How to Draw a Tambourine

Tambourines are a percussion instrument, and generally made with a round frame of metal, plastic or wood, and small symbol-shaped metal pieces called "zils" that create a jingling sound. The instrument is covered with plastic or animal skin, like a traditional hand drum, and is shaken or tapped for sound. They became an integral part of pop culture after the release of Bob Dylan's song "Tambourine Man," in which the tambourine man was a metaphor for a drug dealer.

Instructions

1. 

   Draw an oval. This will be the hand-drum frame of the tambourine.

2. 

   Sketch a lip of material around the bottom edges. Draw slightly wavy lines to represent the curve of the material fastened to the frame.

3. 

   Add the metal buttons that fasten the material to the frame. These should be small circles, relatively evenly spaced out, along the lip drawn in Step 2.

4. 

   Now draw the outline of the tambourine's zils. They should appear as uniform C-shapes, below the lip of material on the tambourine frame.

5. 

   Add a line connecting each of the C-shaped zils. The line should parallel the oval. This is the base of the tambourine frame.

6. 

   Draw the center of the zils, and shade the area where the they are inserted halfway into the frame. Add smaller, darker shadows where the half C-shapes meets the frame.

7. 

   Sketch in slightly curved, horizontal lines across the frame of the tambourine. These denote the grain of the wooden frame, and give it a textured look.

8. 

   Use the side of the pencil to shade in darker parts of the top and side of the tambourine. This will give it a more three-dimensional look.