How to Draw a Rose by Monika Zagrobelna

Final product image — What You'll Be Creating

Drawing Nature: How to Draw a Rose by Monika Zagrobelna

Roses are very popular flowers, commonly seen as a symbol of love. They're very difficult to draw, though—they're made of many layers of petals. You need to add them carefully one by one, and then shade the whole construction. In this quick tutorial I will show you how to do it if you want to build your own rose from scratch, without relying on a reference. But if you want, feel free to check any of these Envato Market references to help yourself:

Rose in top view
Half-blown rose
Rosebud

What You Will Need

Hard pencil (HB)
Medium soft pencil (2B or slightly lower)
Soft pencil (5B or lower)
Sheet of paper
Pencil sharpener

Step 1

Start by drawing a teardrop/egg shape with a hard pencil. Use very light lines. This will be the inner bud of the rose.

Step 2

Draw the "opening" of this shape.

Step 3

Draw little petals inside.

Step 4

Close those petals into a heart shape—this will be the outline of other petals.

Step 5

Connect the outline with the rest of the bud, creating a petal shape.

Step 6

One more heart...

... attached to the bud.

Step 7

One more time draw the heart shape, but this time make it less regular and more open.

The lines connecting it with the bud will create an effect of depth if you lead them correctly.

Step 8

We need one more petal on this level. It will have a more complicated perspective, so look carefully:

Step 9

We need to place the bud inside a "cup" of petals. First make it out of small petals...

... then use larger ones.

Step 10

The rest of the petals should bend more and more down.

Step 11

When you're done, press harder over the lines you want to see better to bring out the final shape.

Step 12

Take a softer pencil and shade the inner parts of the rose. First draw lightly...

... then press harder to achieve a darker shade.

Step 13

Use the same pencil to slightly stress some edges of the petals. Don't draw all over them!

Step 14

Go back to a hard pencil and use it to add a subtle texture to the illuminated parts. The darker your rose, the darker you can go here.

Step 15

Take the softest pencil and finish shading with it, putting it in the darkest crevices.