Draw Sun Project! ☀️🎨

4 Fun Projects
All Tools Used
Step-by-Step

Let's Draw Sunny Pictures!

The sun is the perfect first drawing project in MS Paint! It uses circles, lines, colors, and it always makes people happy!

What You'll Create:

Simple Happy Sun

Easy & cheerful

Easy
Cartoon Sun

With funny face

Easy
Sunset Scene

Beautiful colors

Medium
Creative Sun

Star patterns

Medium
Sun Colors You'll Need:
Bright Yellow
Sun Orange
Sky Blue
Sunset Orange
Grass Green
Project Time:

Each sun project takes about 10-15 minutes. Try them in order from easiest to hardest, or pick your favorite!

Tools You'll Use: Ellipse tool, Line tool, Fill tool, Pencil/Brush, Color selection

Sun Drawing Master!

Project 1: Simple Happy Sun

Your first sun drawing - easy and cheerful!

Difficulty: Easy

Time: 5-10 minutes

This is the perfect first sun to draw. You'll learn circles, straight lines, and the fill tool!

Tools You'll Need:
Ellipse Tool Line Tool Fill Tool Color Selection

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1 Draw the Sun Circle

  1. Click the Ellipse Tool
  2. Choose Filled without Outline (third option)
  3. Set foreground color to Bright Yellow
  4. Hold Shift key and draw a perfect circle
  5. Make it about 1/4 of your canvas size
Pro Tip: Hold the Shift key while drawing to make a perfect circle instead of an oval!

Perfect yellow circle

2 Add Sun Rays

  1. Click the Line Tool
  2. Choose medium thickness (second or third line)
  3. Set foreground color to Sun Orange
  4. Draw 8 rays coming from the sun:
    • Top, bottom, left, right (4 rays)
    • Between each of those (4 more rays)
  5. Make rays about as long as the sun's radius
Straight Rays: Hold Shift while drawing to make perfectly horizontal, vertical, or 45-degree rays!

Sun with 4 rays

3 Add a Smile

  1. Click the Curve Tool
  2. Choose same thickness as rays
  3. Set foreground color to Dark Orange
  4. Draw a smile under the middle of the sun
  5. Curve it upward for a happy smile!
Curve Tool Tip: Remember: Draw straight line first, then click and drag to curve it. You can curve it twice!

Happy smiling sun

4 Add Sky Background

  1. Click the Fill Tool (Paint Bucket)
  2. Set foreground color to Sky Blue
  3. Click anywhere in the white background
  4. The whole background turns blue!
  5. Your sun now floats in a blue sky!
Optional: Add Clouds

Use the Ellipse tool with white color to draw fluffy clouds around your sun!

Sun in blue sky

5 Save Your Sun!

  1. Click File in top left corner
  2. Click Save As
  3. Choose "Pictures" folder
  4. Name it "My Happy Sun"
  5. Click Save!
Congratulations! You've created your first sun drawing! 🎉
SUN COMPLETE!
Make It Your Own:

Try these variations on your simple sun:

Rainbow Rays

Make each ray a different rainbow color!

Winking Sun

Add one eye closed with curve tool

Night Sun

Make background dark blue with yellow stars

Project 2: Cartoon Sun with Face

A funny sun with eyes, nose, and big smile!

Difficulty: Easy

Time: 10-15 minutes

This sun has a funny cartoon face! You'll practice circles, curves, and expression drawing.

New Tools You'll Learn:
Ellipse Tool Curve Tool Pencil Tool Brush Tool

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1 Draw Orange Sun Base

  1. Click the Ellipse Tool
  2. Choose Filled without Outline
  3. Set color to Sun Orange
  4. Hold Shift and draw a medium circle
  5. This is your sun's face base

Orange circle base

2 Add Yellow Center

  1. Change color to Bright Yellow
  2. Draw a smaller circle inside the orange one
  3. Make it about 2/3 the size of orange circle
  4. Center it inside the orange circle
  5. Now you have an orange border with yellow center!
Centering Tip: Imagine your orange circle has a center point. Start your yellow circle from slightly inside the orange edge.

