doodlea.day

Saturday, September 5

How to draw...

Start with a long rounded head, then add the body, face, and two paws holding an orange. Each of these six steps adds something you can see and copy. Finish with warm brown, bright orange, and teal marker strokes.

20 minEasy
Start doodling
Handmade marker drawing of a seated brown capybara with two small ears, a wide left eye, half-lidded right eye, raised brow, oval nose, curved smile, three cheek dots, two paws holding one orange, two oval feet, one teal leaf, four fruit dimples, and white highlights on its body and fruit.
Finished doodle About 20 minutes

Felt-tip marker mode

Let's draw a capybara

Treat this as one playful practice round: sketch the idea loosely, simplify the shapes, then commit with confident marker outlines and bright fills.

  1. 01
    Draw the head and ears stage for how to draw a cartoon capybara

    Draw the head and ears

    Near the top of your page, draw a long rounded head with a blunt left end. Add two small ear bumps along the upper-right edge. Leave the lower-right side open for the body.

    Marker tip: Make the head wider than it is tall. The empty space underneath is where the body will go.

  2. 02
    Add the back and feet stage for how to draw a cartoon capybara

    Add the back and feet

    Continue the right edge of the head down into a large curved back. Draw two flat oval feet near the bottom and join them with a short belly curve. Leave the front of the body open for the arms.

    Marker tip: Place the feet about one head-height below the chin. The back curve meets the right foot.

  3. 03
    Give it a sideways grin stage for how to draw a cartoon capybara

    Give it a sideways grin

    Draw an oval nose near the left end of the muzzle and a short line below it. Add one wide oval eye, one half-closed eye, a small brow over each, and three cheek dots. Extend the lower head line upward into a smile.

    Marker tip: Keep the wide eye on the left and the sleepy eye on the right. These features stay in place for the rest of the drawing.

  4. 04
    Draw the paws and orange stage for how to draw a cartoon capybara

    Draw the paws and orange

    In the open front of the body, draw two short bent arms ending in rounded paws. Add the small finger curves. Draw a large round orange between the paws, stopping its edge behind each paw and leaving a small gap at the top for its stem. Connect the left paw down toward the left foot.

    Marker tip: Draw the paws first so the orange fits behind them. Keep the fruit above the belly curve and between the feet.

  5. 05
    Add the leaf and small details stage for how to draw a cartoon capybara

    Add the leaf and small details

    Put a short stem in the gap at the top of the orange, then attach one pointed leaf with a center vein and short side veins. Add four small dimples to the fruit, two toe marks on each foot, and one oval highlight on both the fruit and body.

    Marker tip: Leave the two highlight ovals empty when you color. Arrange the four fruit dimples in two rows.

  6. 06
    Handmade marker drawing of a seated brown capybara with two small ears, a wide left eye, half-lidded right eye, raised brow, oval nose, curved smile, three cheek dots, two paws holding one orange, two oval feet, one teal leaf, four fruit dimples, and white highlights on its body and fruit.

    Color your capybara

    Fill the body warm brown, the fruit orange, and the leaf teal. Color the nose and pupils dark, and add coral inside the ears and on the cheek. Leave the eye whites and both highlight ovals uncolored. Follow the curved shapes with short marker strokes.

    Marker tip: Let the outlines dry first. Use one coloring pass over the shapes you have already drawn.