30 DIY Christmas Tree Drawing Ideas: Projects To Do With The Kids
Updated on November 8, 2021
Christmas is arguably the most beloved holiday for kids all around the world, and you can pretty much tell how excited they are by the fact that Christmas tree drawings start appearing all around the house (hopefully not on the walls).
Well, ’tis the season to be jolly, and your child will probably be receiving all kinds of Christmas-themed assignments from school that they will have to complete, and if you really want to inspire them to make a very nice and simple Christmas tree drawing, but lack any inspiration.
Table of Contents
How to Draw a Christmas Tree – Easy Steps
Before we start going into details, we first need to make sure that both you and your child understand the basics of drawing a good-looking Christmas tree, so following these few simple guidelines:
- Make the trunk thick, and draw a line upwards from it to give your drawing depth.
- Draw cones or pinecones at the top of the tree’s branches.
- Add some stars on top for extra effect (optional).
- Try to make sure that your child uses different colors for their Christmas tree drawings, as using only one color can be boring, and might even look like there’s something wrong with the picture.
Let’s not forget about some basic general tips when it comes to drawing Christmas trees. They aren’t necessarily easy, but they can help greatly with improving your child’s work.
Here are some things to keep in mind when learning how to draw a Christmas tree:
- First start by drawing the trunk made out of straight lines that come outwards, so that it looks like they are holding up the tree.
- Don’t forget to draw thinner lines coming downwards from the sides of your trunk, but these should be thicker than the ones at the top of your tree.
- To give the illusion that your Christmas tree has branches then just add some thick lines coming outwards from where you want them to be (but do keep in mind that there might not be any if you didn’t use cones or pinecones). Then make sure to draw smaller lines coming
- downwards.
- To make your drawing look more realistic don’t forget about adding leaves (if you can picture what I mean by this), and also where you expect there to be shadows under your Christmas tree.
How to Draw a Christmas Tree – Different Styles
Now that you know how to draw a basic Christmas tree yourself, we need to talk about different styles and techniques for doing so:
1. Draw Santa Claus And A Christmas Tree
This is probably one of the most popular ways to draw a Christmas tree because it involves two pictures in one. The other advantage is that you can add anything you want on top of your Christmas tree (like a star for example), and the rest will be drawn by your child.
2. Draw A Christmas Tree For Kids
This is probably the simplest type of drawing where all there really needs to be done is to draw a simple cone shape at the top, while trying to make sure that it looks like it’s tipping over towards one side (if you can picture what I mean by this).
3. Sketching A Large-Branch Tree
If you don’t want to go with cones or pinecones at the top, then this is definitely your best alternative. It’s basically all about drawing thin branches on top of a thick trunk, so you might want some help from an adult if you are having trouble with this.
4. Draw A Christmas Tree Without Branches
If for some reason you don’t want any branches at the top of your tree then there’s nothing that can be done to change it, but just draw thin lines coming downwards from the cone or pinecone at the top, and they should give the illusion that your tree has branches.
Here Are the Best Christmas Tree Drawing Ideas
When it comes to drawing, regardless of whether it’s a Christmas tree drawing, or anything else, we understand that it’s all about imagination and creativity, and definitely not about copying other people’s drawings!
That said, it is always good to get inspired by other artists’ work (you can check out some examples of Christmas tree drawing ideas by visiting our article), but this list that we present you today should provide your children with enough inspiration to come up with their own unique version of this artwork.
So take a look at them, and see if any of these Christmas tree pictures inspire you or your child to create something spectacular!
1. Christmas Tree Drawing – Calligraphy Tree
If you’re looking for a Christmas tree drawing idea that is more suited for adults rather than children, we suggest that you do something similar to the design showcased above.
For starters, think of several words that inspire you during Christmas, like “kindness”, family”, “together”, or “love”, and then write them by hand on a sheet of paper.
