How to draw a butterfly

Use this simple technique to master drawing butterflies

Learning how to draw a butterfly and other animals is so easy with our step-by-step picture guides. Just draw the shapes and your animal will slowly begin to come to life on your piece of paper.

This is a great project to teach your kids how to draw animals. A butterfly is so simple to start with.

Once you’ve mastered the basics, why not try drawing a realistic pattern on the wings from an image of your favourite butterfly or from real butterflies in your garden.

Turn your drawings into artwork for the walls or create your own homemade stickers. For more fun projects to do with your kids, check out our ultimate activities list.

You will need:

• Colouring pens, pencils or crayons
• Paper

For craft supplies, check out Wilko.

How to draw a butterfly:

1. Begin in the centre of your paper with a small circle. Try using a pencil for these first steps and go over the lines with a bright colouring pencil of felt tip pen afterwards.

2. Then draw the butterflies body in the shape on an elongated oval with a pointed tip for the tail.

3. On one side of the body, draw a large circle for the top of the wing.

4. Repeat on the other side so the butterfly looks symmetrical. If you’re struggling to draw the circles accurately, use a round object like a cup to draw around. Add two more circles underneath to complete the set of wings.

5. Draw two antennae on top of the butterfly’s head. You can draw small circles at the top or a spiral if you prefer.

6. Now it’s time to have some fun and get creative by drawing a pattern on the wings. We’ve chosen to follow the outer edge of the wing for a simple design, but you can come up with anything you want. How about some polka dots and stripes?

7. Finish your butterfly drawing by colouring it in. We’ve used a combination of blues and oranges, but you can use any colours you like. The brighter, the better.