How to Draw a Sailboat | 9 Super Easy Steps
Thank you for joining our lesson. Today we will be learning how to draw a sailboat. You will be happy to know that this is the easiest and most fun drawing lesson you will ever take. But first, let’s understand what is a sailboat.
If you have been near a beach, you probably have had the chance to see a sailboat in action. Sailboats, also known as sailing boats, are boats that are entirely or partly propelled by sails. These boats are a lot smaller than sailing ships. Distinctions in what makes up a sailboat vary depending on maritime culture and region. Let’s get down to today’s lesson with that out of the way.
What You Will Need
- A pencil
- An eraser
- A ruler
- A drawing piece of paper
- Coloring supplies
- 30 minutes
How to Draw a Sail Boat
Learning how to draw a sailboat offers a great way to learn about sailing the open seas. Our tutorial will cover a relatively easy process of drawing a sailing boat. In the process, you will learn the different parts that make up a sailboat and what they are used for. To make it easier for you to draw, take a look at the steps we will be following.
Step 1: Draw the Hull
The main part of a sailboat is the hull. This is the main body that houses all the other components including the keel which sits below the body and helps with stability and the rudder which helps with steering. In our drawing, the first thing we are going to draw is the hull.
To draw the hull, we will start by drawing a horizontal rectangle close to the bottom of our drawing paper. The rectangle will serve as our guide. To convert the rectangle into a hull, we will start by curving the left and right parts of the rectangle. We will also make the bottom and top parts curved. Use your eraser to remove all the unused sections of the rectangle apart from the topmost part. Your drawing should look like this.
Step 2: Draw the Mast
A sailboat uses a sail which is a canvas that traps the wind to help the boat propel forward. The mainsail is usually attached to a vertical structure known as the mast. This is a vertical rod that rises from the hull. We will be adding it next.
To draw the mast, we will draw a straight line starting from the hull and rising vertically to almost the top of your drawing paper. Draw another line next to the first one to form a tube-like structure.
To make it possible for the mainsail to be spread out for maximum efficiency, we need a horizontal rod attached to the main mast. Add a tube-like structure close to the bottom of the mast. The structure should not be too long. We will also add a small line to serve as an attachment for the second sail. This attachment is known as the pulpit. It should look something like what we have below.
Step 3: Add the Right Sail
A sailboat usually has two sails. With the sail attachments ready, we need to start by adding the mainsail. This one is attached to the right side of the mast which is the windward side (the side of the boat closest to the wind). Simply add a curved line that starts from the top of the mast and curves towards the end of the horizontal rod we attached to the mast. To indicate that the sail is firmly attached to the mast, use a straight line to attach the curved line to the horizontal rod as shown.
Our drawing is starting to look more like a sailboat, isn’t it? Let’s keep going.
Step 4: Add the Left Sail
We are now going to add the left sail. This one sits on the leeward side which is the side of the boat that is furthest from the wind. Adding this sail will be very easy. We will not be attaching it directly to the mast. This time we will be drawing it parallel to the mast.
To draw the sail, start by drawing a horizontal line that starts above the left end of the hull, extends towards the right, and stops close to the vertical mast. Next, we will draw a vertical line that goes up to almost the height of the mast. The final step will be connecting the two lines using a slightly curved line that starts from the top of the vertical line to the left side of the horizontal line. You should have something that looks like this.
Step 5: Attach the Sail
The left sail needs to be attached to the mast and to the attachment we added to the left side of the hull. This is done using ropes. In our drawing, we are going to add straight lines which are meant to indicate there is tension on the sail.
We will start by adding a diagonal line at the top part of the left sail. The diagonal line should start from the top of the sail and attach to the mast. Next, we will add another diagonal line starting from the bottom right corner of the left sail and connecting to the bottom of the main mast.
Finally, we will add two lines that attach the bottom left corner of the left sail to the pulpit. One line should be horizontal starting from the base of the sail while the other one should start slightly above the bottom left corner.
Step 6: Decorate the Hull
Our sailing boat is almost ready. You would get away with it if you left it as it is. However, to indicate that we are great artists who pay attention to detail, we are going to add some lines on the hull to indicate that it is wooden. For that, we will add curved lines that are parallel to the bottom line of the hull.
Step 7: Refine Your Drawing
The sailboat is now ready! That was not so hard, was it? I bet not. Before we proceed, now is the perfect time to refine your drawing so that it looks exactly like ours or better. To do so, take a look at our drawing below and make changes to your drawing if there are areas that are way off.
Never allow frustrations to get to you. Even though it is a simple drawing, not everyone gets everything perfectly right the first time. Do not be discouraged if you feel your sailboat doesn’t look as good. It takes practice to perfect your skills. Now that you know what is required, you can simply start over and give it another try. Many people only get it right after the second or third try.
Take the Drawing to the Next Level
It is okay to leave the sailboat as it is now. However, if you truly want to become a superstar, you have to be willing to do more to make your drawing stand out. In this section, we will look at some of the things you can do to make your sailing boat more impressive.
Step 8: Add a Background
Sailboats sail on water, not space, lol. The first thing we are going to add is the water. For this, we will add a few wavy lines below the boat. They will serve as the surface of the water. You can also add a rough shape below the boat to serve as a rough reflection of the sailing boat. Take a look at what we have done.
You can take your drawing further by adding some clouds in the background. If you want, you can add a name on the main sail and some birds in the background. It is also okay if you wish to add some mountain ranges in the far distance.
The goal here is to demonstrate how creative you are. You must, however, never forget that the sailboat is the star of today’s drawing. You should, therefore, not add items that hide it.
Step 9: Color Your Drawing
When you are satisfied with your drawing and all the background details, you can take out your coloring supplies and add color to it. Coloring your drawing is a lot of fun. You can use any colors you want. Show us how creative you are. Here is what we did to ours. You can do more with yours.
Conclusion
As you can see, drawing a sailboat is quite easy. We were able to achieve a beautiful drawing by combining several shapes. We started by drawing the hull by first using a horizontal rectangle which served as our guide. We then converted the rectangle into a hull by curving the sides. Next, we added the mast and then the mainsails. We advanced our drawing by adding wavy lines for the water and added a few more details for the background before coloring.
You can use our steps to draw a sailboat from a different perspective or from a real image. We believe you have grasped the concept of drawing a sailing boat now. These steps can also be used in sketching a sailboat using your favorite app on your laptop, tablet, or smartphone.
Thanks for reading & feel free to check out more of our articles!
