A birthday candle to leave on a deskA single striped candle up the middle of the note. The flame reaches the top edge.
A cup of tea with a back-soon tagA mug with a string over the rim. The tag at the end of the string carries the time you return.
A fortune for whoever opens this drawerDraw the cracked cookie at the top and the paper strip below with one kind sentence on it.
A gold star for whoever did the dishesA five-point star with a smiling face. A small stack of plates in one corner.
A good-morning sun with the day's date under itA half circle on the bottom edge with short rays. Write the date small beneath, like a calendar page.
A high five to leave on a friend's lockerOne open hand that fills the square, with impact lines round the palm.
A light bulb with a raised eyebrow: you left the light onA bulb with two dot eyes and one arched brow. Rays on one side only.
A lunch order drawn instead of writtenThree small pictures in a row with a plus sign between them. No words at all.
A map from your desk to the snacksA dashed path with two turns, a square for your desk and an X at the end. Add one landmark.
A medal for the person who refilled the printerA circle with a ribbon above. Letter the reason round the rim in tiny capitals.
A pair of wings and the words good luck todayTwo feathered wings spread from the middle with the words between them.
A parking ticket for a badly parked chairRule a small form: offense, time, fine. Tick a box and sign it with a scribble.
A paw print with the time the dog was fedOne large pad, four toes. Write the time across the pad so nobody feeds the dog twice.
A sleeping cat that means do not disturbA loaf of cat with closed eyes, centred. Three small Zs climb to the corner.
A thank-you cupcake for a lunchboxPleated case, a swirl of icing, one candle. Two words on a ribbon under it.
A ticket good for one favourA rectangle with notched ends and a dotted tear line. ADMIT ONE above, the favour below.
A tiny trophy for surviving MondayA two-handled cup on a block. The day goes on the block in capitals.
An arrow that says the good snacks are hereA fat arrow with the words inside it. Stick it so it points at the right cupboard.
Cute 17
A bat napping along the sticky edgeFeet at the very top, wings folded like a closed umbrella, ears pointing down.
A bear hugging the note's edges from behindEars and eyes over the top edge, a paw curled round each side. The middle stays blank for a message.
A bee that has flown a dotted heartDraw the heart as a dotted line first. The bee sits where the line ends, looking pleased.
A curled corner with a mouse peeking from under itFold one bottom corner up. Draw the mouse on the note below so it shows when the corner lifts.
A duckling following its own footprints across the noteA trail of tiny webbed prints curves from one corner. The duckling is at the far end, looking back.
A face with eyes on a folded flap: open when lifted, closed when downFold the top third down. Draw closed eyes on the flap and open eyes on the note beneath it.
A frog whose open mouth fills the squareTwo bulging eyes on the top edge. The mouth is a wide curve with a fly just out of reach.
A hedgehog made from a thumbprintPress an inked thumb on the note. Add a pointed nose, an eye and short spines round the print.
A kitten hanging from the note's top edge by its pawsTwo paws hooked over the top, a round face, a body dangling below. The tail curls at the bottom.
A penguin sliding off the bottom edgeOnly the top half shows, tilted, with flippers up. Speed lines trail above it.
A snail wearing the whole square as its shellDraw only the head and foot along the bottom edge. The square above it is the shell.
A sprout with two leaves and a proud faceA mound of soil along the bottom, a short stem, two leaves like raised arms.
A teapot house with a door in its sideA round pot with a window in the lid and steps up to a door. Steam from the spout is the chimney smoke.
A tiny dinosaur roaring a very small roarA rounded body with a row of back plates. The roar is three short lines and lowercase letters.
A tiny planet with a flag planted on itA circle with three craters, low on the note. The flag carries your initial.
A whale that fits the square exactly, tail tucked upDraw the body corner to corner along the bottom and fold the tail up the side to fit.
An octopus with a leg reaching into each cornerA round head in the middle. Four legs run to the corners and four curl in the gaps.
Made for where it sticks 18
A battery meter to stick on a tired coworker's monitorA rounded rectangle with a nub. Fill one thin bar and write the percent beside it.
A bookmark tab with a tiny bookwormCut a strip from the sticky edge. The worm peeks over the end that shows above the page.
A crown to stick above your reflectionThree points with a circle on each, on a band. Cut round it and stick it high on the mirror.
A door sign: back in five minutes, with a clock faceA clock with movable-looking hands and the words below. Draw a hook at the top.
A fake key cap to stick on a keyboardA rounded square with a made-up command on it, such as SNACK or NAP. Trim it to key size.
A keyhole for a cupboard doorA circle on a flared stem, filled solid. Add a tiny eye looking out.
A moustache to hold under your noseTwo curled halves that meet in the middle. Draw it along the sticky edge so it grips.
A name tag for a houseplantA label shape with the plant's name and a small face. Stick it to the pot, not the leaf.
A page flag shaped like a pennantA long triangle cut so the sticky edge is its base. Stripe it and write one word.
A pair of glasses to stick on a mirror at eye heightDraw the frames as wide as the note and cut along the top. They sit on whoever looks in.
A price tag for something that is not for saleA tag with a clipped corner and a string. Cross out a silly price and write priceless.
