37 Simple Christmas Doodles for Planners, Bullet Journals and December Lists

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Simple christmas doodles are the fastest way to make a plain planner page feel like December, and you only need a black pen and one red gel pen to pull it off. Each one below sits small enough for a margin or a sticky note, so you can draw a few between tasks and still finish the page tonight.

Scroll through and pick whatever matches your mood: a sleepy cat, a mug of cocoa, a nutcracker standing guard over your to-do list. They go from the easiest shapes up to a few with more line work, so there is always a next one once the first starts to feel too easy.

Start a page of simple christmas doodles with something you already draw a hundred times a year: a mug. Ink a simple trapezoid body with a rounded base and a loop handle on one side, then add a wavy line across the top for the cocoa surface sitting just below the rim.

Draw two or three soft curved lines rising from the surface for steam, keeping them loose and not touching each other. Swap your fineliner for the red gel pen to dot on a few tiny marshmallows along the top, or a candy cane hooked over the rim.

The mistake here is a handle that looks too thin or snaps off the body: make it a full loop, thick enough to read at a glance. If your fineliner skips on curves, slow down and draw the handle in two short strokes instead of one long sweep.

Finish by adding one small heart or star in red gel pen on the mug’s belly for a bit of charm.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• dot grid paper
• pencil for the sketch

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Cream White

Try drawing the mug at a slight angle with the handle facing you instead of to the side; it instantly looks less flat and more like a real cup.

Move from a mug to a character: the gingerbread man is just rounded shapes stacked together. Draw an oval head, a wider oval body, then short chunky limbs with rounded ends for hands and feet, no joints or elbows needed.

Give him a simple dot smile and two dot eyes in black, then lift the pen and bring one arm up high with the hand open, fingers suggested by just three short lines. That raised arm is what makes him wave rather than just stand there.

Where this goes wrong is proportion: a head too big makes him look like a snowman, a body too long makes him gangly. Keep the head about a third the size of the body and the limbs short and stubby, closer to a child’s drawing than a realistic figure.

Switch to red gel pen for icing: a bow at his neck, dots down his front, and a smile line if you want a bit more warmth. If you enjoy drawing little characters like this, the Christmas doodles beginner ideas page has more in the same spirit.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• eraser

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Gingerbread Brown

Give him a slightly tilted head and one eyebrow raised with a tiny curved line; small asymmetry makes a simple doodle feel alive rather than stiff.

After a character, settle into something calmer: a single mitten. Ink a rounded thumb shape jutting from one side of a wider mitten body, with a short cuff line near the opening where a wrist would sit.

Draw the candy cane next, a simple curved hook shape resting inside the mitten’s opening as if tucked in to hold. Keep the hook gentle and rounded rather than sharp, since a sharp curve reads as a cane handle rather than a hook.

The usual slip is a thumb that looks like a second mitten growing out the side: keep it shorter and narrower than the main body so the proportion stays believable. If your fineliner line wobbles on the curve, draw it in two shorter arcs instead of one.

Finish entirely in red gel pen for the candy cane stripes, drawn as diagonal short lines across the curve, and add a cuff pattern of little dashes in red along the mitten’s opening.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Soft Cream

Try drawing two mittens linked by a short cord between them for a matching pair; it fills a wider margin without adding much extra drawing time.

Bring in your first eye-level choice: draw the robin from the side, at the same height you would see a bird perched on a low branch, rather than from above or below. That side view is what lets the round belly and the small beak read clearly.

Start with a plump oval body, a smaller round head overlapping the top, and a short triangular beak. Add a simple wing shape as a curved line across the body and two thin stick legs gripping a short holly sprig below.

Where beginners lose the shape is the belly, drawn too flat so the bird looks more like an egg with legs: keep the bottom curve generous and round. Switch to red gel pen for the robin’s chest patch and for two or three holly berries along the sprig, with black for the holly leaf outlines.

If you want more birds like this one, the winter doodles beginner ideas page has a few perched the same way.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• eraser

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Holly Green

Leave a tiny white gap where the wing overlaps the body instead of a solid line; that small break reads as feather texture without any extra shading.

Settle into a steady object after the robin: a gift box with its lid tilted just slightly open. Draw a simple square or rectangle for the box, then a slightly wider lid shape resting on top but shifted up and sideways, as if about to lift off.

