Grab your favorite pen and get cozy, because these holiday doodle ideas are perfect for filling up your sketchbook margins or planner pages all season long.
For a beginner, a Christmas tree, tiny snowman, or peppermint candy makes a useful starting point. Build the tree from triangles, the snowman from stacked circles, and the peppermint from one circle. Get the outline down first, then add the decorations or face once you’re happy with the shape.
A pen or pencil and paper are enough for these Christmas and winter drawings. If you’d like a guide before inking, try pencil-first planner doodles with light outlines. Color is optional, so you can keep the whole page in black and white.
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Christmas Doodles
Trees, stockings, presents, and gingerbread people give you plenty of easy Christmas doodles to try with simple shapes. Draw the main outline before adding ornaments, ribbons, or icing. For a small drawing beside your notes, choose just a few details so the shape stays clear.
1. Doodle Christmas Tree
Stack 3 triangles, making each one wider as you work down, then add a short rectangular trunk. A few round ornaments and a small star finish the tree. Leave space between decorations so you can still see the branches when the drawing is small.
2. Santa Hat and Mittens
A bent triangle makes the hat, with a soft cuff underneath and a pom-pom at the tip. Beside it, draw 2 rounded mittens with small thumb bumps. Repeat the same cuff stripes or color across all 3 pieces to make a matching set.
3. Cozy Stocking Doodle
Outline a long stocking with a rounded heel and toe, then add a wide cuff and a little hanging loop. Give this larger stocking a few stripes or one square patch. Keep some fabric areas plain so the decoration doesn’t hide its shape.
4. String of Christmas Lights
Let a loose curved line run above a heading or between 2 planner sections. Add short sockets along the cord, with a rounded bulb hanging from each one. Leave a gap between bulbs so the string stays readable around your writing.
5. Gingerbread Man Doodle
Lightly map out a round head, rounded arms, and 2 short legs, then join them into one cookie outline. Add dot eyes and a smile, with a few icing marks at the wrists and ankles. Rounded hands and feet help these cute Christmas doodles keep their cookie shape.
6. Wrapped Present Stack
Place a small rectangle above a wider box, then add another box slightly in front. Stop the hidden edges where the front present overlaps them. Crossing ribbon lines and looped bows are enough decoration; keep the corners visible so each gift has a clear outline.
7. Holly and Berries Sprig
Draw a small cluster of round berries, then tuck pointed leaves around them and connect everything with a short stem. A single line through each leaf adds enough detail. Angle the sprig into a notebook corner, leaving room for the date or a handwritten name.
Winter Doodles
Snowflakes, warm clothing, cocoa, and pine branches make useful winter doodles after the Christmas decorations come down. Draw each subject on its own, beginning with the largest shape. You can leave out tiny stitches or extra accessories, especially when fitting a drawing into a narrow planner margin.
8. Tiny Snowman Doodle
Build your snowman from 2 or 3 circles, with the largest at the bottom. Add a little carrot-shaped nose, dot eyes, and a scarf made from a narrow band with hanging ends. You can leave the hat and arms out if the face already fills the available space.
9. Falling Snowflakes Pattern
Cross 3 short lines at their centers to make a snowflake with 6 arms, then add small branching strokes near the tips. Repeat the flakes at different sizes down a margin. Leave open paper between them and use a few dots to fill smaller gaps.
10. Cozy Mug of Cocoa
Draw a rounded mug body with a shallow curved top edge, then attach a C-shaped handle at the side. Add a smaller curve inside the handle and a couple of rising steam lines. Keep this side-view mug compact enough to sit beside a morning note.
11. Knit Sweater Doodle
Outline a boxy sweater body with sleeves reaching out to each side, then add a curved neckline and narrow cuffs. A short row of V-shaped marks suggests knitting. Leave most of the body plain so those little stitches stay separate when you draw the sweater small.
12. Pinecone and Pine Branch
Use a tapered oval for the pinecone and a few overlapping curves for its scales. Beside it, draw a short branch with pairs of needle strokes pointing outward. Keep gaps between the scale marks so the cone’s center doesn’t turn into a dark patch.
13. Winter Mitten Doodle
Round off the top of a single mitten, curve out a small thumb, and bring both sides down to a cuff. Add one stripe across the cuff and leave the palm plain. This narrow shape fits beside a list without taking much writing space.
Pair one of these objects with a character from our winter animal doodles, such as a bunny wearing a scarf.
Festive Food Doodles
Candy canes, cookies, gingerbread, and cocoa give you small subjects for a baking-day page or a note about your favorite winter drink. Begin with the treat’s outline, then add stripes, icing, or toppings. A few carefully placed marks can describe the food without filling every space.
14. Candy Cane Swirl
Draw 2 parallel hooked curves, keeping their spacing fairly even around the bend, then join the ends. Add slanted stripes that wrap around the cane and follow its curved top. The tall, narrow shape works along the outside edge of a planner page.
