How do you draw an R in bubble letters?
Draw a straight stem, a round bowl on the top half, and a diagonal leg running from where the bowl meets the stem down to the bottom right. Outline it all, cut a hole in the bowl, and keep a clear V-shaped gap between the leg and the stem. Ink the outline and erase.
- Draw the stem. Pencil a straight vertical line for the back.
- Add the bowl. From the top, draw a round bump that comes back to the stem just above the middle.
- Add the leg. From the bottom of the bowl, a little right of the stem, draw a diagonal down to the bottom right corner.
- Outline everything. Trace around the stem, bowl and leg, rounding every end. The foot of the leg gets the same round cap as the foot of the stem.
- Open the gaps. Cut an oval hole in the bowl and keep a clear V between the leg and the stem.
- Ink and shade. Finish the line, erase, and shade under the bowl and along the leg.
What makes an R easy or tricky in bubble letters
The R has two trouble spots. Its bowl hole can close up the same way a P's does, and the joint where bowl, stem and leg meet can get as crowded as the middle of a K. Keep the bowl hole generous and start the leg from the bottom of the bowl, a little away from the stem. The leg should reach as far right as the bowl, so the top and bottom balance.
Lowercase r in bubble letters
Lowercase r has no bowl and no leg. It is a short stem with a small arm curving off the top to the right, like a flag starting to wave. In bubble form the arm becomes a round blob that can hang a little over the next letter. Keep it short, or the r starts to look like an n missing its second leg.
Cute, 3D and graffiti bubble R
A cute bubble R can curl the end of its leg up like a tail, or give the bowl a heart-shaped hole. In 3D, the shadow sits under the bowl and inside the V between leg and stem, which separates the parts clearly. In graffiti the leg often becomes a long kick or an arrow. Names with two R's, like "Rory", are good for checking that both match.
Common mistakes with a bubble R
- Starting the leg at the very bottom of the stem, so the R looks like a P with a stick taped on.
- Letting the bowl hole close when the strokes swell.
- Drawing the lowercase r arm so long that it reads as an n.
Printable bubble letter R to color or trace
Each letter fills a full A4 page (choose "fit to page" to print on US Letter), so it is big enough to color, trace or cut out for a banner. Download the uppercase A–Z PDF, the lowercase a–z PDF or the numbers 0–9 PDF, and print only the pages you need. More sheets are on printable bubble letters.