Two-layer sun

3 Draw Cartoon Eyes

  1. Click the Ellipse Tool
  2. Choose Filled with Outline (middle option)
  3. Set foreground to black (outline) and background to white (fill)
  4. Draw two small circles for eyes near the top
  5. Add tiny black circles inside for pupils
  6. Make one eye slightly bigger for cartoon effect!
Expression Ideas:
  • Happy: Big eyes looking straight
  • Sleepy: Half-closed eyes with curves
  • Surprised: Very round eyes

Sun with cartoon eyes

4 Add Nose and Big Smile

  1. For nose: Use Pencil Tool with black
  2. Draw a simple triangle or dot nose
  3. For mouth: Use Curve Tool
  4. Draw a BIG smile across the sun
  5. Add tongue with red color (optional)
  6. Make it extra happy with curved-up ends!
Happy Mouth Tip: Curve the smile upward at both ends. The more curve, the happier your sun looks!

Complete cartoon face

5 Add Blush and Rays

  1. For blush: Use Brush Tool with pink
  2. Choose airbrush style for soft blush
  3. Add pink circles on cheeks
  4. For rays: Use Line Tool with orange
  5. Add short, wavy rays all around
  6. Make them different lengths for fun effect!
Fun Extras:

Add these to make your sun unique:

  • Sunglasses with rectangle and lines
  • Hat with rectangle and triangle
  • Speech bubble with rounded rectangle
  • Crown with triangle shapes

Sun with wavy rays

Awesome Job! You've created a funny cartoon sun! Save it as "My Cartoon Sun" and show it to your friends!

Project 3: Beautiful Sunset Scene

Create a sunset over mountains or ocean

Difficulty: Medium

Time: 15-20 minutes

This project creates a beautiful sunset scene with gradient colors and silhouettes.

Advanced Techniques:
Fill Tool Rectangle Tool Polygon Tool Color Gradient

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1 Create Sky Gradient

  1. Divide your canvas into 3 horizontal sections
  2. Top section: Fill with Dark Blue
  3. Middle section: Fill with Orange
  4. Bottom section: Fill with Red-Orange
  5. Use Rectangle Tool for clean sections
Gradient Tip: For smoother gradient, create more sections with colors between blue, orange, and red.

Sunset gradient sky

2 Draw Half-Sun

  1. Click the Ellipse Tool
  2. Choose Filled without Outline
  3. Set color to Bright Yellow
  4. Draw a large circle at horizon line
  5. Only show top half - bottom half is below horizon
  6. It should touch your orange/red border
Positioning: The sun should be partly hidden as if setting below the horizon. Place it so about half is visible.

Sun setting at horizon

3 Add Sun Reflection

  1. Below the sun, draw a reflection
  2. Use Curve Tool with light orange
  3. Draw wavy lines from the sun downward
  4. Make the reflection fade as it goes down
  5. Use lighter colors for distant reflection
Ocean or Lake?

Choose your scene:

  • Ocean: Add wavy lines for water
  • Lake: Add calm, straight reflections
  • Mountains: Skip reflection, add silhouettes

Sun with water reflection

4 Add Silhouettes

  1. Use Polygon Tool for mountains
  2. Set color to black or dark purple
  3. Draw mountain shapes at horizon
  4. For palm trees: Use line tool for trunk
  5. Add leaf clusters with brush tool
  6. For birds: Use V shapes with line tool
Silhouette Ideas:

Mountain

Palm tree

Flying bird

Mountain silhouette

5 Add Final Details

  1. Add clouds with white or pink color
  2. Use airbrush for soft cloud edges
  3. Add stars in dark blue area (tiny circles)
  4. Make some clouds dark for silhouette effect
  5. Add your signature in corner!
Atmosphere: For twilight effect, add some purple to the sky gradient and make the sun more orange than yellow.

Sunset with clouds

Beautiful Work! You've created a stunning sunset scene! Save it as "My Sunset Masterpiece" - this is artwork worthy of framing!

Project 4: Creative Pattern Sun

Make a sun with star rays, patterns, and designs

Difficulty: Medium

Time: 15-20 minutes

Create a decorative, patterned sun with geometric designs and creative rays!