Add a ribbon running vertically and horizontally across the box, continuing the ribbon lines onto the lid so the two pieces still read as one gift. Peek a small triangle of tissue paper or a tiny star poking out from the gap under the lid.

The common mistake is a lid that looks detached rather than tilted: keep one edge of the lid still touching the box so the eye understands it is lifting, not floating. Use red gel pen for the ribbon and bow, keeping the box outline in black so the red pops against it.

For a quicker version, skip the peeking detail and just ink a closed box with a bow; add the open lid and tissue paper only when you have a bit more time.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• ruler (optional)

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Gold Ochre

Draw the ribbon bow as two loops and a knot rather than a flat triangle shape; it takes one extra second and makes the gift look properly tied.

Give your hand a break from boxes and ink a small potted tree instead. Draw a simple triangle body with a slightly wavy edge rather than a straight one, stacked in two or three tiers if you want more texture, then a small rectangle pot beneath it.

Keep the pot narrower at the top where the tree sits and slightly wider at the base so it looks stable rather than tipping. Add a short trunk line connecting tree to pot if the two shapes do not already meet.

Trees go wrong when the triangle is perfectly straight-edged and stiff: bump the outline in and out slightly as you draw so it reads as branches rather than a cone. Switch to red gel pen for a handful of small round dots scattered across the tree as ornaments, and one star or bow at the very top.

Swap a fineliner wobble for character: uneven branch bumps look more like a real tree than a ruler-straight triangle ever will.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Terracotta

Try a star burst instead of a dot for the top ornament, four short crossed lines radiating out; it reads as twinkling without needing any color.

After a tree, draw one of its ornaments on its own, large enough to notice. Start with a plate or a coin to trace a perfect circle in pencil, then ink over it so the bauble shape stays clean and round rather than lopsided.

Add a small cap shape at the top where the bauble would hook onto a branch, with a tiny loop of ribbon above it. Draw a horizontal line or two across the circle’s middle to suggest the bauble’s seam or a stripe pattern.

Circles drawn freehand often end up egg-shaped: tracing a round object first solves this instantly and still looks hand-drawn once you add the ink details. Use red gel pen for a bow sitting at the cap and for a swirl pattern inside the circle, leaving most of the circle’s interior white.

For a next version, try the same bauble with a striped pattern instead of a swirl, or add a tiny snowflake drawn inside the circle in black.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• small round object to trace
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Silver Grey

Leave a curved highlight unshaded near the top edge of the circle; that blank crescent is what makes a flat circle read as a shiny round ornament.

Move into animals with a cat curled into a simple comma shape, head tucked down near its tail. Ink one long curved line for the back, a rounded head with two small triangle ears, and a tail that wraps around to meet the front paws.

Keep the eyes closed as two short curved lines rather than open dots, since that single detail is what makes the cat read as sleeping rather than alert. Add a Santa hat on the head: a triangle shape with a curled tip and a small pompom at the end.

The shape tends to go wrong when the body is too straight and stiff: curl it further than feels natural, almost into a full crescent, for a convincingly relaxed sleeping cat. Use red gel pen for the hat body and keep the hat’s trim and pompom white or left unshaded against the black outline.

If cats are your favorite subject, the cute cat doodles easy ideas page has more poses to try next.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• eraser

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Warm Grey

Add three short whisker lines on one cheek only; whiskers on just one visible side read as natural and keep the face from looking too busy.

Build confidence with a classic: stack two circles, a larger one for the body and a smaller one for the head, slightly overlapping so there is no gap between them. Keep both circles traced from round objects if freehand circles still feel shaky.

Add two dot eyes, a small triangle for the carrot nose, and a row of dot buttons down the body. Draw two simple stick arms, perhaps a twig shape with a few short lines for fingers, angled out from the sides.

Snowmen tip over visually when the head circle is too large for the body: keep it noticeably smaller, no more than half the body’s width. Switch to red gel pen for a scarf wrapped around the neck with two tails hanging down, and add a few small dashes for a knit pattern along it.

A quick ten-minute version stops at the scarf; a forty-minute version adds a small top hat and a few falling snowflakes drawn loosely around him.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• round object to trace

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Carrot Orange

Try giving him a top hat tilted slightly to one side rather than sitting flat; the small tilt adds personality without any extra drawing skill.

Shift from round shapes to a long one: the stocking. Draw a simple boot-like silhouette, a long leg shape bending into a wider foot at the bottom, with a cuff band near the top where it would hang.