Then rearrange the words in order from the shortest word to the longest, and then basically create a Christmas tree using the words themselves.
For best impact, we recommend that you first practice your handwriting on another paper first, since in an age where everyone is typing, writing by hand is becoming rarer and rarer.
Once you’ve gotten the hang of it, go ahead and take a green sharpie (or you can mix in several different colors if you wish), and start creating your calligraphy Christmas tree.
Admittedly, your kids may not have as much fun with this idea as with the others, but it’s still a perfect opportunity to exercise both of your calligraphy skills, and it’s also the perfect chance to teach them that Christmas isn’t just about Santa Claus and the presents.
2. Watercolor Christmas Drawing Ideas – Brush Tip Tree
Since we already presented ways to draw a Christmas tree using one continuous line or just pencil dots, it’s time we showcase some watercolor Christmas drawing ideas, and what you can do with a blank sheet of white paper, some watercolors, and a brush.
As you can see, all you really need to do to make a great-looking tree is dip your brush into the watercolor, and then just press it gently on your paper until you leave behind a large color blot.
While the example above showcases what a Christmas tree made in this technique would look like if made in blue, it would be ideal if you stick to a shade of green, otherwise, other people may not realize that they’re supposed to be seeing a Christmas tree.
More so, we recommend that you mix up different shades and hues of green to make the tree look a bit more natural, and try using a brush that has hairs that are very spread out so that your tree will look a bit “fuzzier”, and therefore fuller.
3. Christmas Drawing with Starlights
While it’s obviously impossible for someone with amateur drawing skills to recreate this drawing to perfection, you can take the basic idea and make your own easily.
For starters, we recommend that you take a glass of ink (dark blue) and a paintbrush, and paint the whole thing dark blue, and then take an ink-removal pen to start making dots until you can make out the shape of a Christmas tree.
This idea is pretty original, and while the end result looks amazing, keep in mind that you’ll most likely have to throw away the ink removal pen once you are done since they are not designed to handle an entire sheet of paper coated with ink.
On the other hand, you could simply buy some blue-colored paper, and simply use a white pencil or a pen with white ink to make the dots, especially if you don’t want to spend too much money on a Christmas drawing.
4. Simple Tree Drawing – Watercolor Brush Strokes with Lights
If you loved the watercolor Christmas tree and the dotted Christmas tree, why not go ahead and try mixing the two ideas together to make something new?
As you can see above, the artist used blue brushstrokes of watercolor of various shades of blue, then applied white dots over the tree, resulting in something that looks like a lit-up Christmas tree, as well as a starry night, and fans of Vincent van Gogh will appreciate the throwback.
Like with the first watercolor Christmas tree, you can make it using either blue paint for the tree and white paint or a white pencil for the stars, or you can use ink together with an ink removal pen, it’s all up to you.
For those of you that really want to make something special, we recommend that you paint the background and the small starry dots using white glow-in-the-dark paint since it will look amazing, especially if you place it near your real Christmas tree.
5. Christmas Tree Cartoon – Wacky Tree
When it comes to kid’s drawings, it’s best not to overcomplicate things, and this next Christmas tree cartoon design is precisely what you were looking for. since all that is needed is enough skill to make a swivel, some filled-in circles, and a filled-in star.
Basically, you’ll use a zig-zagged line to make an abstract outline of the Christmas tree, and then add globes and a star topper to turn your regular pine into a full-blown Christmas tree.
You can go ahead and use whatever colors you want for this Christmas tree drawing, although we do recommend you stick to using green for the swiveled line, otherwise people might not be able to tell that it’s a Christmas tree drawing.
If you’re good enough with your hands and the pen, and if you want to add some authenticity to this design, we suggest that you try drawing some other decorations on, like making a thinner overlapping silver line that goes along the green line o that it looks like a Christmas garland.
