How to Draw a Maine Coon Cat
Please PAUSE the "How to Draw a Maine Coon Cat" video after each step to draw at your own pace.
For the first few steps, don't press down too hard with your pencil. Use light, smooth strokes to begin.
Step 1: Draw a circle as a guide for the top part of the Maine coon cat's body. The circle doesn't have to be perfect. It's just a guide. Leave enough room on the top and bottom for the rest of the body.
Step 2: Draw another circle on the top right side of the Maine coon cat's body as a guide for the head. This circle should be about one-fourth the size of the first one. The edges of the two circles should barely touch.
Step 3: Draw two intersecting lines inside the head to help you place the Maine coon cat's facial features later on. Curve the lines so that they contour to the shape of the circle.
Step 4: Draw a small circle on the lower half of the head as a guide for the Maine coon cat's muzzle. Make this shape thinner for a Norwegian forest cat.
Step 5: Draw two small triangle-shaped arcs on top of the head as guides for the Maine coon cat's ears.
Step 6: Add a few more lines to complete the guide for the Maine coon cat's body. A couple of curved lines at the top form the neck, and a small arc on the bottom, right side forms the lower part of the body.
Step 7: Draw three short, angled lines under the Maine Coon cat's body as guides for the legs.
Step 8: Add a long, curved line on the bottom left side as a guide for the Maine coon cat's tail.
That's it for the initial sketch! From this point on, press harder with your pencil to get a more defined sketch.
Step 9: Lightly sketch the shape of the eyes inside the Maine coon cat's head using the initial lines as guides for placement. Darken the eyes when you get the shape and placement right. For a Norwegian forest cat, make the eyes come a bit closer together, and the shape should be more almond-like. Darken the sides of the eye shapes on the inside to create the actual eyeballs. Draw a tiny circle on the side of each pupil to represent glare. Shade the inside of the eyes except for the tiny circle. Use a value that's lighter than the pupils. You can also use an even lighter value near the bottom of the eyeball for a rounder look.
Step 10: Draw the nose near the top of the muzzle by first lightly sketching a triangle. Make the top of the Maine coon cat's nose wavier as you darken the lines. Add the nostrils on the sides too. For a Norwegian forest cat, move the shape of the nose a bit more to the right since they have pointier muzzles. Add a line under the nose and another line that connects the nose to the eye on the right.
Step 11: Use the circle at the bottom as a guide to draw the Maine coon cat's muzzle. Draw the mouth under the nose and use the circle as a guide to draw the chin under the mouth. Use quick, short strokes to represent fur. Use the circle as a guide to draw the sides of the muzzle curving up. Use quick, short strokes for a furry texture. For a Norwegian forest cat, don't make the muzzle so wide. Draw the sides thinner.
Step 12: Use the arc on top of the head as guides to draw the Maine coon cat's ears. Follow the path of the guides as you darken the lines and create the structure of the ears. Add the tufts of hair on the tip of the ear using quick, short strokes and add some fur inside the ear the same way. A Norwegian forest cat's ears should be closer together at the top, and the tufts at the tip should be smaller.
Step 13: Use the initial shapes and lines as guides to draw the rest of the Maine coon cat's head. Use quick, short strokes as you follow the basic path of the guides to create the furry texture. The bottom part should dip down below the initial circle to create the fluffy fur around the neck.
Step 14: Draw a series of lines inside the head for extra detail. These lines will help emphasize the shape of the head and face under all that fur. For a Norwegian forest cat, the lines on the sides should come in closer to the center because they have thinner heads. Add the whiskers inside the Maine coon cat's muzzle using longer strokes.
Step 15: Use the line under the body as a guide to draw the front leg on this side. Sketch the leg lightly as you follow the basic path of the guide. Darken the lines when you get the structure right. Use a couple of small curved lines at the bottom for the Maine coon cat's toes and quick, short strokes at the top for the fur.
Step 16: Use the other angled lines as guides to draw the Maine Coon cat's remaining legs. Use the line on the right as a guide to draw the front leg on the other side the same way as the first leg. The hind leg should be flat. Use quick, short strokes that go all the way up to the top of the front leg for the base.
Step 17: Use the initial lines and shapes as guides to draw the rest of the Maine coon cat's body. Use quick, short strokes as you follow the basic path of the guides to represent the long fur. Add a few extra strokes under the neck for the fluffy fur found on the chest.
Step 18: Use the curved line at the bottom as a guide to draw the Maine Coon's tail. Follow the basic path of the guide but make the shape thicker as you darken the lines.
Step 19 (optional): For a cleaner look, erase as much as you can of the initial guide lines. Don't worry about erasing all of the guides. It's okay to leave some behind. Re-draw any final sketch lines you may have accidentally erased.
Final Step: Add some shading to your drawing to give it more dimension and volume. Pick the direction of the light source when shading so that the shadows are consistent with it. Don't worry too much about the shading if you're going to add more value to your drawing in the next couple of steps.
Add a cast shadow underneath. This helps ground the cat so it doesn't appear to be floating.
You can add even more value throughout your drawing for extra detail. You can also skip this step entirely for an all-white cat. Cats' coats can be a single solid color, they can have patches or even stripes, so you can shade yours however you'd like. For a tabby pattern like this one, add a few stripes above the eyes and a darker value on the Maine coon cat's head. Vary the pressure on your pencil to get different degrees of tonal value throughout the face. Add the value lightly at first, then gradually build up to the level of darkness that you want.
The stripes should be dark, the rest of the face should be a medium value, and some sections, like directly under the eyes, should be almost white. Shading can be very time-consuming, so be patient and take breaks. You can add the value to different sections of the body at a time to break up the shading process. Use longer strokes as you shade the body to emphasize the long hair of the coat. Try to add the value by using strokes that go in the general direction of the fur until the entire body is covered.
Continue shading the body but use a lighter value on the chest to emphasize it. Alternate between a dark and light value to give the legs and body a striped pattern. Continue adding the striped pattern to the Maine coon cat's tail as well. If you have a Maine coon, a Norwegian forest cat or another similar breed, try to duplicate its pattern on your drawing. Remember to pause the "How to Draw a Maine Coon Cat" video after each step to draw at your own pace.
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