Add a small toy peeking out of the opening, perhaps a drum, a toy soldier’s head, or a candy cane handle, just enough to suggest it is full rather than empty. Keep the toy small so it reads as tucked inside rather than sitting on top.

The shape often collapses into a plain sock without the bend: angle the foot section clearly to one side so the stocking silhouette is unmistakable even without color. Use red gel pen for the stocking’s body and black for the cuff pattern and the toy details peeking out.

Swap the toy for a sprig of holly or a candy cane if a toy feels fiddly to draw; either fills the opening just as well.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Cream White

Draw the cuff as a slightly wavy band with small fur-like bumps along its edge instead of a straight line; it instantly looks knit rather than flat.

Keep the pace gentle with a bell, built from one rounded dome shape narrowing into a small ball at the bottom for the clapper. Draw the dome wider at the base and curving up to a small loop at the top where a ribbon would thread through.

Add two or three short curved lines near the base to suggest the bell’s rim thickness, and a tiny gap line separating the clapper ball from the dome above it so it reads as hanging freely inside.

Bells flatten out when the dome is drawn too shallow: give it real height, almost as tall as it is wide, so it keeps its bell silhouette rather than looking like a half-circle. Use red gel pen for a ribbon bow tied at the top loop, with streamers trailing down one side of the dome.

Draw a second, smaller bell overlapping the first if you want a pair chiming together, a quick addition once the single bell feels easy.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Brass Gold

Add three or four short motion lines near the clapper, as if it just rang; it is a one-second addition that gives a static doodle some energy.

Here the light source matters: draw the flame first and let it decide where any glow lines sit, since a candle only reads as lit if the warmth seems to come from one clear point. Ink a tall simple cylinder for the candle body, then a teardrop flame shape sitting just above the wick.

Add a few short wavy lines radiating out from the flame to suggest a soft glow, kept close to the flame rather than spread across the whole page. Draw a circular wreath resting around the base of the candle, made of small looping leaf shapes joined into a ring.

The glow often overwhelms the drawing when too many lines are added: three or four short wavy marks are enough, more than that reads as scribble rather than light. Use red gel pen for a few berries tucked into the wreath and for a thin ribbon bow where the wreath meets the candle base.

If wreaths and warm scenes like this appeal to you, the Christmas watercolor ideas page has a softer, painted take on the same mood.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Candle Cream

Leave the flame’s center unshaded and only outline its tip in ink; a mostly white flame shape reads as brighter than one filled in solid black.

Give your hand a rest with pure pattern: the snowflake. Draw a light pencil cross first, one vertical and one horizontal line crossing at the center, then a diagonal cross over the top so you have six evenly spaced arms radiating out.

Ink over each arm as a simple straight line, then add two or three short branch lines angled off each arm, matching the same branch pattern on all six so the snowflake stays symmetrical. Keep the branches shorter near the tips and slightly longer near the center.

Symmetry breaks down fast if you draw each arm freehand without the pencil guide: always start with the light cross lines so all six arms stay the same length. Add one small dot or diamond shape in red gel pen at the very center where all the arms meet.

Try varying the branch style next time, little triangles instead of lines, or tiny circles at each branch tip, for a different snowflake every time you draw one.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil for guide lines
• eraser

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Pale Blue

Draw a whole cluster of three snowflakes in different sizes scattered near each other instead of just one; it fills a corner of the page in seconds.

Carry the texture habit from the snowflake into something organic: the pine cone. Draw a simple oval or teardrop outline first, wider at the bottom and tapering gently toward the top.

Fill the oval with short overlapping curved lines arranged in diagonal rows, each one like a tiny scale, working from the bottom up so each new row overlaps the one below it slightly. This layered overlap is what gives a pine cone its texture rather than a flat oval.

Rows that run perfectly horizontal flatten the whole shape: angle them diagonally, alternating direction slightly row to row, for a more convincing cone surface. Use red gel pen for a small bow tied around the top where a stem would be, and leave the scale texture in black only.

A kneaded eraser lifted lightly over a few scale lines after inking softens the overlaps if the texture looks too busy at first pass.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• kneaded eraser
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Pinecone Brown

Draw two pine cones of slightly different sizes side by side with a few pine needles between them; it reads as a gathered bundle rather than one lone object.

After the pine cone’s texture, return to clean lines with a star ornament. Draw a light pencil guide of five evenly spaced points around a center dot, then connect them with straight lines, crossing over to form the classic star outline rather than a simple five-point crown shape.