6. Easy Christmas Drawings – Color-in Shapes
The next entry on our list is yet another one of those easy Christmas drawings that you can mimic and get inspired from, and all you really need to know how to do is draw basic geometric shapes, like squares, circles, trapezoids, and so on, so you can use this particular drawing idea as a form of drawing exercise.
Once you are down with the outlines, you can either leave the drawing as it is or fill out the shapes with whatever colors you or your child wants, yet again serving as a great drawing exercise for drawing within the lines.
More so, if you want to make the Christmas tree even better, but lack the drawing skills to make prettier decorations, you can apply small stickers to it.
7. Cute Christmas Drawings
One way to make almost any drawing cutesy is by using the right colors, and it’s the warm pastel colors that always do the trick, just like in the picture above, and if you manage to make the whole drawing with almost cartoonish proportions, then you’ll surely make a very child-friendly drawing.
As you can see, the original artist made great use of colors like pink, peach, red, purple, and greyish blue, and the entire drawing looks like something inspired by a child’s Christmas-themed good night storybook.
As far as the decorative elements are concerned, you can go wild with what else you want to add, like the topper, garlands, lights, or surrounding elements like the presents, since nothing names cute Christmas drawings like adding the things you love most.
8. Cool Drawings for Kids
If you’re no longer interested in mundane drawing ideas and like to delve into something more artsy and complex, then we recommend you try out the Christmas tree drawing showcased above, where the entire tree is made with swirl shapes.
In theory, this drawing is easy to pull off because all you and your kid need to do is stick to drawing swirled shapes almost randomly, all while keeping the swirls that are at the edge within certain invisible boundaries, which will act as the tree’s outline.
More so, it would also help with the swirls we’re aimed a certain way, such as how the ones in the image above are oriented from the center to the exterior, almost like an explosion of shapes.
However, if you’re looking for cool drawings for kids to enjoy, this may not exactly be it, unless your child has a natural affinity towards art and the abstract, so unless that’s the case, you’re better off with some of our other entries.
9. Christmas Pictures to Draw – Watercolor Tree (Advanced)
If you’re looking for more Christmas pictures to draw and managed to pull off the simple watercolor tree, then an upgrade to it would be to make a watercolor tree with added decorations, although this may seem a bit tricky at first, especially given how well-defined the globes seem in the image above.
Well, the secret to making the globes look the way they are is using stickers:
- First, make a rough sketch of the free with a pencil, but make sure you can erase it without a trace afterward.
- Then place round stickers made of waterproof materials over your tree.
- Use a brush dipped in watercolor to make the Christmas tree as you did in the previous entry.
- Let the painting dry, then, remove the stickers from the drawing, revealing several perfectly-defined white circles.
- Color the inside of the circles with markers or crayons (using watercolors might make them drip, and it’s also much harder)
Once you’re done, you’ll end up with a drawing that will make everyone scratch their head wondering how you managed to pull off such perfect Christmas globes.
10. Cute Christmas Tree – Anime Tree
If you loved the pastel-colored tree mentioned earlier, you’ll love this one as well, since it uses the same principle, with a little something extra.
You see, another neat way to make a drawing look more natural, and this is something used in many cartoons and anime TV shows is to not draw the sceneries and objects using well-defined outlines, or not using outlines at all.
As you can see from the cute Christmas tree drawing above, the lack of any visible outlines makes the whole drawing look more childish and innocent, and would make for an ideal greeting card illustration.
For some added effect, try using rounded shapes as much as possible, since pointed objects and jagged shapes tend to break the effect that the lack of an outline has.
All in all, it’s a great style to follow, just s long as you know how to draw within the (imaginary) lines so that the shapes look good and well-proportioned.
11. Simple Christmas Drawings – Chalk Wall Art
Normally we wouldn’t advise drawing on your walls unless you’re an expert, let alone let your child do it, especially if the walls aren’t covered in paint that is easy to clean.
However, if your wall is covered in paint that is easy to clean, and it’s also of a very dark color, we suggest that you go ahead and try out something similar to the design showcased above.
