Doodling is a fun way to explore your creativity. However, we all have moments of no inspiration. Feeling a bit stuck for ideas, or simply in the mood to browse a variety of doodles? With these examples and tutorials of cute doodles to draw, let’s get those creative juices flowing lickety-split!
Table of Contents
- Supplies
- Doodle Art: Why & Where
- Cute Animal Doodles
- Other Cute Doodles to Draw
- Food Doodles
- Weather Doodles
- Monster Doodles
- More Reasons to Doodle/Draw
- Wait, there’s more!
Animals are one of my favorite subjects to draw. Hopefully, we share this as a common interest, since you’ll notice a lot of animals strewn about on this website.
What else can you expect to find in this super-duper fun and cute compilation of cute doodles?
- Everyday objects
- Random items from days gone by (retro vibes never seem to lose their certain charm!)
- Shapes
- Florals
- Tiny landscapes, seascapes, and streetscapes
- Fantasy illustrations
- Elements of nature
- Seasonal doodles, and more.
So if you’re looking for some creative inspiration or just want to get in touch with your inner artist, this blog post is for you!
By the way, doodling is a great way to alleviate stress. Now, maybe that’s easy or me to say because I’m reasonably good at it. But even if you have serious doubts about your drawing skills, please do yourself a favor and go out on a limb here.
Simple doodle art is not that far out of reach, even if you’ve only ever drawn stick figures. There are so many cute things that come together with just a few lines. That’s right: Fun doodles are not hard to draw.
Either way, the one thing you don’t have to worry about is inspiration. Check out this boatload of cute doodles – all you need to do is scroll down. Maybe click a few links, too, since not all doodles fit on one page, and there are other blog posts with (you’ve guessed it!) more doodles.
Supplies
Enough talking, here’s what you need to get started:
The simple art of doodling requires very few supplies. With just a pen and paper, you’re good to go.
Paper
Any kind of paper will do, as long as it still has some empty space. Mixed-media paper works well in general. If you plan on adding color to your doodles with watercolor paint, watercolor paper is a must.
Pen
Any kind of pen or pencil, or marker is better than none. The best pens don’t always make the best doodles, though sometimes a crappy pen is to blame for a doodle that looks yucky. So maybe set yourself up for success and get a sharpened pencil, a relatively new, properly moist Sharpie, or a nice fine liner.
(Half-dried-out Sharpies can be interesting to shade with, but to draw a crisp line, they’re the worst!)
My favorite supplies include these Staedtler fine liners that have lasted me for years, and Sakura Pigment fine liners which are lovely to work with as well.
Pencils
Speaking of shading, pencils are good to have, too. Regular HB pencils hold the middle between hard and soft. The “H” pencils are on the hard side of the spectrum. They make lighter shades of grey. The “B” ones, on the other hand, are used to make darker shades and are softer.
Go Digital
Or you could go full-on digital. If you want to explore some more high-tech options, like an iPad or a digital drawing tablet, Procreate is the highest acclaimed drawing app.
Doodle Art: Why & Where
Just to be clear, drawing for the sake of drawing is an excellent purpose in and of itself, and more than a good enough reason to doodle away.
Other than simply for the joy it brings you, consider using these examples of cute doodles to draw in/on:
- notebooks
- journals
- a diary
- shopping lists
- planners
- schedules
- calendars…
…and I’m sure you can come up with a few more uses!
Cute Animal Doodles
Puppy Dog
Isn’t this the cutest little spotted mutt with its floppy ears? You could add more detail, and shading, and play around with the locations of the spots.
Two Dinosaurs
These two cuties could be a brontosaurus, apatosaurus, or diplodocus pair.
Striped Kitty
The step-by-step mini tutorial for this striped cat doodle is right here:
How To Doodle A Cute Striped Cat (Step-By-Step)
We start with the ears and the head outline. Details are added on after shaping the body and stripes are totally optional.
Cute Llama Doodle
Llamas!
Perhaps they are no longer quite as popular as they were a few years ago. So what if they’ve played a fad role in fashion, home decor, surface, and pattern design for a blip of their total existence? Llamas are still a lovely drawing subject.
A Little Narwhal
Unicorns dwelling in the ocean – it hardly gets any more magical than that.
You might also like:
Do you like llamas and narwhals too? I can’t get enough of these adorable creatures. Check out 27 Cute Beginner Drawing Ideas For Free Spirits for another llama and another narwhal.
‘Rottie’ Puppy
Here’s a Rottweiler puppy, after a stuffed animal that is beautifully and realistically made. Cutie, right?
Bunny Reading
Have you ever seen a bunny reading a book? Because that’s unmistakably what is happening below. And the simple lines are easy to copy, so you can draw your own version. Everyone should draw at least one reading bunny. Oh, that’s so many bunnies! Just what the world needs: bunnies multiplying.
Little Octopus
What is this little octopus thinking… I could sit with that question for a while. Would he/she/it like to be blown up to poster size and hung on the wall?
*Note to self: turn this cute little octopus doodle into a large print.
Cute Polar Bear Face
This simple and cute polar bear face got into someone’s makeup bag and found the blush! Or maybe she just ran so fast on the ice that she got rosy cheeks.
Little Chick
Tropical Fish
Here is a cute doodle of a tropical fish. Color it in with some of those bright and popping colors that remind you of a coral reef!
Ladybug
Ah, a cute ladybug, or ladybird for our British friends. When I draw these for my kids, I give them cute faces, even though they’re actually plenty cute without them. Something about those dots.
Starfish
Another Starfish
Happy Dog Profile
Polar Bear
Other Cute Doodles to Draw
The drawings that don’t fit into any of the other categories.
Tiny Seascape
You can doodle an infinite number of scenes within the borders of a circle. Here’s a tiny seascape, complete with dunes, wavy grass, actual waves, birds, and a sailboat in the distance.
