How to draw a turkey — easy step by step drawing ideas

Turkey drawing ideas take over my studio every November, and I love every minute of it. There's just something joyful about a round little turkey puffed up with a rainbow of tail feathers behind it. It's the perfect drawing for Thanksgiving place cards, classroom windows and the fridge at grandma's house.

Here's the good news for beginners: a cartoon turkey is really just one big circle for the body and a small circle for the head, with a big fan of rounded feathers spread out behind them. Add a tiny beak, a wiggly red wattle, two little wings and some three-toed feet, and you've got a turkey that looks ready for the holiday parade.

In this tutorial we'll draw a front-facing turkey with its tail fanned out wide, using the six-step practice sheet below. I'll share the pro tips that help my students the most, three mistakes that make turkeys look like chickens or suns, and a few fixes for lumpy feathers. Grab your brown, orange, red and yellow crayons, and let's get drawing.

The 6 steps to easy turkey drawing ideas

Step 1 — Draw the body

Start with one big round circle in the lower middle part of your page for the turkey's body. Draw it lightly, since it's a guide shape. Leave room below for the feet and lots of room above and around the sides, because the tail feathers will spread out behind the body like a giant fan.

Turkeys are round and plump, so let this circle be nice and big. A generous body gives the drawing a jolly, well-fed Thanksgiving look and makes a great background for the wings and wattle we'll add later.

Step 2 — Add the head and neck

On top of the body, draw a small circle for the head, about one-third the size of the body. Let it sit right on top, overlapping the body circle just a little so it looks connected. Since our turkey is facing us, keep the head centered.

Turkeys have fairly small heads compared to their big bodies, and that difference in size is part of what makes them look so funny and charming. If the head gets too large, your turkey can start to look more like a snowman or an owl.

Step 3 — Add the tail feathers

Behind the body, draw a big fan of tail feathers spreading out in a half-circle, like a rainbow arc. Draw each feather as a long, rounded shape, like a stretched-out letter U, starting from behind the body and reaching outward. Aim for about seven to nine feathers.

Start with the feather in the very middle, pointing straight up behind the head, then add feathers on each side, fanning them out lower and lower until the last ones point almost sideways. You can add a second, smaller row of feathers inside the first one for an extra-fluffy tail.

Step 4 — Add the beak and wattle

In the middle of the head, draw a small triangle beak pointing down. Keep it small, about the size of a fingernail on your drawing. A tiny beak keeps the face cute and gives room for the next funny detail.

Right under the beak, draw the wattle: a long, wiggly, drooping shape that hangs down from under the beak over the front of the neck, like a little stretched-out teardrop. The wattle is that red, floppy bit of skin real turkeys have, and it's the detail that tells everyone this bird is a turkey and not a chicken.

Step 5 — Add the eyes, wings and feet

Add two round eyes above the beak, each with a small white highlight dot so they sparkle. Then draw two small wings on the sides of the body, each shaped like a rounded leaf or a teardrop with a few scallops at the bottom to suggest feathers.

Finally, draw two feet at the bottom of the body. Each foot is made of three thin toes spreading out from one point, like the letter W or a little bird track. Add a short line above each foot for the leg so the turkey stands up nicely.

Step 6 — Finish and color

Go over the lines you want to keep and erase the guide lines, especially where the body overlaps the tail feathers and the head overlaps the body. Now your turkey is ready for the most colorful part of the whole tutorial.

Color the body, head and wings a warm brown. For the tail feathers, use a repeating pattern of orange, red, yellow and brown, moving across the fan from one side to the other. Color the wattle bright red, and the beak and feet orange. Leave the white highlights in the eyes uncolored.

Common mistakes to avoid

The tail feathers are pointy like sun rays

Sharp, pointy feathers sticking out from the body can make a turkey look like a sun or a spiky star. They also lose the soft, fluffy look that makes a cartoon turkey so cute.

Round off the end of every feather, like a stretched-out letter U. Rounded feathers look soft and feathery, and they fit together into that lovely rainbow-arc fan.

The wattle is missing

Without a wattle, a turkey can look like a chicken, a pigeon or even an owl. It's a small detail, but it's one of the biggest clues that tell people what bird you drew.

Always add a wiggly red wattle hanging down from under the beak. Make it long enough to droop past the head onto the body so it stands out clearly.

The tail is too small

A small tail tucked behind the body makes the turkey look plain and a bit unfinished. The fanned tail is the star of a Thanksgiving turkey, just like a peacock's tail.

Let the tail feathers spread out wide, much wider than the body and higher than the head. A big, bold fan makes your turkey look proud and ready to celebrate.

Troubleshooting

My feathers are all different sizes

Lightly draw a big half-circle guide around the body first, like a rainbow, then draw each feather so its rounded tip just touches that guide. Erase the guide afterward. This keeps all the feathers about the same length and makes the fan look even.

My turkey looks like a chicken

Chicken-looking turkeys are usually missing the big fanned tail or the wattle. Make the tail feathers spread out wide in a rainbow arc, add a long red wattle, and keep the body round and plump. Those three things say 'turkey' loud and clear.

The colors in the tail are getting muddy

If the tail colors are blending together into a brownish mess, color one feather at a time and let each feather keep a single color. Coloring lightly near the edges and staying inside the lines also helps each color stay bright and clean.

Key takeaways

FAQ

Is a turkey easy to draw for kids? Yes — a cartoon turkey is two circles plus a fan of rounded feathers, with a few small details like a beak, wattle, wings and feet. Most children aged five and up can finish this sheet in about fifteen to twenty minutes, and it's perfect for Thanksgiving.

How do I draw turkey tail feathers? Draw a fan of long, rounded U-shaped feathers spreading out behind the body in a half-circle, like a rainbow. Start with one feather in the middle and add matching feathers on each side, about seven to nine in total.

What colors do I need for a turkey drawing? You'll need brown for the body, head and wings, orange, red, yellow and brown for the tail feathers, red for the wattle and orange for the beak and feet. Leave a little white in the eyes so they sparkle.

What is the red thing on a turkey's face? It's called a wattle — a flap of bright red skin that hangs down from under a turkey's beak. Drawing it long and wiggly is one of the easiest ways to show that your bird is a turkey and not a chicken.

And there is your Thanksgiving turkey! Whether its tail came out as a perfect rainbow or a wild burst of color, you just drew a proud little bird ready for the holiday table. Try making a whole turkey family for your place cards, or write what you're thankful for on each feather, and come back tomorrow for a new tutorial.

More tutorials: All tutorials · How to draw a chicken · How to draw a peacock · How to draw an owl