How to Draw a Rose

Roses are charming flowers you'll want to draw at some point to decorate your illustrations. Here is an easy step-by-step tutorial on how to draw a rose!

In this beginner-friendly tutorial, I will show you how to draw roses in various styles, focusing on expressing delicate petals and other parts that bring out a “rose-like” look when drawn together, such as the thorns and leaves.

1. The Structure of a Rose

Even if you can draw a beautiful flower, you may wonder what the other parts look like underneath, such as the stem, branches, and leaves. First, let’s briefly review the anatomy and parts of a rose.

A simple diagram for the anatomy, structure, and parts of a rose, including petals, stems, leaves, thorns, and flowers.

[Example image (arranged and simplified)]

2. How to draw the rose head

Now that you know the parts of a rose, let’s start drawing the petals. This time, I will draw two roses from two different views: a bird’s eye view from the top and one from an angle.

I divided the rose into the following three parts. Try to picture them as differently shaped cups.

A. Inside B. Middle C. Outside

Simplify the shape of a rose flower by dividing it into three parts.

Sketching to understand the structure of a rose

Combining these three parts makes drawing roses easy. Next, I will draw a rough draft of the rose, as seen from above. Follow along with my step-by-step guide!

Drawing a rose from a bird’s eye view

(1) Draw a circle for the center of the rose and then draw two lines to divide the circle into three parts, as seen below. One line should be short and the other long, like the letter Y.

Simple diagram for drawing the center of the rose.

(2) Start drawing a heart from the top of the circle. Once you draw one side, draw the other side. By alternating strokes, you can express overlapping petals. Complete part A by adding a wine-glass shape to the bottom.

Draw heart shapes and curves around the rose bud to create overlapping petals.

(3) Now, draw bigger, more angular lines surrounding the bud. Stagger the start and endpoints so that they do not overlap.

The next step to draw a rose is to draw more angular lines around the bud.

(4) Add inner folds to the petals drawn with hearts. By adding a fold, you can express the thickness, softness, and gorgeousness of the petals. As with part A, add a wine-glass shape to the bottom to complete part B.

Finish the shapes of the petals by drawing edges and folds. Vary them to express different rose flowers.

(5) By this point, the wine-glass shape of parts A and B is complete. Now we are going to draw the outer petals. Draw petals more dynamically than B. Imagine a triangle or a square as you draw. As before, make sure that the start and endpoints don’t overlap and keep an eye on the overall balance as you draw. Draw the outer petals bigger to make the rose look even more gorgeous.

Fill out the rest of the rose by drawing the outer petals.

This completes our rose from a bird’s eye view.

Finished sketch of a rose from above.

Drawing a rose at an angle

Beginner step-by-step tutorial for sketching a rose from an angle.

(1) Draw a centerline at the angle you want to draw the rose and then add an ellipse. Finally, draw a wine-glass shape on the bottom of the ellipse.

In the first step, sketch a center line for the stem and the flower.

(2) Draw a heart in the ellipse.

Draw an open heart from the top of the circle. Now divide the heart in half and draw another side of the heart like in the image below. By alternating strokes, you can express the overlapping of the petals. Draw so that the inside of the ellipse is balanced and filled in. Part A is now complete.

Draw the center of the rose with heart-shaped strokes.

(3) Draw three large curves around the oval. Again, make sure that the starting and ending points do not overlap.

Draw three large curves around the center of the flower.

(4) Draw the inner folds of the curves to make petals. By adding an edge, you can express the thickness, softness, and gorgeousness of the petals.

Finish drawing the surrounding petals with edges.

Part B is now complete.

(5) With parts A & B complete, we will now apply the petals to the outside of the flower. Draw these petals larger than in part B. Imagine them wrapping around the bud to create a three-dimensional effect. As before, make sure that the start and endpoints don’t overlap and keep an eye on the overall balance as you draw. Draw the outer petals bigger to make the rose look even more gorgeous.

Draw the outer petals larger than the center ones to finish the shape of the rose.

This completes our angled rose.

The finished rose sketch from an angle.

How angular are rose petals?

Rose petal shapes differ depending on the type of rose. Some are pointed, and others are rounded. Furthermore, the flower’s thin, soft petals gradually curl up as it’s blooming. When using roses in illustrations, choose a type that suits the situation. For example, draw curled petals to indicate that a long time has passed since the flower bloomed. Draw pointed petals for a sad, dark scene. Finally, draw dainty, round petals for a happy scene like a wedding.

Try drawing different types of roses to match your illustration or scene.

Inking

Now that we have explained that the petals of the rose are curled, it’s time to start our line art. Using the pen tool, I draw from the inside out, focusing on the image of the petals softly wrapped on the inside.

