How to draw anime cats in detail step by step

The step-by-step instructions below show how to draw anime-style cats . This anime cat drawing process is divided into 12 steps.

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When it comes to anime and manga, cats and other animals often come in a variety of designs. Some of them are quite realistic, but there are also nicely styled animals. That makes many people confused when learning to draw cats in anime and manga style. This tutorial shows you how to identify the features and draw them to form a complete, adorable anime cat.

You should draw with a pencil on paper, starting with thin, blurred lines so that it is easy to erase when needed.

How to draw cats in anime style

Step 1 - Draw the cat's head

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First, draw the vertical line as a guide. This can help you easily determine if the head and torso are in balance. Everyone wants a symmetrical drawing, but remember that nothing is perfect.

Define the draw line slightly to the side of your drawing area to allow more space on the tailed side.

Draw the shape of the head similar to an upside down apple. Make it a little wider at the bottom and leave some space in its outline at the bottom.

Step 2 - Draw the ears

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At the top of the head, add the ears. You'll want their forward-facing sides to cut along the contour of the head to show curvature.

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Draw the ears wider at the base and narrower at the top. You can delete the top sections that overlap the ears once you're done.

Step 3 - Draw the body and front legs

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Below the head, add the torso that will transform into the front legs. Since this is a stylized anime cat (or kitten), the body and legs are quite small and short compared to the head.

Step 4 - Draw the hind legs

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In this example, the cat is sitting so you can draw the hind legs like in the example. First, draw the feet and then add the curve of the legs on each side of the body.

Step 5 - Draw the tail

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For the final main part in the body composition, add the tail. Draw it with a wavy line, in harmony with the overall shape of the cat and the head curved forward. Also, split it at the end to create a bit of fur.

Step 6 - Draw the face

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In typical anime/manga style, cats will have large eyes, small noses and mouths.

1. Draw eyes with very large irises (almost all of one eye).
2. Add two more reflectors inside the eye (one large for the main light source and one small for the secondary light).
3. Draw the pupils as a pair of vertical ovals.
4. Draw the nose in a triangle shape (with rounded corners).
5. Draw the mouth in an upside down 'Y' shape.
6. Add a little eyebrow as a small curve above each eye.

Before adding the eyes, you can draw a horizontal line to determine their position and then delete it.

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After completing the facial features, you can add a bit of hair on the lower part of the head. Similar to when drawing anime hair, draw cat hair in bunches.

Step 7 - Draw the ear hair

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Add a bit of fur outside the open ear. Draw it as a relatively long and detailed plumage.

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Erase the top that covers those hairs.

Step 8 - Draw body hair

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Add a large block of fur underneath the cat's head along the sides of the body to give the cat a more lively, lifelike look.

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Step 9 - Draw the claws

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Draw some lines along the paws to create the cat's toes. Since its front paws are viewed at more angles, draw the toes with more curves. The hind paws point more towards the viewer so their toes can be defined by just enough curves.

Step 10 - Draw the Beard

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For these final details, add the whiskers growing out from the bottom of each side of the face. You can also add a pair of long hairs growing out of each eyebrow.

Step 11 - Coloring

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In this example, the cat has white fur, blue eyes, a pink nose, and some pink detailing on the inner part of the ears.

Step 12 - Add Shadows

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Shading usually depends on the light source, but in this example, the shading is done in the simplest and most common way.

You can start to highlight the upper parts of each eye. Shadows along the body will be added as if the cat were outdoors or indoors under good lighting. Basically, you can shade this anime cat character like this:

1. Along the clusters in the lower part of the head.
2. At the bottom of the clusters form the part of the cat's mane.
3. Along the bottom of the tail.
4. Along the lower body.
5. At the bottom of each foot.

You can also add a shadow below the cat. This makes it look like it's sitting on top of something, instead of just floating in space.

Above are the basic steps of drawing cats in anime style . Hope the article is useful to you.

Samuel Daniel

Update 24 July 2023