Ink over the pencil guide carefully at each point, keeping the inner angles sharp rather than rounded so the star reads as crisp. Add a small loop at the top point where it would hang from a tree branch.

Stars tip over visually when the points are uneven: use the pencil guide every time rather than trying freehand, since even small point differences are obvious on a simple shape like this. Use red gel pen to fill alternating sections of the star with color, leaving the rest white, or outline just the loop and hanging thread in red.

Keep a second version in your back pocket: a plain five-point star with no crossing lines, which draws in half the time and still reads clearly as an ornament.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil for guide points

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Gold Ochre

Add a few short straight lines radiating out from each point like a sparkle; it turns a plain star shape into one that looks like it is catching light.

Move into a slightly more detailed subject now that the simpler shapes feel steady: the reindeer head, drawn face-on so both antlers spread evenly on either side. Ink a rounded diamond or oval shape for the face, narrower at the chin, then two branching antler shapes rising from the top corners.

Add two oval eyes, a round nose, and two small ears angled out just below the antlers. Keep the antler branches simple, two or three forks per side, rather than trying to copy a realistic antler’s full complexity.

Antlers often end up lopsided since one side gets drawn more carefully than the other: sketch both sides lightly in pencil at the same time, comparing length and fork count before inking either one. Use red gel pen for the nose only, a single round red nose that turns this into a very recognizable reindeer.

For more woodland faces drawn this same simple way, the dog doodles for beginners page uses a similar front-facing approach.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• eraser

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Warm Brown

Draw a small holly sprig or string of tiny lights draped across the antlers for a festive touch that takes only a few extra seconds in red gel pen.

Settle back into something quick: a simple round or gingerbread-shaped cookie. Draw the outline first, either a plain circle or a star shape, with a slightly rough, uneven edge rather than a perfectly smooth one, since real cookies are never perfectly round.

Add a few small dot marks scattered across the surface to suggest texture or sprinkles baked into the dough, kept light and in black ink only. This is where the cookie either looks like a flat circle or starts to look baked, so do not skip this step even on a quick version.

The ten-minute version stops at the outline and a simple icing swirl; the forty-minute version adds a bite taken out of one edge and a few crumbs scattered beside it. Use red gel pen for a zigzag icing pattern across the top and a few dot sprinkles mixed in with the black ones.

Close with one practical habit: keep the icing zigzag loose and slightly uneven, since a perfectly even zigzag looks printed rather than piped by hand.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Cookie Tan

Draw a bite taken out of one edge of the cookie with a few crumbs scattered beside it; it adds story to an otherwise static round shape.

Bend the classic stripes into a new shape: two candy canes curved to form a heart. Draw two matching curved hook shapes, each starting narrow at the top and widening slightly, then angle them to meet at a point at the bottom, mirroring each other into a heart silhouette.

Keep the two curves symmetrical by drawing a light pencil guide line down the center first and sketching one side, then tracing it in reverse for the other side before inking either one.

The heart tilts lopsided fast if the two canes are not matched in curve and length: always compare them side by side before committing to ink. Use red gel pen for diagonal stripes running the length of both canes, keeping the stripe spacing even on both sides to preserve the symmetry.

Add a small bow in red gel pen where the two canes meet at the top for a neat finishing touch, especially nice for a Christmas card edge.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil for symmetry guide

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Cream White

Try the same mirrored-curve trick with a wreath shape or a bell pair; once you can mirror one curve by eye, several ornament shapes open up.

Move to a larger, friendlier animal: the polar bear, drawn sitting or standing with a rounded, soft body rather than a sharp, realistic one. Ink a wide oval body, a round head overlapping it, two small round ears, and short stubby legs with simple paw shapes.

Keep the bear’s outline mostly simple curves with no sharp angles anywhere, since polar bears read as friendly when every line stays rounded. Add a small black dot nose and two dot eyes close together near the front of the face.

The shape often loses its bear-like proportion when the body ends up too narrow: keep it wide and barrel-like, almost as wide as it is tall, so it reads as a bear rather than a dog. Use red gel pen for a small scarf wrapped around the neck, the only color on an otherwise white-and-black animal.

A kneaded eraser dabbed lightly along the body’s outline after inking can soften a stiff line into something closer to soft fur texture.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• kneaded eraser
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Pale Ice Blue

Draw a small fish or a tiny snowflake near the bear’s paw for a scene feel; it only needs a few extra lines but adds a sense of place.