Copy this one if you need some inspiration, or come up with your own cute doodles to draw in a circle. (It’s a great drawing challenge.)
Toadstool Mushrooms
Ready to doodle some toadstool mushrooms? Start with the tops, like this. You can, of course, add a few more and make a composition that looks interesting.
Next, add some dots. Raised dots along the edges, just circles everywhere else. And the stems, which can be curvy or straight, with or without the indentation at the bottom.
That’s all for the ‘bones’ of your cute mushroom doodle. What’s left is the most fun part: details and shading. Not overthinking it is key, a few lines on both sides of the top, more lines right under the top, and some well-positioned sprigs of grass. Done!
Tip: Do you keep a Bullet Journal? Here is a step-by-step tutorial on how to draw three ribbon banners. They’re easy to learn and will look so pretty on your next weekly spread! |
Sailboat
So simple, this sailboat. It looks like a kids’ toy, and is super easy to draw; all straight lines, and a few curvy ones.
Rainbow & Stars
But of course, a rainbow and stars can coexist on paper. The two-dimensional realm has lots of possibilities that don’t have to be realistic or make any sense.
Songbird in Balloons
Two sweet images combined into yet another completely unrealistic and quirky picture: a songbird that has decided to hang out in a bunch of balloons. Only on paper are those sharp little claws no issue.
Soap & Bubbles
You’re either team soap or team something-that-comes-in-a-bottle. The good old-fashioned bar of soap is much more fun to draw than any bottle, which is why I’m team soap. At least on paper.
Snowy Mountain
Best observed (or drawn) from the comfort of your home/couch, with a warm beverage within reach.
Birdhouse
Have you ever tried to draw an easy little birdhouse, with just a few frills and flowers to make it look even more cute?
Striped & Polka-Dotted Umbrella
What does it take to lift a regular-looking umbrella to the level of one that makes people smile? Well, stripes and polka dots, of course!
This is an easy doodle of a striped and polka-dotted umbrella. It’s quite fun in pen already but at the same time kind of asks to be colored in. With markers, colored pencils, or even some delightfully unpredictable blotches of fancy watercolor paint.
Check out these posts where I discuss some great options for watercolor paint or watercolor pencils if you’re on the fence about getting some new supplies. |
Food Doodles
Kawaii Muffin
Cute food doodles to draw should definitely include some kind of muffin in Kawaii style.
Did you know that “kawaii” is the Japanese word for “cute”? Hence the name for the entire style that developed from this term.
Coffee To-Go
Happiness in a cup, for some people… More like a lot of people. So a simple coffee-to-go drawing definitely deserves a spot in this compilation of cute doodles to draw!
Ice Cream Cone
Four steps to a yummy ice cream cone doodle. While the example here is without, cones like these practically demand to be colored.
Kiwi & Lemon
This kiwi and lemon are best friends. They’re both so high on vitamin C that they can’t stop smiling.
Oops – did I just write that out loud? Oh well, there’s no law against naturally occurring vitamins, right?
Try these, and a few other fruit doodles, and switch up the eyes and mouths to give them different facial expressions.
Cheese
Hamburger
English Liquorice
English licorice is super fun to draw. The cylinders and cubes are rather easy (ahem – they’re probably easier to draw than the word licorice is to spell!) and when you add those characteristic swirls and centers, the result is unmistakable.
In truth, I’m not entirely sure that one with the swirl actually exists. But it looked nice as something different in the mix. Maybe a piece of another type of candy fell in…
Weather Doodles
The weather, the sky, and the elements are such fun topics to draw, and they lend themselves especially well to some simple yet lovely doodles.
3 Sleeping Clouds
What is cuter than a sleeping cloud?
Two sleeping clouds, of course!
Rainbow & Co.
The good old trifecta of rain, sunshine, and a rainbow, casually hanging out together.
Thunder & Lightning
What’s that rumbling in the sky – or is it coming from the paper?
Here Comes The Sun
This sun sure looks like it’s happy to be shining.
Blue Skies Ahead
Gotta make this into a sticker, don’t you think?
Monster Doodles
Three monster doodles coming up. The third doodle monster is the cutest. The second one turned out a bit weird but oh well. What do you expect of a monster? Maybe they’re all weird. This fluffy one is pretty cute, though.
Santa
This was supposed to be a silly Santa Claus drawing but he looked a bit stern. That’s why he really needed that text bubble with a candy-cane-striped heart to lighten the mood.
Christmas Tree Doodles
An ornate Christmas tree with baubles and a star on top.
In their bare-naked, natural state, Christmas trees are quite beautiful, too. Guess they’re really just called pines, or firs, in that case. If you add color, what will it be – with snow, or green all the way?
More Reasons to Doodle/Draw
Isn’t doodling addictive?
I’m constantly split between working a doodle into something more or starting on the next one. With so many ideas bubbling up that demand to be doodled, it is essential to keep a sketchbook or an art journal. One? Actually, make that two, or three.
We touched upon the benefits of doodling for stress relief at the beginning. Of course, anything you enjoy doing will to some extent relieve stress, just as anything you dislike might cause it. Be that as it may, as far as the good about doodling goes, here are some more perks.
Benefits of Doodling
- Explore & practice your drawing skills
- Hone your drawing skills in a low-threshold kind of way
- Decrease stress
- Be in the moment
- Have fun
- Entertain kids
- Challenge your creativity (Coming up with a simpler, cuter version of things can be a nice challenge.)
Wait, there’s more!
Check out these cute and easy things to draw for more doodle art inspiration.
Or these easy mushroom drawing ideas.
They are no less magical in simple line art. But… if you feel compelled to go bonkers on them with color, they probably wouldn’t object to that either!