Felt-tip marker mode
Let's draw a cartoon traffic light
Treat this as one playful practice round: sketch the idea loosely, simplify the shapes, then commit with confident marker outlines and bright fills.
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01
Outline the signal box
With a black felt tip, draw one tall rounded rectangle with softly uneven corners. Leave the inside open for three stacked lights.
Marker tip: Leave enough vertical room for three circles.
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02
Stack three lights
Inside the housing, draw three separate circles from top to bottom. Keep them similar in size and evenly spaced, with the lowest circle clear of the bottom edge.
Marker tip: Count three separate circles before drawing any visors.
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03
Cap each lamp
Above each circle, add one short curved visor that follows the circle edge. Count exactly three visors, one per lamp.
Marker tip: Make each visor shallow so the light remains open.
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04
Stand it upright
From the center of the housing bottom, draw a short narrow pole. Attach a small flat base at the pole’s lower end.
Marker tip: Center the pole under the signal box.
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05
Dot the box and ground
Put one tiny screw dot at each lower corner of the housing, then draw three separate short ground strokes beneath the base.
Marker tip: Keep the screw dots tiny and count three separate ground strokes.
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06
Fill the signals
Let the black outline dry. Fill the top circle red, middle amber and bottom green with streaky marker strokes, leaving tiny white paper glints. Shade the existing box charcoal and the pole deep teal.
Marker tip: Leave paper-white streaks in the marker fills.