Keep the animal roster going with a penguin, built from one simple rounded teardrop body, wider at the bottom and narrowing at the head. Draw two small wing shapes flaring out from the sides and two flat triangle feet peeking from under the body.

Add a round white belly patch left unshaded inside the black body outline, and a small orange triangle beak, kept in black line only unless you want to switch pens briefly for it.

Penguins tip over looking like bowling pins if the belly patch is skipped: that white panel down the front is what breaks up the solid black shape and makes it read as a bird rather than a blob. Use red gel pen for a small knit hat with a pompom sitting on top of the head, tilted slightly to one side.

If you like drawing animals in small winter outfits like this, the winter doodles beginner ideas page has a few more in the same spirit.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Snow White

Angle both feet slightly outward rather than straight down; it gives the penguin a waddling stance instead of standing perfectly stiff.

Bring in a small scene inside a shape: the snow globe. Draw a circle for the glass dome, traced from a round object for a clean edge, sitting on a simple rectangular or slightly curved base beneath it.

Inside the circle, ink a tiny scene, a small tree, a tiny house, or a miniature snowman, keeping every element small and simple since detail gets lost fast in such a small space. Scatter a handful of small dots across the inside of the globe for falling snow.

The globe often looks empty or cluttered depending on how much goes inside: one small central subject plus a few snow dots is enough, more than that crowds the circle. Use red gel pen for a ribbon or bow tied around the base, or for a single red roof on the tiny house inside.

Vary it next time by swapping the inside scene for a tiny reindeer or a single star, keeping the globe and base exactly the same each time.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• round object to trace
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Ice Blue

Leave a thin curved highlight unshaded along the upper edge of the glass circle; that small white crescent sells the idea of glass instantly.

Give the page a sense of motion with a small wooden sled. Draw two curved runner shapes along the bottom, then a flat plank deck resting across them, with a simple curled front edge where the runners rise up.

Add a gift box sitting on top of the deck, tied with a ribbon, angled slightly so it looks placed rather than floating. A short rope line looped at the front of the sled suggests it is ready to be pulled.

Sleds lose their shape when the runners are drawn flat instead of curved: that upward curl at the front is the single detail that makes it read as a sled rather than a plain plank. Use red gel pen for the gift’s ribbon and,if you like, a thin red line along the runner’s edge.

Swap the gift for a small pine tree or a stack of firewood if you want a different load without redrawing the sled itself.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Wood Brown

Draw a few short motion lines trailing behind the runners, as if it just slid into place; it adds a sense of movement with almost no extra effort.

Return to the ring shape from the bauble, but built from texture this time. Draw a circle guide in pencil, then fill it with small looping leaf shapes all the way around, each leaf overlapping the next slightly as you work clockwise.

Keep the leaves roughly the same size throughout so the ring reads as even, pausing occasionally to check the overall circle has not drifted into an oval. Add a small door panel or arch shape behind the wreath if you want it to read as hanging rather than floating alone.

Wreaths look thin and sparse when the leaves are too small or spaced too far apart: pack them closer than feels natural, since gaps are far more noticeable on a ring than on a straight branch. Use red gel pen for a cluster of berries tucked between a few leaves and for the bow at the bottom of the ring.

For a simpler door scene with lights and windows in the same spirit, the cute Christmas doodles page has a few more cozy house details.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• round object to trace

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Holly Green

Vary a few leaf shapes slightly, some rounder and some pointier, rather than repeating the exact same leaf all the way around; it reads as more natural foliage.

Keep it quick after the wreath’s patience: a small mistletoe sprig needs only a few lines. Draw two or three pairs of simple oval leaves branching off a short central stem, angled outward in a loose V shape rather than straight across.

Add a small cluster of round berries at the stem’s tip, three or four tiny circles grouped close together, left white or lightly dotted rather than fully filled in.

The sprig looks stiff if the leaf pairs are evenly spaced like a ruler: stagger them slightly up the stem so it reads as a loose, natural branch rather than a diagram. Use red gel pen for a thin ribbon tied around the stem if you want it to look ready for hanging.

This one works well tucked into a corner or beside another doodle like the wreath or the stocking, since it takes up very little space on the page.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Soft Green

Leave the berry cluster mostly white with just a thin black outline; filling berries in solid black makes a small sprig look heavier than it should.

