Hi!

 

This is a tutorial on how to draw chibi characters.

 

A "chibi" is a cute mini character. They are are oftentimes mascots for products, used as stickers, figurines, in manga credits, video-games etc.

 

Chibi characters are grossly deformed and overly cute.

 

Some features are exaggerated, some deformed, and some omitted.

As a general rule:

 

Exaggerated: head, eyes, hair

Deformed: feet, hands, torso

Omitted: nose, fingers

 

Proportions:

The chibi body ranges from 3-heads-tall to 2-heads-tall.

This means that the head makes (usually) ½ or ⅓ of the totality of the chibi’s height.

 

3 general types of chibis:

• Head-Heavy

• Body-Heavy

• Balanced

 

 

1.

It is very (maybe even overly) cute. Babyish. Big-eyed. The head is so big, that it feels as if the chibi will fall over.

2.

This type of chibi is more realistically tilted. It looks like a 4-year-old, drawn in manga-style.

 

Beware that the body tends to look too long, and takes away the attention from the head. If you want to counter that effect, place the focal element on the head. Alternatively, you can choose a pose that brings balance to the drawing.

3.

This is a "safe zone" chibi. These proportions allow you to easily obtain the visual balance between the body and the head.

Chibis drawn this way look well-balanced.

Important.

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Now, the following are explanations and tips on drawing specific parts of the body.

1. Head

2. Torso

The torso is bean-shaped. You can also think of it as a pear.

The weight of the body is concentrated in the lower portion, sort of like a balloon that was filled with water.

In an average chibi, there aren't actual shoulders. The hip area is curved.

 

3. Hands

Hands often gets simplified. Some or all fingers can be omitted.

 

Rarely: a circle is drawn instead of a normal hand. Usually it's a simplified representation of a character waving their hands around in frustration.

4. Legs

5. Feet

6. Neck

The neck is oftentimes omitted. If present, then depicted short and slim.

7. Nose

Chibi’s rarely have noses. That being said, some artists choose to represent it.

 

You can depict a nose by using a simple dot. Alternatively, you can draw a shadow to suggest the presence of a nose.

In some cases, you may draw a blush.

8. Mouth

Usually small, and cute.

The placement of the mouth depends on the mood you're trying to depict. If the character is shocked or angry, you can place the mouth very low, and it will touch the outline of the face.

 

If the personality of your chibi is bubbly, upbeat, and talkative, draw the mouth big.

If the chibi is shy, or is low-spirited, the mouth is small.

9. Eyes

Low on the skull. Can be normal-sized, still usually they're oversized and feature exaggerated pupils. Sometimes sparkly.

The eyes are drawn either in the middle of the skull or lower than that. Don’t draw them too far apart.

10. Ears

Ears are depicted, unless they are covered by hair.

 

When facing forward, the chibi's ears are placed lower than the eyebrows (unless the character is frowning).

The details are omitted, and the external folds of the ear (the ridges) are not drawn. However, if you want, you can represent them by a circle, a dot, or a line.

11. Teeth

Omitted, unless you have a reason to draw them.

12. Hair

Draw the hair in lumps. Avoid drawing out each hair strand, as that will make the hair look bad. You can use shadows and tones to suggest voluminous hair.

More Tips:

1) Chibis are flat-chested.

 

A chibi is sort of a child version of a normal character, and it should ooze with cuteness.

 

It's best not draw breasts (nor abs), because they will make the chibi look adult-like instead of child-like. They mature the character, adding nothing to the “cuteness” of the character.

2) Chibis don't have hook noses. Hook noses are good for cartoon characters. But they don't suit chibi faces.

3) If you want to emphasize the difference between a male chibi, and a female chibi, you can:

 

A -> Differentiate eye sizes. Females tend to have bigger eyes than males.

 

B -> Differentiate shoulder widths. Create the illusion of wider body and broader shoulders by drawing clothes. Don't make shoulders too broad though.

 

However, normally, the figure is simplified to the point where there is no gender distinction between a male-chibi and a female-chibi.

 

Step by Step + showcase:

First, I create a canvas and select the A4 paper size. There is no need for high resolution at the preliminary stages, so I select 72 dpi. Then I start "researching".

 

An A4 paper can fit up to six characters.

This is a messy stage. After deciding on general poses, I use a lasso tool to move the characters away from each other and create more free space around each of them. That way I can add details, like hair and clothes without fearing that the characters will overlap.

 

I add the details to each chibi, deciding on how each of them will look.

 

After I have found interesting poses worth pursuing, I copy-paste them onto different canvases and continue working.

 

I clean-up, or redraw, the outline, and add finer details, such as clothing patters, eyes, shoes etc.

 

After that, I can do the lineart.

As you can see, on most of my chibis, aside from the outline I also have thin colored lines.

Those are indications where to put shadows and light during the coloring stage.

This method is used in anime production. But I like to apply it to drawings as well, because I often take breaks and work on multiple projects at once.

This way, when you get back to your chibi, you can right away see what sort of lightning you've had in mind when you originally started drawing.

 

 

Red lines indicate light. Blue lines indicate shadow.

In anime production yellow and green may used, sometimes for environmental lights or the second shadow, or to mark the background.

 

 

Finally I add colors. Sometimes I flat color it, but mostly I use highlights.

Your coloring methods depend entirely on your art style. I can recommend not shying away from using filters. Use blending modes, adjust the color tones, the brightness of the image, and get the most out of your drawing.

That's it. Hope you'll have fun drawing!