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Learn to draw hair strands that follow head-angle perspective. Trace strand flow on front, tilted, and turned head frames, then draw your own.
Hair does not fall in straight lines from a flat skull. It wraps a curved head, so when the head tilts or turns, the visible strand direction changes. This lesson teaches a simple convention: treat each strand as a line that starts at the crown, follows the head curve, and ends where gravity and the head surface meet. You will trace strand-flow arrows on three head-angle frames, then draw your own flow on blank frames. The goal is believable direction and overlap, not a single correct hairstyle.
Practice materials: Printable downloads are not available for this lesson yet. Use the instructions and four exercises below.
Define the crown as the highest point on the skull in the drawing. Every strand begins near the crown and travels outward along the head surface. Draw a light arrow from crown to strand end. The arrow shows direction, not thickness.
Use a simple rule: strands bunch at the crown, spread over the skull curve, and overlap where the head surface turns away from you. On a front view, strands fall mostly downward and slightly outward. On a tilted head, the low side shows more strand length and the high side shows compressed strands. On a turned head, strands on the far side disappear behind the head curve sooner.
X-height is baseline to midline for lettering on labels; letter styles vary, so accept any legible style. For strand drawing, accept any flow that starts at the crown, follows the visible head curve, and respects overlap.
The plate has three frames. Frame A is a front view: the head is upright and symmetrical. Frame B is tilted: the head leans to one side, so the low side shows longer visible strands. Frame C is turned: the head rotates, so one side is nearer and the other side is partly hidden.
In each frame, a traced strand example shows one correct flow. A blank frame beside it lets you draw your own flow. Shade lightly where strands bunch at the crown; keep the shading simple and checkable.
Overlap makes hair read as layered. Draw a near strand fully, then let a far strand stop where the near strand crosses it. At the crown, several strands meet; show this as a small cluster of short lines, not a single dot.
Keep the drawing checkable: every strand should have a start near the crown, a curved path, and an end at the hair edge or behind the head curve.
A head frame is tilted 20 degrees to the left. The crown is marked at the top. Draw three strand arrows: one on the high side, one in the middle, one on the low side. State where each arrow ends.
High-side arrow: starts at crown, curves slightly outward, ends near the ear line; visible length is short. Middle arrow: starts at crown, curves down, ends at the jaw line. Low-side arrow: starts at crown, curves outward and down, ends below the jaw line; visible length is longest. All arrows follow the head curve and none cross the outline.
Front-view frame: draw four strand arrows from the crown. Two fall slightly left, two slightly right. Mark one overlap.
Four arrows start at the crown and curve outward and down. One near arrow crosses a far arrow, and the far arrow stops at the crossing.
Why: A front view is symmetrical, so strands spread evenly. Overlap shows layering.
Check: Check that every arrow starts near the crown, curves with the outline, and one far arrow stops at a crossing.
Tilted frame: the head leans right. Draw three arrows. The left side is low. State which arrow is longest.
The left-side arrow is longest because the low side shows more strand length. The right-side arrow is shortest.
Why: Tilting changes visible strand length: the low side exposes more of the head surface.
Check: Check that the longest arrow is on the low side and all arrows follow the outline.
Turned frame: the head turns left. Draw two near-side arrows and one far-side arrow. The far-side arrow must stop at the head curve.
Two near-side arrows cross the visible face area and end at the hair edge. The far-side arrow starts at the crown and stops where the head outline turns away.
Why: Turning hides the far side, so far strands disappear behind the head curve.
Check: Check that the far-side arrow does not pass the outline and near arrows are fully drawn.
Crown bunching: draw five short lines meeting near the crown on any frame. Then draw one strand leaving the cluster. Label the cluster and the strand end.
Five short lines meet at the crown cluster. One strand leaves the cluster, curves with the head, and ends at the hair edge. Labels are legible.
Why: Bunching shows where strands originate; a single leaving strand shows direction.
Check: Check that the cluster is near the crown, the strand follows the outline, and labels are readable.
No. The lesson checks strand direction and overlap, not a single hairstyle. Any flow that follows the head curve is valid.
Three to five arrows per frame are enough to show direction. More strands can be added later.
Use the drawn outline as your reference. Mark the crown on that outline and follow its curve.
Yes. X-height is baseline to midline, and letter styles vary. Any legible style is acceptable.