Take on the most detailed figure in this list now that your hand is warmed up: the nutcracker. Build him from the bottom, a rectangular body block, then a tall cylindrical hat, a round head with a strong jaw line, and stiff rectangular arms held out at the sides.

Draw the uniform details next: a row of buttons down the front, a thick mustache line above the mouth, and a brim line separating the hat from the face. Keep every shape blocky and straight-edged rather than rounded, since that stiffness is what makes a nutcracker look like a nutcracker.

Proportions slip when the hat ends up too short: measure it against the head height first, since a traditional nutcracker’s hat is often as tall as the face itself. Use red gel pen for the hat’s body, the jacket front, and the buttons, keeping the face and mustache in plain black.

Try adding a small sword at his side or a sack over one shoulder next time, once the standing figure itself feels comfortable to draw from memory.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• eraser

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Gold Ochre

Keep his arms stiff and straight out at the sides rather than bent; that rigid posture is part of what reads as a wooden nutcracker figure rather than a person.

Lift the scene off the ground with a hot air balloon carrying a small gift instead of a basket passenger. Draw a large round or onion-shaped balloon top first, then a few vertical panel lines curving down its surface to suggest the fabric sections.

Add a small basket shape beneath it, connected by four or five thin lines running from the basket’s corners up to the balloon’s base. Tuck a small ribboned gift box inside the basket, peeking just above its rim.

The balloon shape often ends up too round and plain without the panel lines: those curved vertical lines are what sell the fabric paneling and keep it from looking like a plain circle. Use red gel pen for alternating panel sections and for the gift’s ribbon inside the basket.

A quick version uses only three panel lines and no gift at all; the longer version adds clouds or a tiny bird drawn floating near the balloon.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• ruler (optional)

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Sky Blue

Draw the basket slightly smaller than feels right at first; an oversized basket makes the whole balloon look bottom-heavy and less likely to float.

Settle the scene back on the ground with a small cottage. Draw a simple square or rectangle body, a triangle roof on top, a small rectangular door, and two or three square windows placed evenly across the front.

Add a short chimney block at one corner of the roof with a few wavy lines rising from it for smoke, and a thin string of small dots looping along the roofline for lights.

Windows placed unevenly make the whole house look off-balance: measure roughly equal gaps between them before inking, even just by eye, comparing one window’s position to the others. Use red gel pen to color every other dot along the light string, alternating with black dots, and for a small wreath on the door.

Window glow is a nice forty-minute addition: a soft wash of red gel pen scribbled lightly just inside each window pane suggests a warm light left on inside.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• ruler (optional)

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Warm Yellow

Draw a tiny path of footprints leading up to the front door; it is a few small marks that suggest someone just arrived home.

Return to a quiet, quick subject after the house: a teacup resting on its saucer. Draw a simple rounded cup shape with a small handle loop on one side, sitting on a wider flat saucer oval beneath it.

Add a wavy line across the cup’s top for the tea surface, then a thin diagonal cinnamon stick resting across the rim, drawn as two parallel lines with a few short cross-hatch marks along its length for texture.

The handle is the detail that trips people up, often drawn too small to grip comfortably in the drawing: make the loop generous, roughly a third of the cup’s height, so it reads clearly rather than looking stuck on. Use red gel pen for a small pattern around the cup’s rim or a tiny heart on the saucer.

Swap the cinnamon stick for a sprig of mint or a slice of orange resting on the saucer’s edge if that feels easier to draw.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Cinnamon Brown

Add two or three short curved steam lines rising from the tea’s surface, the same trick as the cocoa mug, to tie the two doodles together as a pair.

Bring in a cozy character: the gnome, built almost entirely from one tall triangle hat and a rounded cone-shaped body beneath it, with no visible face except a bushy beard covering most of it. Draw the hat first, tall and slightly bent at the tip, then the body as a wider triangle or bell shape below.

Add a simple oval beard shape covering the lower half of the face area, with just a small round nose peeking out above it. Draw two stubby arms, one holding a small lantern shape out to the side.

The hat tips over looking like a witch’s hat if drawn too straight and narrow: curve the tip gently to one side for the softer, rounder gnome look instead. Use red gel pen for the hat’s entire body and keep the beard and lantern in black and white only.

If small characters like this one appeal to you, the cute Christmas doodles page has a few more tiny figures in the same cozy spirit.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• eraser

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Soft Cream

Add a few wavy lines inside the lantern shape to suggest a small flame glowing inside; it is a tiny detail that makes the lantern feel lit.

