Everyone remembers the moment. You're standing in a sea of polyester robes, sweating slightly, trying to keep that itchy square board from sliding off your forehead. Graduation is a massive milestone. It's the end of an era. But when you sit down to sketch it? Honestly, it usually looks like a weird, squashed pancake.
Drawing a graduation cap—technically called a mortarboard—is deceptively tricky because of the perspective. You’re dealing with a perfect square that's being viewed at an angle, which means you have to understand foreshortening even if you didn't take a single art class in college. If you get the angles wrong, the whole thing looks like it’s sliding off the page. We're going to fix that.
The secret isn't in the lines. It’s in the diamond.
The Geometry of the Mortarboard
To understand how to draw a grad cap, you have to stop seeing a square. When you look at a cap from eye level or slightly below, that square top becomes a rhombus. It’s skewed. Think about looking at a floor tile from across the room. It’s not a square anymore; it’s a wide, flat diamond shape.
Start with a very light horizontal line. This is your "true" width. From the center of that line, draw a vertical line going up and down. Now, connect the tips to create a diamond. If you make this diamond too tall, the cap looks like it’s standing straight up. If you make it too flat, it looks like a literal pancake. The "sweet spot" is usually a 3:1 ratio—three times as wide as it is tall.
Once you have that diamond, you have the "board." But a mortarboard isn't paper-thin. It has depth. You need to drop short vertical lines down from the front three corners of your diamond. Connect them with lines that mimic the top edges. Now you have a 3D slab. This is the part most beginners miss. They draw a flat shape and wonder why it lacks "oomph."
Getting the Skull Cap Right
The part that actually sits on the head is the "skull cap." It’s basically a bowl or a crown attached to the bottom of the board.
Here is where people mess up. They draw the skull cap centered perfectly under the board. In reality, the board usually sits further back or tilted. To keep it simple, find the center of your diamond's bottom surface. Draw a semi-circle or a curved "U" shape hanging down. It should be narrower than the diamond.
Think of it like a coffee cup sitting upside down with a plate on top. The plate (the board) is much wider than the cup (the cap). If the cap is as wide as the board, the person wearing it would need a giant head. It’s about proportions.
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Why the Tassel is the Soul of the Drawing
A grad cap without a tassel is just a weird hat. The tassel adds movement. It adds history. In most US graduation ceremonies, candidates wear the tassel on the right side before the ceremony and move it to the left after receiving their diploma. This tradition, though common, isn't universal—some schools have their own weird quirks—but for your drawing, picking a side matters for the "story."
The tassel starts at the very center of the top board. Usually, there's a small button there. Draw a tiny circle. From that circle, a cord runs across the top of the board and hangs off the edge.
Don't draw the cord as a straight line. It should have a bit of a "slump." Gravity is real. The cord should follow the surface of the board until it hits the edge, then drop straight down. At the end of the cord, you have the "fringe."
Drawing the fringe as a solid block looks stiff. Instead, use quick, flicking motions with your pencil. Make some strands longer than others. Give it some volume. If you want to be fancy, add a tiny "year" charm hanging from the tassel. It’s a small detail that makes the drawing feel grounded in a specific moment.
Perspective and Common Pitfalls
Artists like Andrew Loomis, who wrote the literal bible on figure drawing (Drawing the Head and Hands), always emphasized the "cranium" beneath the hat. If you are drawing the cap on a person, you have to draw the head first.
If you draw the cap and then try to fit a face under it, you’ll end up with a "floating cap" syndrome. It looks like the cap is hovering three inches above the hair.
Instead, draw the oval of the head. Then, wrap the skull cap part around that oval. The board should then sit on top of that. Remember that the board is rigid. It doesn't bend to the shape of the head. This contrast between the soft curves of a human face and the hard, sharp lines of the mortarboard is what makes graduation portraits so visually interesting.
- The "Squish" Factor: Make sure your diamond isn't too "pointy." The side corners should be wider than the top and bottom corners.
- The Button: Don't forget the button in the middle! It’s the anchor for the whole tassel assembly.
- Line Weight: Use darker lines for the edges of the board that are "closer" to the viewer. This creates a sense of depth without needing complex shading.
Shading for Realism
A black grad cap is rarely just black. If you fill it in with a solid black marker, it will look like a hole in the paper. It becomes a silhouette.
Instead, think about the light source. Usually, the top surface of the board catches the most light. It should be a dark gray. The underside of the board and the skull cap will be much darker. If you're using a pencil, use a 2B or 4B for the shadows and an H or HB for the top surface.
The tassel usually has a bit of a sheen to it. It’s made of rayon or silk. Leave a few white "highlight" streaks in the tassel to make it look like it's catching the light. This gives it that "satin" feel.
Adding the "Human" Element
If you're drawing this for a card or a gift, consider adding some character. Maybe the cap is slightly crooked. Maybe there's a "Class of 2026" written on top in glitter (which you can represent with tiny dots).
Some people decorate their caps. This is a huge trend now. You might draw small flowers, a map, or a quote on the top board. If you do this, remember the perspective! Any text or shapes you draw on the top must follow the lines of that original diamond shape you drew. If you write straight across, it will break the illusion of the 3D angle.
Materials and Tools
You don't need a fancy setup. Honestly, a standard #2 pencil and some printer paper work fine. But if you want to get serious:
- A Ruler: Essential for those long, straight edges of the board.
- A Kneaded Eraser: Good for lifting highlights out of the black areas.
- A Fine-Liner Pen: Once you’ve got your pencil lines right, "inking" the drawing makes it look professional.
Professional illustrators often use "French curves" for the skull cap part, but a steady hand or the edge of a circular lid works just as well. Don't overthink the tools. The technique is what carries the weight.
Stepping Beyond the Basics
Once you've mastered the standard "three-quarter view," try drawing the cap from different angles.
What does it look like from directly below? You’d see the opening of the skull cap and the underside of the board. What about from directly above? It would look like a perfect square with a button in the middle and a tassel trailing off to the side.
The mortarboard is a classic shape because it’s a mix of simple geometry and symbolic weight. It’s been around since the 14th or 15th century, evolving from the "biretta" worn by Catholic clerics. The fact that we still wear these weird square hats today is kind of hilarious when you think about it. But that history is why the shape is so iconic.
When you get the proportions right, you aren't just drawing a hat. You're drawing a symbol of years of late-night study sessions, too much caffeine, and the relief of finally being done.
Take your time with the initial diamond shape. It’s the foundation. If that’s solid, the rest of the drawing will fall into place perfectly.
Practical Steps to Master the Grad Cap
Start by sketching three different "diamonds" of varying widths. This helps you understand how the angle of the cap changes based on where the viewer is standing.
Once you have those, choose the one that looks most natural. Add the thickness to the edges. Drop the skull cap down.
Before you commit to dark ink, hold your drawing up to a mirror. This is an old artist's trick. Seeing the image in reverse helps your brain spot "leaning" or perspective errors that you've become blind to while working. If it looks "off" in the mirror, adjust your angles.
Finally, practice the "flick" of the tassel. It should feel loose and easy. The contrast between the rigid, straight board and the flowing, messy tassel is what makes the drawing feel alive.
Grab your pencil and give it a shot. Don't worry if the first one looks like a boxy UFO. Every artist has a "bad" grad cap in them—you just have to draw it to get to the good ones. Focus on that 3:1 ratio for the top, and you're already ahead of most people.