Kermit isn't just a frog. He’s a cultural icon, a meme king, and basically the emotional glue holding the Muppets together. But if you've ever tried to sit down and sketch him, you’ve probably realized something annoying. He looks like a green sock, yet somehow, your drawing looks like a lime-flavored accident.
Drawing him is weird.
Jim Henson originally made Kermit from his mother’s old spring coat and two halves of a ping-pong ball. That’s the secret. To understand how to draw Kermit the frog, you have to stop thinking about anatomy and start thinking about puppetry. Most people mess up because they try to give him a "neck" or a realistic frog face. He doesn’t have those things. He’s a puppet.
The Ping-Pong Ball Problem
Let's talk about the eyes. This is where everyone fails.
In the world of Muppet design, there’s a concept called the "Magic Triangle." This is the relationship between the eyes and the nose (or the tip of the mouth). For Kermit, those eyes aren't just circles sitting on his head. They are distinct spheres.
When you start your sketch, don't draw flat circles. Draw two slightly overlapping globes. Because Kermit’s eyes were originally ping-pong balls, they have a specific physical presence. They sit right on the "brow" line, but they aren't embedded in the skull. Honestly, they look like they’re glued on because, well, they were.
The pupils are the real kicker. They aren't round. Kermit has horizontal slit pupils, almost like a goat but softer. If you make them perfect circles, he looks possessed. If you make them too thin, he looks mean. You want a soft, rounded rectangle. And here’s the pro tip: cross them just a tiny bit toward the center. It gives him that focused, slightly overwhelmed "I’m trying to run a variety show" look.
The Mouth Is a Diamond, Not a Circle
If you open Kermit's mouth, it isn't a round hole. It’s a very specific, pointed diamond shape.
Think about a hand inside a puppet. When Jim Henson or Steve Whitmire or Matt Vogel moves that mouth, the thumb and fingers create a hinge. When you are learning how to draw Kermit the frog, you need to visualize that hinge. The top "lip" is a soft curve, but the bottom is almost a sharp V.
Inside that mouth? It's just black. No teeth. Obviously.
But there’s a tongue. It’s a simple, rounded red shape. Don't over-complicate it. Sometimes people try to add shading to make it look wet or realistic. Stop. Kermit is made of fleece. Fleece doesn't reflect light. It absorbs it. Use flat colors or very soft, matte shading if you’re using pencils.
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The "collar" is the next big hurdle. It has exactly 11 points.
Why 11? Because that’s how many points are on the actual puppet. If you draw six, he looks like a jester. If you draw twenty, he looks like he’s wearing a ruff from the Renaissance. These points are soft triangles that wrap around the base of his head. There is no neck. The collar hides the transition from the head to the torso. If you draw a neck, you've already lost.
Body Language and the "S-Curve"
Kermit is floppy. That is his defining physical trait.
His torso is basically an elongated pear. It’s thin at the top and slightly wider at the bottom. But the magic is in the limbs. Kermit’s arms and legs are essentially noodles. They don't have muscle definition. When you’re sketching the arms, think about wire. The actual puppet uses arm rods—thin black wires attached to the hands.
If you want your drawing to feel "real," don't draw the arms in stiff, muscular poses. Draw them with slight, unnatural bends. His elbows often point out or hang limp.
And his hands? Four fingers. Pointy. No fingernails. They are essentially flat cutouts of felt. When he’s gesturing, his fingers often splay out in a fan shape. This is a classic Muppet pose. It’s called "the scrunch."
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Why Your Proportions Feel "Off"
You might be looking at your drawing and thinking, "It looks like him, but it's not him."
It’s probably the head-to-body ratio. Kermit’s head is surprisingly large compared to his torso. It’s roughly 1/3 of his total body height (not counting the legs). If you make the body too long, he looks like a weird green man. If the head is too small, he loses his personality.
Another nuance: the "scrunch" lines.
When Kermit scrunches his face—that iconic "sheesh" expression—the fleece folds. If you’re an advanced artist, adding two or three subtle lines where the mouth meets the cheek will instantly level up the drawing. It mimics the hand of the puppeteer moving inside the head. It’s meta, but it works.
Practical Steps to Nailing the Sketch
Start with a light pencil. Don't commit to dark lines early.
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- The Skull: Draw a horizontal oval. Not a circle. A flattened oval.
- The Eyes: Place two spheres on top, slightly closer together than you think they should be.
- The Pupils: Horizontal, slightly rounded rectangles. Aim them toward the nose area.
- The Collar: Draw a "necklace" of 11 soft points. Start from the center and work your way out to ensure symmetry.
- The Torso: A long pear shape. Keep it slender.
- The Limbs: Use "noodle" lines. Don't worry about joints like knees or elbows yet; just get the flow of the movement.
- The Hands and Feet: Four long, pointed fingers. The feet are very long, flat, and flipper-like.
Final Touches and Color
Kermit is a very specific shade of green. It’s not forest green. It’s not neon green. It’s a warm, "spring" green. If you’re using digital tools, look for a chartreuse-leaning hue.
For the shadow, don't use black. Use a deeper, cooler green. This keeps the drawing looking vibrant and "felt-like" rather than dirty. If you use black for shadows, Kermit starts to look like a swamp monster, and that’s a different vibe entirely.
The beauty of learning how to draw Kermit the frog is that he is built for expression. Once you have the basic structure down, try tilting the head. A slight tilt of a Muppet's head completely changes their emotion from curious to sad to skeptical. That’s why puppeteers are so careful with "eye line."
Focus on the eyes. If the eyes are looking at the viewer, the drawing will feel alive. If they’re staring off into space, he’ll look like a plush toy sitting on a shelf. Both are valid, but the "alive" Kermit is the one people love.
Get your sketchbook. Find a reference photo from The Muppet Show—specifically the 1970s era, as that’s the most "classic" Kermit silhouette. Avoid the modern CGI versions if you want to capture the soul of the character. The imperfections of the fleece are what make him Kermit. Embrace the slight wobbles in your lines.
He’s a puppet. He’s supposed to be a little bit messy.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Audit your eye placement: Check if the pupils are horizontal. If they’re vertical, you’ve drawn a cat or a dragon, not a frog.
- Count the collar points: If you don't have 11, erase and try again. It's the "secret handshake" of Muppet artists.
- Practice the 'Noodle' limb: Draw five different arm poses using only single, flowing lines before adding thickness to them.
- Matte your colors: If using markers, avoid layering too many glossy coats. Keep the texture flat to mimic the look of Antron fleece.