Creative Techniques:
Polygon Tool Selection Tools Copy/Paste Pattern Design

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1 Create Star Center

  1. Click the Polygon Tool
  2. Choose Filled without Outline
  3. Set color to Orange
  4. Draw a star: Click 10 times around a circle
  5. Double-click to complete the star
  6. Make it the center of your sun
Perfect Star: For a symmetrical star, imagine a clock face and click at 12, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 o'clock positions, then between them.

Star center

2 Add Circular Rings

  1. Click the Ellipse Tool
  2. Choose Outline Only (first option)
  3. Set color to Yellow
  4. Hold Shift and draw circles around the star
  5. Make 2-3 concentric circles
  6. Vary the thickness for interest
Pattern Ideas:

Decorate your circles:

  • Add dots along the circles
  • Make dashed circles
  • Add triangles pointing outward
  • Create zigzag patterns

Star with circles

3 Create Patterned Rays

  1. Design one ray pattern you like
  2. Use Selection Tool to select it
  3. Copy with Ctrl+C, paste with Ctrl+V
  4. Rotate and position around the sun
  5. Repeat for all rays (8 or 12 looks good)
  6. Use different colors for each ray
Ray Pattern Ideas:

Simple rectangle

Triangle

Rounded end

Diamond

Patterned rays

4 Add Background Pattern

  1. Fill background with dark blue or black
  2. Add small star shapes around the sun
  3. Use copy/paste for identical stars
  4. Create a border pattern around edges
  5. Add gradient from dark to light blue
  6. Consider adding planets or moons
Space Background: Use the airbrush tool with white on dark blue to create a nebula or galaxy effect behind your sun.

Starry background

5 Final Touches & Save

  1. Add your name with Text tool
  2. Consider adding a title: "Cosmic Sun"
  3. Check all elements are balanced
  4. Save as "My Pattern Sun Masterpiece"
  5. Try different color schemes!
Color Scheme Challenge:

Try these color combinations:

  • Rainbow: Each ray different rainbow color
  • Cool Colors: Blues, purples, greens
  • Monochromatic: Different shades of one color
  • Neon: Bright pink, green, orange on black
PATTERN SUN COMPLETE!
Fantastic Creativity! You've designed a unique pattern sun! This shows advanced MS Paint skills - you're becoming a digital art expert!

Sun Drawing Gallery & Ideas

More Sun Ideas to Try:

Angry Sun

Frowning with sharp rays

Sleepy Sun

With nightcap and Z's

Rainbow Sun

Each ray rainbow color

Winter Sun

Pale with snowflakes

Sun Drawing Challenge!

Can you draw a sun for every mood? Try creating:

Happy Sun

Big smile, bright colors

😊
Sad Sun

Frown, teardrops, gray rays

😢
Silly Sun

Crossed eyes, tongue out

😜
Royal Sun

With crown and cape

👑
Share Your Suns! Ask a parent to help you print your favorite sun drawings or email them to family members. You could even create a "Sun Collection" folder on your computer!

What You've Learned

Skills You Practiced:
  • Using Ellipse tool for perfect circles
  • Creating faces with Curve and Line tools
  • Making gradients with Fill tool
  • Designing patterns with Polygon tool
  • Using Selection and Copy/Paste
  • Color selection and combinations
Sun Types You Can Draw:
  • Simple happy sun with straight rays
  • Cartoon sun with expressive face
  • Beautiful sunset scene
  • Creative patterned sun
  • Any mood or style you imagine!
Congratulations, Sun Artist! You've completed the Draw Sun Project! Remember these key points:
  • Hold Shift for perfect circles and straight lines
  • Experiment with different tools for different effects
  • Color choices change the mood of your sun
  • Practice makes perfect - keep drawing!
  • Most importantly: Have fun and be creative!
About This Sun Project:

This comprehensive sun drawing project teaches children aged 6-12 various digital art techniques through fun, accessible drawing activities. Each project builds on previous skills while introducing new tools and concepts.

Educational Value: Develops fine motor skills, color theory understanding, geometric shape recognition, creative expression, and digital tool proficiency.

Next Project: Try our "Draw House Project" to learn how to combine shapes into more complex scenes!

Sun Project

Bright sun scenes with warm colors and simple composition. Part of the free MS Paint tutorial series at Nikhil Learn Hub for children, parents, and teachers.

Learning goals

Build mouse control, color sense, creativity, and basic digital literacy through short, visual lessons.

Related lessons

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