. A small heap of snow is melting off each toe.
A tall building at night, a different scene behind each paneA grid of squares. Put a lamp in one, a cat in one and a table set for dinner in one.
A wreath of mixed evergreens tied with plain twineChange the stroke for each plant: long needles, flat sprays, small scales. No bow, only a knot.
Deer tracks crossing an empty field of snowSmall split ovals in pairs, heading off toward one corner. Leave nearly all of the card white.
Earmuffs and a pom-pom hat on one hookThe earmuffs are two fuzzy circles on an arc. The hat hangs by its pom-pom.
Paper lanterns marking a path through snowSmall boxes that get smaller up the page. Each one throws a pale circle on the ground.
Paper stars strung across the top of the cardHang each star from one point. Five is enough, with the middle one lowest.
Parcels in plain brown paper stacked by a doorBoxes of three sizes with string crossed over each. Stamps and a scribbled address on the top one.
Lettering 12
From Our House to Yours under a row of small roofsFive little houses along the top. The words run beneath in plain capitals.
Happy Hanukkah in chunky capitals, one word per lineCount the letters and start each word from its middle, so the two lines sit centered.
Happy Holidays in ribbon letters with forked endsDraw each stroke as a flat band that folds at the turns. Shade the underside of every fold.
Happy Holidays stacked inside a snowflakeTwo short lines in the middle of a six-armed flake. Draw the words first and fit the arms around them.
Happy Kwanzaa lettered in red, black and greenThe holiday's colors are black, red and green. Change color with each letter.
One greeting in two languages, one above the otherWrite the wish in the two languages your family speaks. Match the letter height in both lines.
Peace and Joy in narrow capitals as tall as the cardRule two guide lines far apart. Keep every upright the same width and the gaps even.
Season's Greetings arched over a pair of mittensPencil the arch first and stand the letters on it. The middle letter sits at the top of the curve.
THANKS in rounded letters, a ribbon bow on the last oneFor a note after a holiday gift. Round every corner and overlap the letters a little.
Warmest Wishes in one line of looping scriptWrite it large without lifting the pen, then thicken every downstroke.
Winter Wishes with an icicle hanging from each letterWide capitals with pointed drips of different lengths under each one.
The word LIGHT with a small flame over the letter IPlain capitals. Top the I with one teardrop flame and draw soft rings around it.
How it works
Holiday drawing ideas here leave Christmas to its own list and draw the rest of December: Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, St Lucia's Day, Las Posadas and the winter solstice, plus card fronts that name no holiday, and lettering.
Read the full guide
Count the candles before you draw
A Hanukkah menorah has nine lights: eight in a row and a helper candle set higher or lower. A Kwanzaa kinara has seven candles: three red on the left, one black in the center, three green on the right. Each holiday keeps its own symbols, so draw them on separate pages.
Happy holiday drawing ideas for one card that suits everyone
The Happy Holidays cards group names no holiday: a row of mittens pegged up to dry, no two alike, or deer tracks crossing an empty field of snow. The greetings are under Lettering.
Copy Hebrew letters and Swahili words from a printed source, one letter at a time, before you ink them.
A menorah gains one light each night, so eight small drawings in a row cover the whole holiday.
Questions and answers
What are some holiday things to draw besides Christmas?
A dreidel, a plate of jam doughnuts, a kinara, ears of corn on a woven mat, saffron buns for St Lucia's Day, a street of nine houses for Las Posadas, or the low sun of the winter solstice.
How many candles does a Hanukkah menorah have?
Nine. Eight are for the eight nights, and the ninth, the helper, lights the others and is set higher or lower. One more is lit each night, so the first night shows the helper and one candle.
What colors are the Kwanzaa candles?
Three red, one black and three green. The black candle stands in the center, with red on the left and green on the right. The black one is lit first, then one more each day.
Which holiday drawings are easy?
Choose Easy in the box under the button. Most are one object made of plain shapes, such as a dreidel standing on its point: a box, a point below and a stem above.