72 marks
Checked October 2026

Mark Making Ideas

Three marks per press, each written as an instruction, with what it suits and what to try next.

Mark Making Ideas

Show all 72

Bind two pencils with a rubber band and pull twin linesSuits railroad tracks, ribbons and lettering. Next, twist your wrist as you go.
Dot thick paint over a dragged dry-brush strokeSuits blossom on a branch. Next, let the dots follow the stroke, then scatter them.
Ink a jar lid's edge and print overlapping hoopsSuits bubbles, chain mail and frog spawn. Next, link the hoops into a chain.

Next step Exercises for a wet brush Experiments with unusual tools

All 72 marks

Brush used the wrong way 12

Drag a nearly dry brush sideways so the bristles split Suits weathered wood, dry grass and fur. Next, drag it over a dried wash of another color.
Flick a loaded brush across a ruler held above the page Suits spray, stars and gravel. Next, mask a shape with torn paper before you flick.
Jab a stiff brush straight down and twist Suits tree foliage and curly hair. Next, jab again in a lighter green while the first is wet.
Lay a loaded round brush on its side and roll it along the paper Suits bark and broken stone. Next, roll two colors that were picked up side by side.
Paint a line until the brush runs empty, without reloading Suits a road going into distance. Next, lay the lines side by side and compare where each fades.
Press a flat brush down and lift without moving it Suits bricks, roof tiles and piano keys. Next, stagger the rows so the joins never line up.
Print dots with the handle end dipped in paint Suits berries, eyes and falling snow. Next, let the dots shrink as the paint runs out.
Pull one stroke that goes from tip pressure to full belly Suits leaves, petals and fish. Next, join two of them at the thin end.
Scrub a damp clean brush into dry paint to lift a pale shape Suits clouds, mist and highlights. Next, lift a row of stripes with the brush edge.
Splay the bristles with a thumb and tap the page Suits pine needles and feathers. Next, fan the taps around a center point.
Touch a wet brush tip to a wet patch and let the color spread Suits skies and soft fur. Next, drop in a second color beside the first and watch the join.
Write a line of pretend handwriting with a rigger brush Suits distant fences, rigging and twigs. Next, write it again holding the brush at the very end.

Found tools 12

Dab a crumpled wad of aluminum foil into paint and onto the page Suits rock, rust and moon craters. Next, dab a metallic paint over a dark dry layer.
Dab an inked cotton swab down for soft round dots Suits soft dotted lines and blossom. Next, bundle five swabs with a rubber band and print clusters.
Dip a twig in ink and draw until it runs dry Suits branches and scratchy outlines. Next, snap the twig and draw with the split end.
Ink a jar lid's edge and print overlapping hoops Suits bubbles, chain mail and frog spawn. Next, link the hoops into a chain.
Press a feather flat into wet paint and drag it by the quill Suits wispy cloud and long fur. Next, use the quill end as a pen for the outline.
Print a row of lines with the edge of a piece of cardboard Suits fences, reeds and city windows. Next, bend the cardboard and print curves.
Pull a hair comb across a wet layer in one long wave Suits water, hair and plowed fields. Next, cross it with a second wave at a right angle.
Roll a marble through wet paint inside a box lid Suits wandering, tangled lines for a background. Next, tilt the lid slowly so the line curves.
Roll a pine cone through a puddle of paint Suits broken, random texture for a background. Next, roll it once more in a second color.
Roll the tines of a fork along a strip of paint Suits grass and stitched seams. Next, rock the fork instead of rolling it.
Squeegee a bead of paint flat with an expired gift card Suits flat backgrounds and cliff faces. Next, load two colors on the card edge at once.
Whisk an old toothbrush back and forth in thin paint Suits fog, static and brushed metal. Next, whisk in one direction only and compare.

Pressed and printed 12

Crumple paper into a ball, ink it and dab Suits foliage, stone and clouds. Next, dab a lighter color only along the top edge.
Fold a painted page in half and peel it open Suits butterflies, reflections and symmetrical monsters. Next, add thread between the halves.
Ink a leaf on its veined side and press it under scrap paper Suits a botanical page. Next, print the same leaf again without re-inking for a ghost.
Ink a piece of bubble packing and press it face down Suits honeycomb, scales and a dotted sky. Next, print it twice, shifted half a bubble.
Lay lace or net on the page and sponge paint through it Suits curtains, fish scales and fences. Next, shift the net and sponge a second color.
Press corrugated cardboard, ridges down, into paint and print Suits roofs, shutters and fields seen from above. Next, turn it a quarter and overprint.
Press the cut face of an onion half for nested rings Suits tree rings and ripples. Next, print it again and again without re-inking until it fades.
Press your fingertip into an ink pad and print a row Suits crowds, caterpillars and petals. Next, add two pen strokes to turn each into something.
Print with a square of sponge, pressing once and lifting clean Suits stone walls and pixel patterns. Next, cut the sponge into a triangle.
Roll a lightly inked paper tube across the page Suits wide soft bands for a background. Next, wind a rubber band around the tube first.
Twist an inked cork as it lands for a smeared disc Suits polka dots, grapes and stepping stones. Next, cut a notch in the cork and stamp again.
Wrap string around a block and stamp the lines Suits wood grain and woven cloth. Next, stamp across the first print to make a grid.

