How to Make Yourself a Cartoon Cowboy

Exaggerate the features of a real cowboy to create your cartoon version.

The iconic American cowboy can easily be transformed into a cartoon by incorporating just a few stereotypical elements. A cowboy would be wearing a cowboy hat for sure. He would also have on pointy cowboy boots and have pistols at his sides. He would be wearing jeans and maybe a vest. He might have stubble on his face and look a little bowlegged from riding his horse all day. Use all these features to portray your colorful cowboy caricature.

Things You'll Need

• Pencil sharpener
• Eraser

Instructions

1. 

   Jeans, vest and a hat make for a good cowboy look.

   Study a few pictures of real cowboys from movies or real life. Notice their clothing. Observe the boots and the hats they wear. Study their bowlegged stance.

2. Draw a rectangle for the torso of your cartoon cowboy. Draw a circle slightly above this for the head. Connect the head and the torso with two vertical lines for the neck.

3. Draw a line at the bottom left-hand corner of the torso, curving down slightly for a bowed look. End the curved line with a short vertical line. Draw a second curving line at the end, extending up to just below the bottom of the torso. Draw an opposite curving line down for the other leg. End this line with a short vertical line. Draw another curved line connecting to the bottom right-hand corner of the torso.

4. Draw a line at the top right-hand corner of the cowboy's torso that curves in toward the bottom. Draw a short vertical line. Draw a second curving line up to meet the upper part of the torso. Repeat this step to add the cowboy's other arm. Draw the hands on the ends of the arms. Draw the fingers dangling down.

5. Draw pants and shirt on the cowboy. Add a vest over the shirt and a bandanna tied around his neck. Draw boots on your cowboy in a profile view so the tips are pointing out. Draw a belt on your cowboy. Draw a holstered pistol on both hips.

6. Draw a large, over-sized cowboy hat on top of the head. Draw the brim of the hat low so that it covers half the face. Draw a nose under the hat brim and add an oval for mouth under the nose. Draw in clenched teeth and a cigar coming out from between them. Press down firmly with your pencil and shade in the chin and side of the face to create the look of stubble. Add additional buttons or patterns on the cowboy's shirt.

7. Go over your pencil lines with marker. Erase any unwanted lines after the marker lines have dried. Color your cartoon with colored markers or pencils.

References

• Drawing Coach.com: Want to Learn How to Draw People?
• Drago Art: How to Draw a Cowboy
• The Last Best West: Cowboy Pictures

Resources

• History Rhymes: Who Were the Real Cowboys?