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A hand holding a yellow pencil, seen from the thumb side: the thumb and index finger pinch the pencil near its sharpened tip, the middle finger supports it, and the other fingers curl under.
The finished drawing.

How to draw

How to Draw a Hand Holding a Pencil

  • Challenge (level 5 of 5)
  • 45 min
  • 15 steps
  • Ages 10–14 (a guide, not a rule)
Start Drawing Draw on Screen Print

Draw on paper: Paper, Pencil, Eraser. Optional: Your own hand holding a pencil, to look at, Colored pencils: skin tones, yellow, pink and gray.

Draw it on the screen

Hands look hard because there is so much going on, so build them like an artist: a box for the palm, sticks with circles for the finger bones and joints, then the skin wrapped around. Draw the nearest parts first, the thumb and index finger, so the pencil and the fingers behind can stop where they are hidden.

Step by step

  • New lines: purple, thick and glowing
  • Lines you already drew: gray
  • Guides: dashed blue, draw them lightly
  • Erase: dotted pink with an eraser
  1. Step 1 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 1 of 15 Draw a long, light guide line slanting up to the right. It shows where the pencil goes; the whole hand is built around it.
  2. Step 2 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 2 of 15 Draw a light, slanted box for the back of the hand and the palm. Its left side is the row of knuckles and its right side is the wrist.
  3. Step 3 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 3 of 15 Draw the index finger's bones as three sticks from the top knuckle to the pencil line, with small circles for the joints. Each stick is shorter than the one before.
  4. Step 4 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 4 of 15 Draw the thumb's bones the same way: from inside the palm, two joints, and a short last stick that ends just under the pencil line.
  5. Step 5 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 5 of 15 The thumb is nearest to you, so draw it first. Wrap its outline around the sticks: thick at the base, a bend at each joint, a rounded tip. Add its nail.
  6. Step 6 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 6 of 15 Wrap the index finger around its sticks: a bump at each joint on top, a soft pad underneath resting on the pencil, and a nail at the tip.
  7. Step 7 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 7 of 15 Draw the pencil as two parallel lines on either side of its guide. Stop each line where the thumb or the finger is in front of it.
  8. Step 8 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 8 of 15 Finish the pencil: a sharpened cone and a dark lead at the bottom, a metal band and a rounded eraser at the top.
  9. Step 9 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 9 of 15 Draw the back of the hand from the index knuckle to the wrist, the skin between thumb and finger behind the pencil, and the bottom of the palm. The arm runs off the paper.
  10. Step 10 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 10 of 15 Draw the middle finger peeking out under the pencil and thumb. Its tip holds the pencil from below. Draw only the parts you can see.
  11. Step 11 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 11 of 15 Draw the ring and little fingers curled under the palm: two rounded shapes, one tucked behind the other.
  12. Step 12 diagram, showing what to erase
    Step 12 of 15 Erase all the guides: the pencil line, the box, the sticks and the joint circles.
  13. Step 13 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 13 of 15 Add the small wrinkles over the finger joints and a crease at the base of the thumb. Draw one line along the pencil: its flat sides meet at an edge.
  14. Step 14 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 14 of 15 Light comes from above, so the undersides turn away from it. Shade the lower half of the thumb and index finger, the bottom of the palm and the pencil's lower side.
  15. Step 15 diagram, with the new lines highlighted
    Step 15 of 15 The fingers tucked under the hand and the gaps beside the pencil get the least light: shade them darkest. The top of the hand stays white, the lightest value.
A hand holding a yellow pencil, seen from the thumb side: the thumb and index finger pinch the pencil near its sharpened tip, the middle finger supports it, and the other fingers curl under.

You did it!

Your drawing does not have to look like this one. Every artist draws a little differently.

Color it on screen Print a practice sheet

Tips for this drawing

Helpful hints

  • Hold a pencil in your other hand and look at it while you draw. It is the best model there is.
  • Keep the finger sticks light; they only help you get the lengths and bends right.
  • Fingers bend only at the joints. Put the bumps of the knuckles exactly where the circles were.

Common mistakes

  • The fingers look like sausages with no joints. Add a small bump on top at each joint and a slight narrowing between joints.
  • The pencil line shows through the thumb. The thumb is in front, so stop the pencil where the thumb begins and continue on the other side.
  • The fingers are all the same length. Measure with the sticks: the index finger is long, the thumb is shorter and starts much lower, near the wrist.

Make it simpler

Draw a mitten shape for the hand around the pencil: one rounded shape for the fingers on top, one for the thumb below, and the pencil between them.

Construction

Build the hand from simple shapes before any outline: a box for the palm, sticks for the finger bones and circles for the joints. Then wrap the skin around them.

Proportion

Each finger bone is a little shorter than the one before it, and the finger gets thinner toward the tip. The thumb shows two bones, and its base is a thick pad in the palm.

Overlap

The thumb is nearest, then the index finger, the pencil, the middle finger and the curled fingers. Draw them in that order and stop each line where a nearer part covers it.

Value

Light from above leaves the tops of the hand white, gives the undersides a middle value, and leaves the fingers tucked under the hand darkest.