This tutorial explains how to drawing anime and manga manner lips in different variations from different views (front, three quarter and side). Information technology focuses on female lips but some examples tin can as well be used for cartoon male lips.

It is very common for mouths in anime and manga to be drawn without lips but some styles (usually the more realistic ones) do prove lips. Lips are too oft drawn in close upwardly scenes of anime and manga fifty-fifty in the styles where they are otherwise non shown.

Anime lips drawing examples
Anime lips drawing examples

Lip Construction

Anime lips structure
Anime lips structure example

Before yous draw lips in the anime style it'due south important to understand the shape of real lips. To do this we can draw a slightly open mouth in a fairly relaxed state. This way the shape of both the height and bottom lip is visible but not overly stretched or distorted.

In a relaxed country the summit lip resembles a flatted "M" shape. The lesser lip is often drawn with 1 smoothen upside down curve but if you lot study the lips carefully (this can vary from person to person) the lesser lip tends to actually exist two very light curves at the lower half that join to form i bigger curve.The upper role of the bottom lip are 2 curves that go from the outer part of the lips down towards the center as shown in the higher up example.

Draw anime or manga style lips in the following gild:

  1. Draw the outline of the overall shape of the lips
  2. Draw the inner shape of the lips
  3. Depict the within of the mouth (if the mouth is open)
  4. Apply color to your lip drawing if needed

Again lips vary from person to person and fashion to style only the to a higher place example is a expert basis to keep.

Drawing Anime & Manga Style Lips

Anime lips front view
Cartoon anime lips forepart view

Just like real lips anime and manga style lips come in dissimilar shapes and sizes. There are as well various degrees of complexity and realism depending on the style and the artists preference.

In the above illustration y'all can see the progression from more realistic examples to more stylized ones. Generally the more simplistic the style the more than of the various parts of the lips are only hinted at or left out all together.

You tin experiment with different degrees of complication and meet what works for the mode you are going for.

Anime lips front view in color
Coloring anime lips front view example

Y'all can see that in some examples the color is what defines the shape of the lips instead of the outline. You tin also see that in the last few example the "One thousand" shape of the upper lip is not shown at all. This is particularly mutual in the more than simplified anime styles where a character is wearing lipstick.

One interesting trick with using color to define the lips is that not having an outline can also makes the lips appear softer.

When you know you lot are going to color the lips merely are drawing in a more than simplistic style describe some light guidelines for the overall shape of the oral fissure. You tin erase/remove them later if needed.

Drawing Anime & Manga Style Lips in 3/iv View

Anime lips 3/4 view
Drawing anime lips 3/4 view case

In a iii/4 view draw the side of the lips that is closer to the viewer longer then the side that is farther away. At that place are two reason equally to why you want to practise this. One is that the farther side of the lips curves away from the viewer making information technology seem "shorter". The second reason is perspective.

For a better understanding of perspective drawing you may want to run into:

Perspective Drawing Tutorial for Beginners and How information technology Relates to Anime

For an case of drawing lips on a face in iii/4 view see:

How to Draw an Anime Female person Face iii/4 View

Anime lips inner part drawing
Drawing inner part of anime lips in 3/four view example

The inner part of the lips is inset and therefore should be drawn farther dorsum than the outer function when drawing lips in 3/4 view.

Anime lips 3/4 view in color
Coloring anime lips 3/4 view instance

Coloring lips in 3/4 view is the same every bit the front view and then y'all can merely refer to that part of the tutorial.

Drawing Anime & Manga Lips From the Side

Anime lips side view
Drawing anime lips side view example

Drawing anime lips is side view is adequately simple. You can recall of drawing lips in side view as only drawing one-half the lips in front view that are horizontally slightly squeezed.

Anime lips side view drawing
Anime lips side view drawing case

You can see in the in a higher place example how with some tweaks you tin use the front view of the lips to go the side view.

You don't demand to draw out all of the steps shown in the in a higher place example. They are there so that yous can get a better agreement of how to get the side view of the lips based on the front end view and what needs to be tweaked. You can simply draw the terminal example of the side view right away while using the front view as a reference.

One other thing to exist aware of when drawing is that the top lip volition usually stick out slightly more than the bottom lip.

Drawing Anime & Manga Lips With an Open up Mouth

Anime open mouth lips
Cartoon anime lips on an open mouth example

Drawing lips on an open mouth gets a trivial more complicated. A adept general rule is that the wider the mouth opens the thinner the lips will appear as they are stretched out more and more. As the lips are stretched out their overall shape will become less divers.

For drawing teeth see:

How to Describe Anime & Manga Teeth Tutorial

Forepart View Open up Mouth

Anime lips open mouth front view
Anime lips open oral fissure front view drawing example

For the front view of an open mouth start by drawing the inside shape of the mouth with two curves (one for the top lip and 1 for the bottom). After add a southward flatted "V" shape to the acme lip and just a hint of two downward curves about the center of the bottom lip.

Keep in mind that details may exist omitted depending on how wide the rima oris is open and the style.

When coloring or shading an open mouth be enlightened that the inside of the oral cavity volition almost always be darker than the lips.

3/4 View Open Mouth

Anime lips open mouth three quarter view drawing
Anime lips open mouth 3 quarter view drawing example

For the 3/four view remember that the lips curve around the mouth. Y'all can recall of each lip as a sort of half-circle shape.

Just like in the airtight mouth 3/4 example the side of the rima oris that is closer to the viewer will appear wider than the farther away side.

When drawing the outer part of the lips call back that but like in the closed rima oris case the inner function of the mouth is indented so the outer part will stick out more than.

Side View Open Oral fissure

Anime lips open mouth side view
Anime lips open mouth side view drawing example

For the side view you can again utilize the same trick as for the closed mouth side view example (cartoon a narrower one-half a oral cavity from the front view with some tweaks).

Please once more note that you don't demand to draw out all the steps every time you describe the side view of a rima oris. It'southward meant more for practise and to help you become the right proportions.

Cartoon Anime Lips on the Caput

Anime girl lips on head
Anime daughter lips on head drawing case

As you can come across in the above example yous can even so maintain the anime look fifty-fifty when drawing lips on your graphic symbol. Describe the lips fairly small compared to the balance of the facial features.

For more than on drawing an anime characters with lips similar to those in this tutorial come across:

  • How to Depict Anime Kissing Lips & Face Tutorial
  • 8 Pace Anime Woman's Head & Face Drawing Tutorial

Conclusion

Lips can take many irregular shapes depending on what the graphic symbol yous are cartoon is doing. It'due south hard to embrace too many examples in one tutorial but these should give you lot a good idea of how to draw anime lips in some mutual views.

For more examples of drawing anime mouths you can also see:

  • How to Draw Anime and Manga Mouth Expressions
  • 12 Anime Facial Expressions Chart & Drawing Tutorial