Pencil, pen and crayon 12

Bind two pencils with a rubber band and pull twin lines Suits railroad tracks, ribbons and lettering. Next, twist your wrist as you go.
Dot a marker and hold it down so the ink spreads Suits blossoms and spots on an animal. Next, hold for one, three and five counts in a row.
Draw one line that gets slower and wobblier as it goes Suits old walls, water edges and tree rings. Next, echo the line ten times, close together.
Fill a box with hatching that never changes direction Suits flat shadow and rain. Next, pack the lines closer toward one corner.
Hatch, turn the page a little, hatch again, four times over Suits deep shadow and cloth weave. Next, stop one layer short in a circle to leave a moon.
Let one pencil stroke fade from dark to nothing as it lifts Suits stems, whiskers and blades of grass. Next, flick the stroke upward from the base.
Make short dashes that all lean the same way Suits fur, thatch and wind. Next, change the lean halfway across the box.
Rub the side of a crayon over paper laid on a coin Suits found texture for collage. Next, rub over a key, a comb and the weave of a basket.
Scribble small loops without lifting the pencil Suits wool, bushes and smoke. Next, shrink the loops as they move away.
Shade a strip from the lightest touch to the heaviest Suits a first box on any mark sheet. Next, do the same strip in ballpoint, then in crayon.
Smudge a soft pencil patch outward with a fingertip Suits smoke, fog and soft shadow. Next, cut a sharp edge into the smudge with an eraser.
Tap the pen tip fast to make a field of dots Suits sand, freckles and shading on round things. Next, crowd the dots along one edge.

Scraped and scratched 12

Comb a notched piece of cardboard through paste paint Suits bold stripes and book endpapers. Next, wiggle the comb as it travels.
Cover bright crayon with black crayon and scratch through Suits fireworks, city lights and feathers. Next, scratch with a coin edge for wide lines.
Drag a skewer through two wet colors to feather them Suits marble, agate and bird plumage. Next, drag back the other way between the lines.
Peel masking tape off a painted page to leave clean bands Suits birch trunks, windows and borders. Next, tear the tape edge before sticking it down.
Press a pencil into wet paint to dent a dark line Suits leaf veins and cracks. Next, dent the paper first and paint over it for a pale line.
Pull a plastic fork through thick paint in a zigzag Suits waves and woven baskets. Next, pull straight lines down through the zigzag.
Rub a candle over paper, then wash paint across it Suits sparkle on water and snow. Next, draw a hidden word in wax and reveal it.
Scrape a wet wash with a card edge to leave pale rocks Suits boulders, tree trunks and roofs. Next, scrape while the wash is wetter and compare.
Scratch dry paint with sandpaper to break it up Suits worn posters and old doors. Next, sand along one direction only.
Scratch lines into a rubbed oil pastel layer with a toothpick Suits whiskers, veins and thin grass. Next, rub a second color over and scratch again.
Scratch lines into wet paint with the wrong end of the brush Suits grass, hair and wood grain. Next, scratch through to a dry color laid underneath.
Wipe a clean shape out of wet paint with a tissue Suits clouds and the sun behind haze. Next, wipe through a paper stencil.

Layered: one mark over another 12

Dot thick paint over a dragged dry-brush stroke Suits blossom on a branch. Next, let the dots follow the stroke, then scatter them.
Drag chalky pale paint across a print you made earlier Suits frost, chalky walls and old paint. Next, add one bright pen line on top.
Draw pen loops over a dried sponge print Suits coral, moss and lace. Next, fill only some of the loops with a third color.
Flood watery color over crayon marks and watch them resist Suits night skies and underwater scenes. Next, scribble in white so the marks appear only when wet.
Lay three transparent bands so each overlaps the last Suits distant hills and color mixing. Next, let each band dry or not, and compare the edges.
Print a leaf over a page of your own handwriting Suits a journal background. Next, write again over the dry print in a darker pen.
Print discs on top of combed wet stripes Suits pebbles in a stream. Next, stamp before combing and see which reads better.
Scratch through a top color to a rubbing underneath Suits fossils and buried patterns. Next, change what the rubbing is taken from.
Shade soft pencil across stuck-down tape and lift it away Suits sharp white lines in soft gray. Next, crisscross the tape before rubbing.
Splatter ink over pencil hatching Suits rain on a window and gritty ground. Next, mask half the box so the splatter stops dead.
Stamp one found tool in three colors, darkest first Suits depth in a hedge or a crowd. Next, let the lightest color fall off the edge of the box.
Stitch a line of pen dashes across a torn-paper edge Suits a mended, patched look. Next, stitch two scraps together with crosses.

How it works

A mark is what a tool leaves behind: a dot, a drag, a print, a scratch. These 72 mark making ideas are sorted by what makes them, from a misused brush to a fork, a cork or a candle.

Read the full guide

An art journal spread filled with six marks

Rule a spread into six boxes. Press the button six times, or choose one group and take six from it, and fill a box with each mark. Write the tool under every box. The spread becomes a key to turn back to when a later page needs fur, water or a background.

Sorted by the tool

Five groups hold single marks: Brush used the wrong way, Found tools, Pressed and printed, Pencil, pen and crayon, and Scraped and scratched. Layered puts one mark over another.

A mark changes with speed. Make each one slowly, then as fast as you can.
Thin paint and thick paint give different marks from the same tool. Try both in one box.

Questions and answers

What can I use for mark making?

Anything that holds paint or ink. Found tools has a comb, a fork, a twig, a jar lid, aluminum foil, a feather and an old toothbrush. Pressed and printed adds a cork, a sponge, string and a leaf.

What are easy mark making ideas?

Start with Pencil, pen and crayon, which needs nothing wet: shade a strip from the lightest touch to the heaviest, tap the pen tip fast for a field of dots, or scribble small loops without lifting the pencil.

Which mark making ideas give the most texture?

Scraped and scratched and Pressed and printed give the roughest surfaces: sandpaper over dry paint for a worn door, crumpled paper for stone, corrugated cardboard for roofs.