Inking tips

Line weight is very important in drawing soft rose petals. Part A is drawn with thin lines to express the delicate appearance of young petals.

Create line art with delicate lines for the rose bud in the center of the flower.

Part B has varying line thickness, creating both a delicate, yet energetic image. Try to draw heavy lines both at the bottom middle of the wine-shaped curve and at the top where it meets other lines. Then, use thinner lines between these places in the middle of the top curves. This makes the petals look more graceful.

Vary line thickness for the petals for a dynamic and graceful look.

You can be flexible at this step. Draw sharper lines for the petals that are curved back. The sharpness of your line art will vary depending on how far the petals have rolled back and how fresh they are, but it’s not so sharp as to need a ruler.

Sharper lines for the outer rose petals will complete the lineart with dynamic line weight.

Finishing Touches

I hope you were able to draw soft and dynamic line art. If your rose feels a little lacking, just add some more detail.

Mature rose petals are raised on the outside, but have a recess in the middle toward the center of the flower. Add lines to show this difference in height to make the flower more three-dimensional.

Add details to the petals for more depth in your drawing.

After this, shade in the inner and overlapping areas to add depth and make the drawing pop out even more. In particular, if you add shade behind the wine-glass shape, it will really start to stand out.

Add shading to your lineart for a rose that pops out.

Note: For color illustrations, it may be better to avoid black-fill shading.

The inked rose is now complete. Feel free to play around and arrange the petals into various combinations to find your favorite rose.

How to paint a rose

With the line art complete, it’s time to add color to our rose.

(1) Determine the light source (the direction the light is shining). I set the light source to hit from the top left.

Determine where the light source will hit your drawing of a rose.

(2) Paint the first coat. Choosing a lighter color than what you envisioned will help the rose not look too heavy when applying the shadows. For this part, I’ll use [Gouache] in the [Brush] tool under [Thick paint].

The next step is to color in the base paint layer of your rose.

(3) Next, add the first shadow layer with the [Pen] tool > [G-pen]. Choose a slightly darker color than your base layer. Lay in shadows where the light won’t reach, such as the back of the wine-glass shape and dips in the petals. Roses have complex overlapping petals, so keep this in mind when laying down your shadows.

Add shadows in a darker color to give your rose depth.

(4) Now we’ll use the [Gouache] brush to blend the shadows.

Choose a brush to paint in your roses and other flower drawings.

You can use G-pen and Gouache brushes for painting, coloring, and blending.

Blend in the shadows on the rose petals.

(5) Then, we’ll use [G-pen] and [Gouache] to add highlights to the area where the light shines, such as the tips and edges of the rose petals.

Highlight areas of the rose flower with the same brushes for the next step.

(6) Paint the stem in the same way, and adjust the overall image as needed. Painting shadows and highlights along the lines of the petals and leaves will give it a more realistic look.

(7) All done! Our painted rose is now complete.

A finished rose drawing done in a realistic style.

3. How to draw a simplified rose

If you want to draw a stylized rose, here are two easy ways to do this.

Draw triangles

The first method uses triangles to build up a simple rose shape.

(1) Draw two triangles for the center and then surround it with three more triangles. This will be the middle shape of the rose.

Start simple with a few triangles to make the core of the rose.

(2) Draw more rounded triangles surrounding it.

Surround the rose design with more triangles for petals and fill out the flower.

(3) As you add more triangles, try coloring in the space between each triangle, leaving only a thin line. This makes the triangles look more like petals.

Increase the size of triangles and petals and round out the rose motif.

(4) Stop when you reach the desired size. If you draw leaves and ivy around it, it looks even more rose-like. Real rose leaves are jagged, but we’ll remove them in this simplified version so it’s easier to draw them.

Layer soft brushstrokes

The second method is drawing soft petals attached to each other.

(1) Draw a squished ellipse and determine its center; alternatively, you can also draw a circle and divide it into three parts. The simpler, the better.

Draw simple but soft shapes to make up the rose center.

(2) Draw soft, rounded petals around the center of the flower. Draw petals in numbers of three or five to make it look more rose-like.

Draw three or five soft, rounded petals around the rose center for the next step.

(3) Then add some simple leaves around it.

Continue to add petals until you get the size you want, add simple leaves, and your rose design is complete.

It really looks like a rose, right? Try this method for design work or a hand-drawn touch. Adding variation to this simplified form gives a sense of realism and allows you to enjoy all kinds of rose shapes.

With this drawing method, you can experiment with shapes to create more realistic rose designs.

Final Comments

How was the guide? Roses are complex flowers, but they become easier to draw by breaking them down into parts. This is just one example of a rose. Other roses have different numbers of petals and frilly shapes, so draw all kinds of roses, discover your favorite, and create stunning bouquets!