Keep the animal list going with a fox sitting upright, built from a rounded body, a pointed snout, and two tall triangle ears. Draw the body first as a simple oval, then the head overlapping at an angle, with the snout tapering to a small black nose tip.

Add a long curved tail wrapping around the front paws, with a few short zigzag lines along its edge to suggest fluffy fur rather than a smooth outline. Keep the ears tall and alert rather than drooping, since that is what gives a fox its distinct silhouette.

The fox often ends up looking like a cat without the scarf and the tail detail: that fluffy zigzag tail edge is the single feature that separates the two at this simple level. Use red gel pen for a scarf wrapped around the neck and trailing down one side.

A kneaded eraser pressed lightly along the tail’s outline after inking can soften one edge into a fluffier, less rigid line.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• kneaded eraser
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Fox Orange

Try drawing the fox mid-stride with one paw lifted instead of sitting still; a single bent leg line is all it takes to suggest movement.

Soften the mood again with a small sitting rabbit. Draw a rounded oval body, a smaller round head, and two tall oval ears standing up from the top of the head, slightly curved rather than stick-straight.

Add short front paws tucked near the chest and two longer back feet peeking out from beneath the body. Keep the whole silhouette soft and plump, with no sharp angles anywhere on the outline.

Ears flop over looking sad if drawn too thin and limp: keep them upright and reasonably wide at the base, tapering only slightly toward the rounded tip. Use red gel pen for a pair of earmuffs looping over the ears, connected by a thin band across the top of the head.

Swap the earmuffs for a small knit hat with a pompom if you would rather keep both ears fully visible and uncovered.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Soft Pink

Add a small round tail as a simple filled circle on the back; it is a tiny detail but it instantly confirms the animal as a rabbit rather than a cat or mouse.

Take a break from animals with a festive object: the disco ball. Trace a circle guide first, then divide its surface into a grid of small diamond or square facets using light pencil lines curving slightly to follow the circle’s roundness.

Ink each facet edge carefully, keeping the grid lines close together but not so tight that they blur into solid black once inked. Add a short hanging loop and a thin line above the ball suggesting a string.

The facet grid often looks flat if every line is perfectly straight: let the horizontal lines curve very slightly to match the sphere’s roundness, which sells the three-dimensional shine. Use red gel pen to fill in a scattered handful of facets rather than all of them, suggesting reflected light rather than an even red ball.

Add a few short sparkle lines radiating from two or three facets for a quick finishing touch that reads instantly as shine.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• round object to trace
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Silver Grey

Scatter the red-filled facets irregularly across the ball rather than in a neat pattern; randomness reads more like scattered light than a deliberate design.

Draw a quick celebratory object next: a tall champagne flute. Ink a long narrow cone shape for the glass bowl, narrowing to a thin stem, then a small round base beneath it, keeping the proportions tall and slender rather than wide.

Add a wavy line partway up the bowl to show the liquid level, then a scattering of small dot bubbles rising above the liquid line toward the rim. Keep the glass outline very light and thin, since a champagne flute reads as delicate rather than sturdy.

The stem is the part most likely to look clumsy, often drawn too thick: keep it as a single thin line, barely wider than your pen’s stroke, connecting the bowl to the base cleanly. Use red gel pen for a thin ribbon tied around the stem or,for a New Year’s mood, a small star beside the glass.

Draw two glasses tilted together near the rim if you want a toasting pair instead of just one standing alone.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• ruler (optional)

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Champagne Gold

Leave a thin vertical strip along one side of the glass unshaded and uncrossed by any texture lines; that blank strip reads as a glint of light on glass.

Keep the festive object streak going with a pair of ice skates tied together by their laces. Draw one boot shape first, a simple rounded ankle boot outline with a curved blade beneath it, then mirror the same shape beside it for the second skate.

Add crossed lace lines up the front of each boot and a longer looping lace line connecting the two pairs together, as if hung over a hook or a mantel. Keep the blades slim and curved rather than flat, since a flat blade reads as a shoe rather than a skate.

The pair often ends up mismatched in size if drawn separately from scratch: sketch both boots lightly in pencil side by side before inking either, checking they match in height and angle. Use red gel pen for the laces and a small bow where the connecting lace ties the two together.

If winter scenes like this interest you, the winter doodles beginner ideas page pairs well with this one.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Steel Grey

Curve the blades slightly upward at both the front and back tips rather than leaving them straight; it makes the skates look balanced rather than flat-footed.

