Old Father Christmas in a green fur-lined hoodDeep green, cream, white, peach, brown. Frame the face with cream fur and keep the beard long and straight.
White mustache and a red nose on kraft cardWhite, red, kraft brown. Paint two curled white strokes and one red dot between them.
Hat tip and two eyes peeking up from the bottom of a cardRed, white, peach, black. Fill only the lower third and leave the rest of the card blank.
Folk-art Santa with a long narrow beard and a tall pointed hatBarn red, cream, tan, black. Keep every shape flat, with no shading and two dots for eyes.
Old Father Christmas in a green fur-lined hoodDeep green, cream, white, peach, brown. Frame the face with cream fur and keep the beard long and straight.
Santa in fogged gold spectacles, just in from the coldGold, red, white, peach. Glaze thin white over each lens and add one bright dash on the rim.
Santa in profile, beard streaming forward in the windRed, white, peach, pale blue. Drag the beard sideways with a dry flat brush so the strokes break up.
Santa whose beard becomes a snowy hill with small pinesWhite, pale blue, red, green, peach. Curve the beard's lower edge into a slope and plant three pines on it.
Santa with a beard of palette-knife swirlsRed, white, peach, pale gray. Spread thick white with a painting knife and leave every ridge standing.
Santa with a sponge-dabbed beard on a red groundRed, white, peach, black. Dab the beard on with a damp sponge, heaviest at the chin.
Santa's beard in rows of cotton-swab curlsRed, white, peach, pale gray. Dot overlapping rows of white with a cotton swab, starting at the chin.
Santa's eyes and brows in a strip between hat band and beardRed, white, peach, blue, black. Fill the top third with fur band and the bottom third with beard.
Santa's face filling the canvas, beard running off the bottom edgeRed, white, peach, rose, black. Paint the beard last in thick white so it overlaps the coat.
Santa's face in blue moonlight, the beard shaded pale blueNavy, pale blue, white, red, peach. Put a little blue into every shadow, the red ones too.
Santa's face inside a ring of hollyGreen, red, white, peach, gold. Paint the wreath first and let the hat tip break out over it.
Santa's face on dark green, lit from the leftForest green, red, white, peach, gray. Shade the right half of the beard pale gray and leave the left white.
Santa's face tipped up toward one gold starNavy, gold, red, white, peach. Raise the chin so the beard points down and the hat falls back.
Three rosy circles above a white beard: two cheeks and a nosePeach, rose, white, red. Blend each rose circle into wet peach, then lay the mustache over them.
Hat and belt, no face 15
Black belt and gold buckle across an all-red canvasRed, black, gold, white. Paint the canvas red, tape off a black band and add a square gold buckle.
Coat and hat on a hall stand with boots belowRed, white, black, brown. Hang the coat empty, sleeves straight down and the belt looped over a hook.
Fur cuff and red sleeve reaching into a sack of parcelsRed, white, green, gold, brown. Crop the arm at the elbow and let ribbon ends curl out of the sack.
Fur trim close up: red cloth meeting white fluffRed, crimson, white, pale gray. Split the canvas into two bands and stipple the white edge over the red.
Hat, coat, belt, mittens and boots laid out flat in a rowRed, white, black, gold. Space the five pieces evenly on a pale ground, like paper cut-outs.
Pair of black boots drying on a doormatBlack, gray, white, tan, red. Add one curved white highlight to each toe so the leather shines.
Red coat front with three black buttons beside the fur trimRed, white, black, crimson. Run a white fur strip down the middle, then set the buttons to one side.
Red mitten ringing a brass bellRed, white, gold, navy. Paint the bell gold, then add a darker gold down its shadow side.
Round belly in profile, belt tight at the buckleRed, crimson, black, gold. Paint one big red curve and bend the belt around it.
Santa from behind at a frosted window, hat and shoulders onlyRed, white, navy, pale blue. Paint the window panes first, then the dark red back in front of them.
Santa hat caught on a bare branch, snow on the brimRed, white, brown, gray. Paint the branch first and drape the hat over it with the pompom hanging.
Santa hat hung on a wooden pegRed, white, brown, cream. Let the hat sag from the peg and shade its lower folds with darker red.
Santa hat set on a snowy fence postRed, white, brown, pale blue. Stipple the fur band and the pompom with a stiff, nearly dry brush.
Santa hat with a holly sprig in the bandRed, white, green, crimson. Lay two holly leaves over the fur and dot three berries with a cotton swab.
White-cuffed sleeve setting a star on a treetopRed, white, green, gold. Bring the arm in from one corner so the star sits near the middle.
Sleigh in the sky 15
Shadow of a sleigh sliding across a moonlit snowfieldPale blue, white, navy, gray. Paint only the long blue shadow on the snow; the sleigh stays out of frame.
Sleigh above a city skyline of lit windowsBlack, navy, yellow, white. Block the towers in black, then dot windows in rows with a small flat brush.
Sleigh above the clouds, stars overhead and cloud tops belowIndigo, white, pale violet, black. Sponge the cloud tops along the bottom and dot the stars with a swab.