It’s one of those simple Christmas drawings that you literally cannot get wrong, since you’ll be basically overlapping straight lines over each other in order to form a very fuzzy Christmas tree.
Anyone can draw lines that are somewhat straight, but the secret to getting a very furry-looking tree is to make the lines as close to each other, otherwise, it will look less like a tree and more like a bad game of tic-tac-toe.
What’s great about this design is that if you’re a teacher, you can draw it on the blackboard of your classroom so that the kids will feel the holiday spirit even while they’re at school.
12. Realistic Christmas Tree Drawing – Watercolor and Pencil Tree
If you’ve mastered the art of drawing a basic Christmas tree, but you also like the full coverage offered by drawing things with watercolor, then you should definitely try combining the two, because if you do it right, you’ll get a very realistic Christmas tree drawing.
In order to make something similar to what we’ve showcased above, you’ll first need to make a sketch of your Christmas tree that you will then enrich using finer details, such as making each individual branch, and the more branches you make, the more realistic it will look.
Once you’re done with the rough outline, it’s time to fill everything up with colors via watercolor brushstrokes, and we recommend mixing in several shades of green, preferably an emerald hue.
Once you’ve filled in the tree (you can even color a bit over the lines), just add dots of white paint (a glow-in-the-dark kind would be ideal), and you’re done.
The best thing about this design is that despite looking complicated, it’s more about the time you spend drawing the tree leaves, and not about any actual skills.
13. Simple Chrismas Tree – Watercolored Lines
If you’re dealing with a toddler or a very your child, then there’s no need to overcomplicate things, because if it can manage to make something that even remotely looks like a tree, then that should be more than enough for you.
For example, the design above requires only 3 colors, and a basic idea of what a Christmas tree looks like, and everything else is up to your imagination.
As you can see, the tree in the example above is made using white and green strokes that alternate in a V-shape, which makes it look like the upper part of the tree’s branches are covered in snow.
The background is completely optional, although it would help to color it in some way so that it will contrast with the white paint used on the tree itself.
This is probably the most simple Christmas tree design in our article, but there’s nothing to be ashamed of it, since we all have to start off somewhere, especially when your child is very young, and the purpose is to have fun and learn together.
14.Christmas Sketches – Christmas Tree 2021
Simplicity is at its finest with these here design, and this is definitely something your kid will like drawing, especially if they’re very imaginative.
Basically, you use a single continuous line to create the tree, while also writing down the current year (in our case 2021), thus creating a drawing that embodies both minimalist elements, as well as the heart of the winter holidays.
Unfortunately, the only real drawback with this particular design is that you need to have a very steady hand so that the lines look continuous and smooth, as if it was all done with just one stroke of the pen or pencil.
Fortunately enough, this design isn’t too time-consuming, and you can go ahead and exercise making trees until you finally get it right.
One great thing about this idea is that you can hang it around the house until well after New Year’s Eve, so you’ll have plenty of time to brag about your kid’s artistic skills.
15. Kid Christmas Drawing – Blush of Colors
Sometimes if you want to have fun during an activity, whichever it may be, the best thing you could do is forgo whatever rules you used to follow, and simply draw whatever and in however manner you like.
For example, your child may not like having to follow so many rules about coloring within the lines, or respecting certain proportions.
If that’s the case, simply let them draw the tree exactly the way they want it, and let them go over the lines with the colors, because maybe that’s how they like to show that the globes are “glowing”.
All in all, just give them a tip or two, let them draw without any kind of intervention, hang the drawing on the fridge, and tell your kids that they did an amazing job.
More Ideas to Make Christmas Tree Drawing Easy
The previous 25 ideas were the most popular ones that we managed to find during our research over several social media and art platforms, but that doesn’t mean that anything else won’t be good.
That being said, if you’re looking for more inspiration, here’s an extra 15 Christmas tree drawing ideas that you could try out that were very popular in the past years.
