How to draw front view shoes

[Accessories and especially shoes are very important for a successful fashion sketch. In this step by step tutorial, you will learn how to draw high heels and other types of shoes from the front view- which happens to be the most preferred pose in fashion illustrations. Follow the tutorial and enjoy creating beautiful footwear for your models!

Time, Tools and Difficulty:

Time to complete the tutorial: 7 min
Tools you’ll need: drawing paper, a pencil, an eraser, markers or color pens, a white gel pen,
Difficulty level: 6.5/10

How to draw shoes from the front in 8 steps:

Step 1: The right measurements

Before starting to draw the shoes you need to make sure they are the correct size for your fashion figure. As seen in the “Drawing front view pose” tutorial the feet of the model match the size of the head. Measure the head of your model and leave the same space from the ankles to the ground. Start the line right in the middle of the leg and pull it down.

How to draw feet and front view shoes in fashion design sketches

Step 2: Base shapes

Divide the Centerline into 3 even parts. Starting from the ankles draw two slanted lines in the first two sections. Add a slightly wider horizontal ellipse in the lowest section. Be careful with the proportions of these base shapes – the feet need to be only slightly wider compared to the ankles.

How to draw front view shoes step 2 . Fashion design tutoral

Step 3: Draw some toes

Now it’s time to refine the toes line. Draw a curved line that is pointer than the ellipse but fits into it. It helps if you stop at the Centerline. Make sure that this pointed arch is also slightly wider than the rest of the foot as was the ellipse.

If you are drawing an open toe shoes the thumb will occupy almost the whole inner half of the toes arch. This is why you want to make the inner half of the arch more oval, less pointy

How to draw front view shoes for fashion design sketches

Step 4: Drawing the front view shoe

It is important not to draw the front view shoe curve too deep to the toes nor too flat and straight. Use the lower dividing line from Step 2 to help you find the accurate place for the shoe curve. It should be slightly higher than the dividing line in the ends and dipping in at the Centerline. You know from the “how to draw clothes” tutorials that everything wrapped around the body has its own volume and thickness. Draw a thin curving around the foot as shown below. Draw a flipped smaller curve right under the big one. This one indicates the delicate bump of the toes and will add a touch of realism to the sketch.

how to draw front view shoes step by step

Step 5: Draw the soles

Not only the side view shoes need beautiful heels and soles. The different designs will have soles of different styles, but all of them follow the same rule. The sole looks longer in the center and shorter in the ends. There is also has a small parallel to the ground part right in the middle.

drawing front view shoes step by step tutorial for fashion design sketches

Step 6: Drawing shoe straps

Some designs like roman sandals or ballerina shoes will have straps wrapped around the foot and the leg. Always remember to draw them slightly curved since the body underneath has some volume and this needs to be shown in your fashion illustration.

Front view high heels and shoes drawing tutorial for fashion design sketches

Step 7: Coloring

Color the shoes and leave a highlight on the toes bump. The highlight is a few shades lighter than the base color. The sole will look nice and shiny if you leave a few white lines here and there on the sole.

Front view shoes step by step drawing tutorial

Step 8: Coloring shadows

Drawing shadows adds a lot to the footwear designs. Use a darker shade of your base color and blend form the outside parts in. Don’t miss the straps.

How to draw front view shoes ste by step tutorial

I hope that this step by step tutorial has helped you to gain more understanding of how to draw front view shoes easily. So what are you going to sketch next with these new skills?

How to draw front view shoes in fashion design sketches

Here are some variations of the front view shoes

How todraw front view shoes tutorial
  • 1. Pointed shoes:

Instead of fitting the pointed curve into the toes ellipse, try to extend it down a bit. The tip of the shoe is in the center and slightly towards the thumb. This model has very delicate soles.

  • 2.Sandals:

Draw the thumb and the rest of the toes. Remember that the thumb is placed in the inner part of the foot and it occupies almost the whole space to the Centerline.

  • 3.Open toe shoes:

To draw open toe shoes just add a curve to the bottom. It should reveal the whole thumb and a small part of the second toe.

  • 4. Boots:

Leave some space between the leg and the boot to show that it is thick and not sticking to the body. You can exaggerate the toes bump in boots and sneakers.

Common errors: It doesn’t look right! Common mistakes:

how to draw shoes and high heels for fashion desgn sketches from the front view
how to draw shoes and high heels for fashion desgn sketches from the front view

Mistake 1: The toes bump is placed too low. Draw the slightly lower than the shoe curve.

how to draw shoes and high heels for fashion desgn sketches from the front view
how to draw shoes and high heels for fashion desgn sketches from the front view

Mistake 2: The shoe curve is either too deep or too high. Use the guidelines from Step 2 to help you find the right place for it.

how to draw shoes and high heels for fashion desgn sketches from the front view
how to draw shoes and high heels for fashion desgn sketches from the front view

Mistake 3: The sole of the shoe is no longer at the center, shorter at the ends as it should be. It also helps if you make the outer lines slightly slanted towards the center.

Mistake 3: The sole of the shoe is no longer at the center, shorter at the ends as it should be. It also helps if you make the outer lines slightly slanted towards the center.

How to draw front view shoes 1 Fashion Croquis and Drawing Tutorials

CC-BY-NC 4.0. Share and re-use for non-commercial purposes only.
Always give attribution and a link to I Draw Fashion.


22 Comments

  1. Pingback: My Site
  2. This helped me so much on drawing humans and skeletons. a-skele-ton im still bad at drawing feet but this helped

  3. I enjoyed the tutorial! this will be my inspiration and a reference too! thanks I draw Fashion! ♥♥♥

  4. Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you writing
    this write-up and the rest of the site is vedy good.

  5. Whats up very cool site!! Guy .. Beautiful .. Wonderful ..
    I will bookmark your site and take the feeds additionally?
    I’m satisfied to search out a lot of helpful information here within the put up,
    we’d like develop more strategies on tis regard, thanks for sharing.
    . . . . .

  6. [quote name=”Iris”]Thank you so much! Before seeing this I was horrible at drawing front-faced feet.[/quote]
    good 4 u :-| :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz :zzz

  7. :cry: hey I REALLY need to learn how to draw leather boots from eye level!!
    But, this was a great tutorial!!! ;-)

  8. :-x :-x :-x :-x :-x :-x :-x :-x :-x :zzz :zzz :zzz :P :roll: :sigh: :-* 8) :D 8) :-| :-* :oops: :cry: :oops: :o :eek: :cry: :oops: :-* :o :-x :zzz :eek: :o :cry: :sad: :-* 8) ;-) :-) :lol: :lol: :zzz :eek: :P :roll: :sigh: :-? :cry: :oops: :-| 8) ;-) 8) :-) :sad: :oops:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Fashion Designing Courses
Back to top button