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How to Draw a Caravel

13 steps · Medium · about 10 min

Draw a caravel in 13 easy steps, about 10 minutes. Free, with a printable worksheet.

Each picture adds one red line. Draw that line, then scroll to the next picture. Rub out any dashed helper lines at the end. First up: the hull.

Step 1: The hull
Start at the front tip. Draw a sagging deck, a step up, a high back deck, then a round belly.
Tip Caravels were small, fast ships that explorers sailed 500 years ago.
Step 2: 2 masts
Draw 2 thin poles standing up: a tall one from the low deck, a shorter one from the high deck.
Step 3: Slanted poles
Across the top of each mast draw a long slanted pole, low at the front and high at the back.
Tip Keep the 2 poles leaning the same way, like train tracks.
Step 4: Big sail
Under the big pole draw a triangle sail: down from its top end, then curve back to its low end.
Tip Rub out the mast where the sail hides it.
Step 5: Small sail
Under the back pole draw a smaller triangle sail the same way.
Tip Triangle sails like these let a caravel sail into the wind.
Step 6: 2 crosses
In the middle of each sail draw a cross whose 4 arms get wider towards their ends.
Tip Make all 4 arms the same length.
Step 7: The pennant
From the top of the tall mast draw a pointed flag streaming forwards, with a V notch in its end.
Step 8: Hull stripe
Start on the front, under the deck. Draw a curved stripe along the ship and stop at the back.
Step 9: The sea
Start at the left edge, low on the hull. Draw wave bumps across to the right edge.
Tip The ship sits down in the water, so the sea covers its bottom.
Step 10: Cream sails
Colour both sails cream, around the crosses.
Step 11: Blue sea, wooden hull
Colour the sea blue, right to the bottom. Colour the hull under the stripe light brown.
Step 12: Dark brown wood
Colour the band above the stripe, the masts and the slanted poles dark brown.
Step 13: Red crosses
Colour the 2 crosses and the pennant red. Go over your lines.