A shark fin to stick on a laptop lidOne curved triangle with a wavy water line at its base. Cut along the curve.
A speech bubble to stick beside a photoA bubble with its tail on the side that will face the photo. Keep the words to three.
A sun for on and a moon for off, beside a light switchSplit the note in two. Sun in the top half, moon in the bottom, an arrow beside each.
A thought cloud to stick above a sleeping petA bumpy cloud with two small circles leading down. Inside, what the pet is dreaming of.
A tiny door at the bottom of a wallAn arched door with a handle and a doormat. Stick it just above the baseboard.
A tiny weather forecast for the fridge doorThree boxes for morning, noon and night, with a symbol in each. Redraw it every day.
One big eye, to make whatever it is stuck on look aliveA circle that nearly fills the note, a large pupil looking sideways, a white glint.
Across several notes 15
A caterpillar with one segment per note, growing along a wallA face on the first note and a plain circle with two feet on each one after.
A comic strip in three notesSetup, pause, punchline. Keep the same character in the same spot on all three.
A countdown of days, one note torn off each morningA stack with the biggest number on top. Draw something a little happier on each one down.
A drawing that carries on onto the note beside itDraw half a creature up to the edge. Line up a second note and finish it there.
A flip-book runner in the corner of a whole padDraw the same stick figure low on every note with the legs a step further on. Flick the corner.
A jigsaw of four notes that fits only one wayDraw one picture across four notes in a square, then shuffle them for someone to solve.
A message spelled one letter per note down a hallwayOne block letter filling each square. Decorate each with its own pattern.
A mushroom drawn across four notes in a squareStick four notes in a square. Draw the cap across the top pair and the stem across the bottom pair.
A plant that grows one leaf for every note you addA pot on the bottom note. Each new note above carries on the stem and adds one leaf.
A skyline across five notesRule one ground line that runs through all five. Make the buildings cross the joins.
A snail crossing four notes in a rowShell on the first note, body across the next two, feelers on the last, and a trail behind.
A staircase of notes with a figure climbing itStick the notes in rising steps up a wall. The figure appears once on each, a little higher.
A train with one car on each noteEngine first, then cars joined by a hook drawn at each edge. Give every car a different load.
A weather diary with one note per day for a weekThe same small window frame on every note. Only the sky inside it changes.
One tile of a nine-note heartLay nine notes in a square. Draw a heart across all of them, then pull them apart.
Games and puzzles 12
A dot-to-dot of twelve dotsDraw a simple shape lightly, put numbered dots on its corners, and erase the lines.
A fold-over creature drawn by three peopleFold the note in thirds. Head, body and legs by different hands, each leaving two marks over the fold.
A maze small enough to solve in one breathDraw the true path first, then close it in and add five dead ends. Mark IN and OUT.
A riddle with the answer under the flapWrite the riddle on the front. Draw the answer on the surface underneath and stick the note over it.
A scavenger hunt clue with an arrowOne drawing of where the next note is hidden and an arrow pointing the way.
A scorecard for a best-of-five gameTwo names, five boxes under each. Decorate the top with a small trophy.
A secret code key: six symbols and the letters they stand forTwo rows of six boxes. Then write a short message in the symbols on a second note.
A spot-the-difference pair on two notesDraw one small scene twice and change three things in the second. Write the number to find.
A squiggle for someone else to finishOne loose loop or hook and nothing else. Add the words your turn in a corner.
A tic-tac-toe board left mid-gameTwo lines down, two across. Play three moves each and leave the winning square open.
A tiny crossword with one clueA row of boxes for one word and a clue beneath it. Fill in a single letter to start them off.
A would-you-rather with two doodlesSplit the note down the middle, one choice each side, and a tick box under each.
How it works
A sticky note is a small square that gets read by whoever finds it. These 80 things to draw on a sticky note use both facts: a medal for the person who refilled the printer, one big eye for the fridge door.
Read the full guide
Draw for the place it will stick
Made for where it sticks holds 18 that only work in position: a pair of glasses at eye height on a mirror, a shark fin on a laptop lid, a tiny door just above the baseboard. Decide where the note goes first, then draw the sticky edge at the side that has to grip.
Use more than one note
Across several notes holds 15. A snail crosses four in a row, a countdown loses a note each morning, and a whole pad becomes a flip book when the same figure is drawn a step further on each sheet. Number the backs so a chain can go back up in order.
A fineliner or ballpoint stays crisp. Thick markers can bleed through to the next note.
Draw while the note is still on the pad. The pad keeps it flat and gives you something to lean on.
Questions and answers
What are some cute things to draw on sticky notes?
Cute holds 17: a kitten hanging from the top edge by its paws, a bear hugging the note from behind, a bat napping along the sticky edge. Several use the edge of the square as part of the picture.
What are good things to draw on sticky notes for a friend?
To leave for someone holds 18, such as a ticket good for one favour, a fortune for whoever opens this drawer, and a gold star for whoever did the dishes. One picture and three words is enough.
How is this different from the mini drawing ideas?
Mini drawing ideas are subjects planned to read at the size of a planner box. These are made for the whole square and for the fact that a note is stuck somewhere and found by someone.