Sleigh as a speck above a pine forest at duskViolet, orange, black, white. Blend the sky from orange up to violet before adding the black treetops.
Sleigh climbing over a row of snowy rooftopsNavy, white, black, yellow. Paint the roofs and lit windows, then the sleigh as a small black shape above.
Sleigh from above: red seat, green sack, roofs far belowRed, green, brown, navy, white. Paint the small roofs first, then the sleigh large over them.
Sleigh in silhouette against the northern lightsBlack, green, teal, white. Pull the wet green upward with a dry brush so the curtain fades at the top.
Sleigh in snow cloud, only the runners and hooves showing belowGray, white, navy, brown. Sponge the cloud across the top and let the legs hang beneath it.
Sleigh lifting off a snowy roof, powder trailing from the runnersNavy, white, red, brown. Dry-brush white behind the runners in two fading streaks.
Sleigh over a harbor, every light doubled in the waterNavy, yellow, white, black. Repeat each light below the shoreline as a short broken streak.
Sleigh over mountains at first lightPink, peach, violet, white, black. Keep the peaks pale violet and the team a thin dark line above them.
Sleigh passing a clock tower at midnightNavy, black, yellow, white. Set both clock hands at twelve and keep the sleigh smaller than the dial.
Sleigh tilting into a turn around a weather vaneNavy, black, gold, white. Slant the sleigh and its team to one side, like a plane banking.
Sleigh trailing a ribbon of gold dots across a navy skyNavy, gold, white, black. Dot the trail with a cotton swab, large near the sleigh and small behind.
Tiny sleigh in the top corner of a canvas full of falling snowNavy, white, black. Dot snow over the whole canvas with a cotton swab, bigger dots toward the bottom.
On a small canvas or a card 15
Gift tag with one waving red mittenRed, white, kraft brown. Paint the mitten at a slant with its cuff toward the punched hole.
Hat tip and two eyes peeking up from the bottom of a cardRed, white, peach, black. Fill only the lower third and leave the rest of the card blank.
Place card with a small Santa hat on one cornerRed, white. Hook the hat over the corner and leave the middle clear for a name.
Red coat glimpsed through a door left ajarRed, white, brown, yellow. Paint a thin strip of warm light and a slice of coat inside it.
Round nose and gold spectacles on a white cardRose, gold, white, gray. Paint the nose first and rest the two gold rings on top of it.
Row of thumb-high Santas, each a red triangle over a white beardRed, white, peach. Repeat the same three marks five times along the card.
Santa hat in three shapes: red triangle, white band, white dotRed, white. Paint the triangle with a flat brush and press the pompom on with a cotton swab.
Santa's face behind four window panes on a mini canvasRed, white, peach, brown, navy. Paint the face whole, then lay the brown cross of the frame over it.
Sleigh as one curved stroke with a red dot on a white cardBlack, red, white. Pull the runner in a single stroke with a liner and add the dot last.
Small red sack with a blank gift tag for a nameRed, crimson, gold, cream. Tie the neck with a gold cord and leave the cream tag empty.
Tall narrow card: a long hat above a longer beardRed, white, peach, pale gray. Give the face only a small band between the two long shapes.
Two black boots dangling from the top edge of a cardBlack, red, white, gray. Start the red trouser legs at the fold and end each in a fur cuff and a boot.
Two mini canvases: the hat on one, the boots on the otherRed, white, black. Hang the hat canvas above the boots canvas with a gap for the missing middle.
Watercolor Santa with the beard left as bare paperRed, peach, pale blue. Paint the hat, the face and a pale blue wash around the beard shape.
White mustache and a red nose on kraft cardWhite, red, kraft brown. Paint two curled white strokes and one red dot between them.
How it works
Santa is a red coat, white fur and a black belt, so a picture can read as him with no face in it. These ideas are sorted by how much of him you have to paint.
Read the full guide
How much of Santa to paint
Face and beard is the portrait, from Santa's face inside a ring of holly to Santa's beard in rows of cotton-swab curls. The group Hat and belt, no face leaves out the hard part: Black belt and gold buckle across an all-red canvas is flat color and one strip of tape.
The sleigh is a silhouette
In A Visit from St. Nicholas, an 1823 poem, eight reindeer pull Santa's sleigh. At sky size nobody counts them. Blend the sky, let it dry, then add the team as one thin dark shape: acrylic is water-resistant once dry, so the black sits cleanly on top.
Father Christmas was once pictured in green robes lined with fur: Old Father Christmas in a green fur-lined hood uses no red at all.
Questions and answers
What is the easiest Santa to paint?
Santa hat in three shapes: red triangle, white band, white dot. Easy first Santas, under More filters, holds 21 pictures, most with no face to get right: a hat, a belt, a mitten, a far-off sleigh.
What colors do you need to paint Santa?
Red, white and black cover the suit. White is in 56 of the 60 palettes, red in 44. Add peach for faces and navy for night skies.
How do you paint Santa's beard?
Paint the coat first, let it dry, then lay the beard over it in thick white. Santa with a beard of palette-knife swirls leaves every ridge standing; Santa with a sponge-dabbed beard on a red ground needs no brush.