15. Gingerbread House Sketch
A square wall and triangular roof give this little house its starting shape. Add a door and window, then trace a few wavy icing lines along the roof and doorway. Keep the house facing straight toward you so you can concentrate on the decorations.
16. Hot Cocoa with Marshmallows
Begin with an oval rim and curve the cup’s sides down beneath it, adding a handle on one side. Place a few rounded marshmallow shapes inside the opening. Leave parts of the rim visible around the toppings so the marshmallows appear to sit inside the cup.
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17. Christmas Cookie Plate
Sketch an oval plate, then arrange a few star, tree, or round cookie outlines inside its edge. Leave small gaps between the cookies, or erase the hidden lines where they overlap. One icing squiggle or a few dots on each cookie will keep the plate readable.
18. Peppermint Candy Doodle
Begin with a circle and mark its center lightly. Draw curved lines from the center to the edge to divide the candy into broad sections, then color alternate sections if you want stripes. Keep the sections wide enough to see when the peppermint sits beside handwriting.
Holiday Symbols & Icons
A wreath, angel, Star of Bethlehem, bells, stocking border, and sleigh give you Christmas icons for small decorations. Keep each outline clear before adding repeated leaves, rays, or fabric patterns. You can use a single symbol beside a message or repeat a smaller version along a page edge.
19. Doodle Christmas Wreath
Sketch a light circle, then build short evergreen sprigs around the guide, pointing them in the same direction. Add a simple bow where the ends meet. If you’re drawing a larger wreath, leave the center open for an initial or a short Christmas message.
20. Little Angel Sketch
Combine a circular head with a simple bell-shaped dress, then draw a rounded wing on each side. Add a small oval halo above the head if you’d like one. Keep the face to a few marks so there’s enough room for the wings to stay clear.
21. Star of Bethlehem Doodle
For a long-rayed version of the Star of Bethlehem, lightly cross a tall vertical guide with a shorter horizontal one. Build pointed rays around that center, keeping the upper and lower points longest. A few short strokes around the star can suggest a glow.
22. Jingle Bell Cluster
Group 2 or 3 rounded bells beneath a short ribbon, allowing one bell to sit slightly in front. Draw the front outline first and stop the rear bells’ edges where they disappear behind it. Add a curved lower opening to each bell before decorating the ribbon.
23. Christmas Stocking Border
Lightly plan your journal layout in pencil, leaving room for your writing before marking a loose border guide. Repeat tiny stocking shapes along it, with clear gaps between the toes and heels. Add cuff stripes only after you’re happy with the spacing.
24. Santa’s Sleigh Doodle
Draw the sleigh from the side, giving its body a curved front and a raised back. Underneath, add 2 narrow runners with curled tips, leaving a visible gap below the body. Tuck one small gift inside so the sleigh’s outline remains easy to follow.
Try a tree, star, or holly sprig on handmade Christmas gift tags; our Christmas craft collection includes instructions for making and lettering the tags.
For subjects beyond the season, keep these everyday aesthetic doodles handy for another sketchbook session.
Give Your First Doodle a Starting Shape
If you’ve found a doodle you like but you’re hesitating over the first mark, draw only its largest shape. Try 2 circles for a snowman or stacked triangles for a tree, then add one detail at a time. Leave the extra patterns until the outline feels settled.
If you’d like a drawing to follow on paper, the free Cozy Winter Doodle Kit has a cocoa mug broken into 3 steps, with space beside it to try your own. You can have the printable pages emailed to you and keep them handy for your next sketchbook session.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are some easy holiday doodle ideas for beginners?
Try a Christmas tree, tiny snowman, or peppermint candy first. Build the tree from stacked triangles, the snowman from circles, and the candy from a circle with curved stripes. Get the main outline down before adding decorations, and leave out smaller details whenever the drawing starts to feel crowded.
What supplies do I need for holiday doodles?
A pencil or pen and a sheet of paper are enough for the basic drawings. Keep an eraser nearby if you want to adjust pencil outlines. Colored pencils are an optional finishing touch. Before drawing in your planner, try your chosen pen on spare paper to check the line.
How can I fit holiday doodles into planner margins?
Choose a shape that suits the space: a candy cane for a narrow gap, holly for a corner, or Christmas lights above a heading. Mark out the available area lightly before drawing. Keep tiny designs simple, with fewer stripes, berries, or other details beside your writing.
How can I make my holiday doodles look like a matching set?
Use a similar line thickness and level of detail across the drawings. You could repeat striped cuffs on mittens and stockings, or use the same small bow on gifts and wreaths. If you’re adding color, choose a few colors to repeat while leaving some areas of paper visible.
Can I use these ideas as a daily doodle challenge?
Yes. Use the 24 ideas for December 1–24, or begin whenever you feel like drawing. Work through them in order, pick a favorite each day, or draw several together. You can also choose a subject that connects to your day, such as cocoa after a warm drink.