Bring in a simple piece of fruit for a change of pace: the clementine. Trace a circle for the fruit body, then add two small leaf shapes and a short stem at the top where it would have been picked from the branch.

Draw a few short curved lines across the fruit’s surface to suggest its dimpled peel texture, kept light and scattered rather than covering the whole circle evenly. A small section of peeled skin pulled back from one edge, if you want a bit more detail, shows the segments inside.

The circle looks flat and plastic without any texture marks at all: even four or five short curved dashes across the surface are enough to suggest real peel. Use red gel pen for the leaves and stem, or for the dimpled texture marks instead of black if you want a warmer, fully red fruit.

Draw two clementines overlapping slightly if one feels too plain on its own, a quick way to fill more of the page.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• round object to trace
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Clementine Orange

Draw a small curled ribbon of peel beside the fruit, as if just unpeeled; it is one extra wavy line and adds a sense of a moment rather than a still object.

Draw a quick, flat subject that works well tucked into any corner: an envelope with its flap sealed by a small heart. Ink a simple rectangle shape first, then add the diagonal flap lines meeting at a point in the center, forming the classic envelope front.

Draw a small heart shape sitting right at the point where the flap lines meet, as if it is the seal holding the envelope closed. Add a short address line or two across the lower half of the envelope if you want it to look addressed.

The flap often looks wrong when its diagonal lines do not meet neatly at the center point: measure roughly to the middle of the rectangle’s width before drawing either diagonal line, adjusting with pencil first if needed. Use red gel pen for the heart seal and, if you like, a thin red border line around the envelope’s edge.

Swap the heart for a small wax-stamp circle with a star inside if you want a slightly different seal without changing anything else.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil
• ruler (optional)

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Cream White

Add a tiny stamp shape in one corner with a few small marks inside it; it is a quick detail that makes the envelope feel properly ready to send.

Close the list with a small scene full of motion: a car driving home with a tree strapped to its roof. Draw a simple rounded car body, two circle wheels beneath it, and a small window shape along the upper half of the body.

Add a triangle Christmas tree on the roof, tied down with a line or two crossing over it like rope, angled slightly so it looks secured rather than just resting loosely. A couple of short motion lines trailing behind the car suggest it is moving rather than parked.

The car often reads as a toy block rather than a vehicle if the wheels are too small: make them generously sized, roughly a third of the body’s height, so the proportions feel right even in a simple doodle. Use red gel pen for the tree’s ornaments, the car’s tail lights, and the rope lines holding everything in place.

Finish the whole page by placing this one last, since a little moving car makes a natural closing note after so many still objects.

You Will Need

• black fineliner
• red gel pen
• pencil

Palette: Ink Black,Cherry Red,Tree Green

Draw the car at a slight three-quarter angle rather than straight from the side; it gives the small scene more depth without any extra lines.

What to Do Next

Pick one doodle that caught your eye, grab your fineliner and red gel pen, and start with a light pencil sketch if the shape still feels new. A dot-grid planner page or a plain notebook sheet both work well, so there is nothing stopping you from filling a corner of today’s page right now.

Frequently Asked Questions

What pens work best for simple christmas doodles?

A black fineliner in a fine or extra-fine tip works best, paired with one red gel pen for accents. Keep the fineliner consistent across a whole page so line weight stays even, and test the gel pen on scrap paper first since some skip on glossy planner stock.

How do I keep my doodles from looking lopsided?

Sketch the shape lightly in pencil first and compare both sides before inking, especially on symmetrical subjects like stars, hearts and antlers. A light pencil guide takes a few seconds and saves you from erasing a finished ink line.

Can I draw simple christmas doodles without any color at all?

Yes, every idea here reads fine in black fineliner alone since the shapes carry the design. The red gel pen adds charm and helps a few key spots like bows, noses and ribbons stand out, but it is never required to finish the drawing.

What paper should I use for planner and bullet journal doodles?

Plain or dot-grid paper works best since the dots offer light placement guides without showing in the final doodle. Avoid very thin, see-through pages if you plan to use gel pen, since ink can bleed through to the next sheet.

How long does each doodle actually take to finish?

Most of these take five to ten minutes once the shapes feel familiar, with a few like the nutcracker or wreath closer to fifteen. Simple objects like the snowflake or envelope finish fastest, while characters with more detail take a little longer.