16. Christmas Tree Drawing – Markers on Paper
Check out thisYouTubevideo to learn how to whip up a super easy Christmas tree. Have the kids grab some paper and markers – then just hit play after you watch their creativity unfold.
17. Christmas Drawings – Snow Globe
Here’s a tree that you can learn how to draw – but it’s inside of a snowglobe. Drawing Tutorials 101 give us lots of great drawing projects, but this one is really great for the kiddos this time of the year.
18. How to Draw a Christmas Tree – Easy Art
Sweet and with step-by-step instructions, this tutorial can be found atCraftsy. It’s a bit of an accent piece instead of an entire tree but the kiddos will have fun with this one as well. They’re potted trees, so they can be included in a larger holiday scene!
19. Christmas Tree Drawing Easy
Check out YouTube again for another version of the step-by-step process. Trees are very easy to draw and the tutorials you find online can be quite similar – so you just need to find a finished product that fits your fancy the best.
20. Christmas Tree Drawing – Easy to Make Trees
If you visit Craftsy again, you’ll learn how to draw a Christmas tree in four different ways. This is a good tutorial to have in your pocket, especially if you’re trying something new.
21. Cute Christmas Drawing
At Drawing How To you can learn how to easily draw a cartoon style Christmas tree. Grab all of the markers and crayons and let your kiddos get to work creating something extra special to leave for Santa Claus this yaer.
22. Kid Christmas Drawing – Spongebob Christmas Tree
Yes, you can even have the kiddos learn how to draw a Spongebob Squarepants Christmas tree! How cool is that?! Hop on over to this YouTube video and follow along.
23. Simple Christmas Tree Drawing
Christmas trees can be rather simple to draw, and this YouTube video represents that well. Maybe your little ones will want to learn from this tutorial. The finished product looks like a fun coloring book page!
24. Easy Christmas Drawing – Beautiful Tree
Here’s a Christmas tree tutorial we found at Drawing How To but this one includes some packages at the foot of it all. The kiddos will have a blast drawing it but even more fun adding colors and personalization to it afterwards.
25. Simple Tree Drawing – Christmas Tree
We Draw Animals will let you in on the secret to drawing a fir tree. This one looks a bit more realistic and nature-inspired. And then you can add your own ornaments!
26. Christmas Tree Drawing – Paint It Over
Over at My Crafts, you’ll find this tutorial which, again, teaches you how to draw a pretty Christmas tree. The difference with this one though is the addition of both ink and paint as the finishing touches.
27. Christmas Sketches – Christmas Tree Drawing
You can learn how to draw a nature-inspired pine tree at Happy Family Art. This one is a more “grown up” version of the rest of these. Just don’t forget to add ornaments and presents at the end!
28. Christmas Tree Cupcake Drawing
Then there’s a way to draw a cupcake Christmas tree. We’re thinking there will be some little ones out there that will gravitate to this idea. Details can be found atDragoart.
29. How to Draw A Tree Easy – Christmas Tree Drawing
Check out Easy Peasy and Fun for another charming Christmas tree drawing tutorials. All of these are such good finds for kiddos wanting to truly learn how to draw something new.
30. Christmas Tree Sketches
We started with a super simple tree and now we have a realistic one to play with. For your older kids or ones that want a challenge, try handing them this tutorial! Check it out at YouTube.
How To Draw A Christmas Tree – Advanced Techniques
Unless you are working on big pieces of paper, it might be hard to fit in the whole image of the tree inside one drawing without something getting cut off, so here are some ideas on how you can improve your child’s work:
1. Expand The Drawing Of Your Christmas Tree
Probably the easiest way to do this is by adding some other objects around your tree (like maybe presents under it). If you feel like changing things up even more then draw different shapes surrounding your Christmas tree, like snowfall for example.
