16 Inspiring and Creative Ideas for How to Draw Eyes

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If you are learning how to draw eyes, I have some great references and tutorials to share.

If you know anything about drawing people, I’m sure you can attest to the fact that eyes are one of the hardest parts of the human body to draw.

Wait, let me rephrase that. Drawing REALISTIC eyes can be pretty darn difficult. Even though I’ve spent countless hours practicing drawing the human eye, my drawings are nowhere near where I want them to be.

realistic woman eye
Image credit: esras.arts

I’ve learned that there are 9 steps to involved in drawing eyes.

1. Outline the shape of the eye
2. Shade the pupil
3. Shade the iris
4. Draw the spokes
5. Blend the iris
6. Add a little depth
7. Shade the skin
8. Drawn the eyebrows and eyelashes
9. Complete any touch-ups

Simply by keeping these 9 steps in the forefront of your mind, you’ll begin to find it easier to draw eyes. I’ll be sharing 28+ inspiring ideas for drawing human and even a few animated style eyes.

1. Girl Anime Eyes

anime style eyes
Image credit: Pinterest

This simple tutorial shows us how to draw cute anime eyes in four steps. If you want to practice drawing eyes for your character, this photo makes a great reference.

2. Quick Eye Sketch

eye sketch tutorial
Image credit: Pinterest

The best way to get better at drawing eyes is by practicing. Spend a little time each day sketching eyes and you’ll be better in no time.

3. Realistic Eyes with Colored Pencil

very realistic eye with color
Image credit: fuyuch7

This artist used colored pencils to draw an extremely realistic eye. This definitely isn’t a beginner’s reference, but if you want to draw detailed eyes, this is definitely helpful.

4. Detailed Eye Drawing

six step eye drawing tutorial
Image credit: buzz16

The more experienced you get at drawing eyes, the more realistic your drawings will become. Use this tutorial to help you draw realistic eyes.

5. Graphite, Liner and Glitter

three sets of eyes using different pencils
Image credit: knechart

Here’s a drawing that shows a set of eyes using only graphite pencil, only liner, and charcoal and glitter.

6. Colors on Black Paper

colored eyes on black paper
Image credit: art_karoline

You don’t often see artists using black paper for their drawings. I love how the paper allows the colors to stand out so well.

7. Emotional Eye

the process of drawing an eye
Image credit: miss_1_wasabi

Is it just me or does this eye have an emotional look and feel? I love the colors that were used for this drawing too.

8. Watercolor Facial Features

watercolor face with eyes nose and mouth
Image credit: x.iaoart

If you enjoy to watercolor paint, you’ll be happy to discover this cool watercolor eye painting. Play around with different colors for your painting.

9. Fantasy Eyes

ghost snake and flower eyes
Image credit: a_portrait_

These eyes all feature something you might find in a fantasy movie. There are snake eyes, flower eyes, and even ghost eyes.

10. Shading and Smudging

eye study
Image credit: buzz16

This simple graphic gives you detail on shading and smudging. The artist used HB, 2B, and 3B pencils to achieve these effects.

11. Eyes in 80 Minutes

realistic eyes
Image credit: knechart

It may take you more than 80 minutes to draw these eyes, but don’t let that stop you. Take your time and enjoy your drawing experience.

12. Simple Eye Sketch

single eye drawing
Image credit: johnny_sk3tch

Daily sketching is a great way to improve your drawing skills. If you want to improve your eye drawing skills, take at least 10 minutes daily for a week to sketch eyes.

13. How to Draw Eyes

If you enjoy doing illustrated art, I think you’ll like this tutorial. To learn how to draw these eyes, check out the full tutorial from @revalvabe.

how to draw eyes illustrated

14. Eyes, Nose and Lips

eyes nose and lips tutorial
Image credit: tajijoseph

If your goal is to draw a realistic face, this reference shows us how to draw realistic eyes, a nose, and a mouth in four steps.

15. Add Eyeshadow

eyes with colored lids
Image credit: michaelaaart

Once you get the hang of drawing eyes, you should consider adding makeup such as eyeshadow or eyeliner.

16. Ghost Eyes

ghost ghoul dragon and elf eyes
Image credit: lihnida.san

This reference is perfect for anyone who wants to draw spooky eyes such as ghost eyes, ghoul eyes, and more.

I hope you’ve been inspired by these eye-drawing references. If you want to improve your skills, remember to take some time every day to sketch. Your sketches don’t have to be perfect. The more you sketch, you’ll find that over time, the better you’ll get.

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