Babies are easy to draw once you understand their proportions and drawing rules.

Babies are fun subjects to draw, but are also one of the hardest human forms to mimic in art. They have different proportions than adults and children. They also have different drawing rules. For example, where adults have features that are proportionally even, babies have large eyes and small lips and noses.

Also, babies are impossible to keep still. Your only hope to draw them is to use photo references or to draw them while they are asleep.

As with any subject, practice and study will create steady improvement. Below are some rules to follow when drawing a baby.

The Head

A baby’s head is much different than an adult’s. For one, it is much bigger than an adult’s. It takes up around one-third of their bodies. A baby's forehead takes up most of its face. Because of this, a baby’s eyes are not halfway up on the face, like an adult’s, they are 3/7th of the way up.

The eyes seem so large because they are very close to the same size they will be when the baby is an adult. Because of this, very little of the whites of the eyes can be seen.

The rest of the facial features are very small in comparison to the rest of the head.

The Nose

A baby’s nose has not formed cartilage yet, and is not a sharp, defined form yet. The nose is 2/7th of the way up the face.

In newborns, the nose is often flattened due to stress in the womb. As they get older, the nose will get more round and fleshy.

Babies often have a very curved, ski-slope type arch to their nose. This creates an almost puglike look.

Remember to play down the nostrils; don’t make them too defined. Do this by using lighter shading.

The Mouth

The mouth is 1/7th of the way up the face and is very soft and fleshy. No sharp angles should be used when drawing the mouth.

The Body

Drawing a baby’s body is a lot like drawing clothing. A baby’s skin has a multitude of folds, bends, and ripples that needs to be recorded to make the baby realistic. Light shading can easily suggest rolls of baby fat without being too obvious.

Clothing

Take note of what kind of outfits babies normally wear to make your drawings more realistic. For example, many babies wear T-shirts that snap between their legs called onesies. Other possible clothing choices are footie pajamas, tiny sun dresses, or simply a diaper.

Keep your baby’s clothing simple and to a minimum. Too much fuss will make the baby look older and less cuddly.