2. Add More Branches
If you want to make your drawing look less like a single branch, and emphasize the actual branches of the tree (without having it take up too much space), then this is definitely the way to go.
Just draw thin lines coming downwards from each section, and they should give the illusion that your Christmas tree has more than one branch.
3. Draw A Wreath Around The Tree
Adding wreaths around your Christmas tree can look pretty cool, and you can start by drawing a big circle in the middle of the trunk, and a smaller one within it, so as to form an outline for a wreath.
4. Add A String Of Lights On Top Of The Tree
If you want to add something that looks like lights on top of your tree, then all you really need to do is draw a bunch of lines in the shape of circles (or go for triangles if you prefer), and make sure that they are very close together, like so:
Things to Do to Make Tree Drawing Easy
1. Get Inspired by Books, Leaflets, and Internet Images of Christmas Trees
It is always a good idea to let your child’s imagination go wild when they are working on their project, so if they see an image of a particular thing somewhere in real life or in any other form (like in a book, for example), it might be easier for them to come up with something similar.
So do whatever it takes to find the best source of inspiration!
2. Make Sure That There Is Enough Room for Creativity
Since this is just about designing your own version of what you think would look like the most traditional Christmas tree out there, there should be a lot of freedom for your child to express all their ideas on paper.
There is no need for them to draw a Christmas tree that everyone else drew a hundred times over, but it would be a good idea if they come up with something that reflects their own personality and tastes as well!
3. Try Not to Make the Task Too Difficult
Unless you really want them to learn some new skills from this project, it might be better if you make sure your child understands what is required from their drawing before they begin working on it.
If they are afraid of not completing the assignment because there’s just too much going on, then give them some more time – remember that you will have more than enough opportunities in the future where you can teach him or her how to create something like this!
4. Take a Look at Some Examples of Christmas Tree Drawings
The final tip is basically what lead you to our article in the first place, so in case you need more inspiration, take a look at these creative Christmas tree drawing ideas – they might spark an idea for your child as well!
Bonus: How to Draw Christmas Stuff
We talked earlier about how you can enrich your Christmas tree with additional decorative elements, but if you’re having trouble drawing those, then here are 2 tips for drawing Christmas ornaments, and drawing Santa Claus.
Christmas Ornament Drawing
The most basic Christmas ornament that you and your child can draw is the all-time favorite Christmas globe, and here’s how you can make one in just a few easy steps:
- Draw a circle, and then draw another one within it to create an outline for the ornament.
- Next, add some details inside the ornament by drawing small circles all over the surface.
- Draw a line from each section of the ornament to connect them together at their ‘corners’.
- Finally, add shading to give your Christmas tree ornament a 3D look
A Christmas ornament drawn this way looks amazing, and will definitely enrich the look of any Christmas tree you decide to add it to.
Here’s How to Make Santa Claus Drawing Easy
If you want to make a simple Santa Claus drawing, then you should already be familiar with drawing basic things like people and trees, since they’re pretty much the same when it comes to these.
And if you want to add some more details that make your drawing look more professional, here are some tips for you!
- First of all, draw an oval shape near the top of your page.
- Then divide this shape into smaller ones by adding a line in each section of the oval that separates one shape from another.
- Next, draw his beard using two semi-circles located below his eyes.
- Add three equally-spaced lines underneath both sides of his chin to represent his neckline
- Finish up by drawing Santa Claus’s hat on top of the remaining part of his head.
Best Christmas Tree Drawing Ideas: Closing Thoughts
Our extensive list has come to an end, and we hope that the 40 entries have managed to spark your imagination and inspire you in some way to come up with your own drawings! Whether it’s for Christmas or not, the process of coming up with creative ideas is always fun! Happy holidays everyone.
Do you have different or better Christmas tree drawing ideas that could be shared with us?
If you do, please let us know in the comments section below, and check out the other drawing tutorials that may interest you!
its very nice i used the ideas tthanks byeee!
I like the ideas