The skeleton
Draw a straight stem, then two flat-backed bowls that share it. The upper bowl is roughly two thirds the height of the lower one, and the lower bowl is slightly wider. Get the two counters unequal on purpose — a B with two identical bowls looks mechanical, and one with the lower bowl smaller looks upside down.
What happens when you inflate it
The two tight inside corners where each bowl meets the stem are where inflation does damage. Push the bowls out and those corners fill in, welding the bowls to the stem until the letter is a single blob. Inflate the bowls outward from the stem, and keep a visible notch at both junctions.
What usually goes wrong: The upper bowl gets too big. Beginners draw it at half the height and end up with something closer to a 3. Measure it against the lower bowl rather than against the cap height.
Letters B sits next to
B sits well with R and P, which share its stem-and-bowl construction, and against E and F, whose flat bars make the round bowls read as round. Two Bs in a row are a problem — the double counter repeats and the word looks like it has a stutter.
One thing to try
Bend the stem very slightly outward in the middle. A perfectly straight stem beside two curves looks stiff, and a two or three pixel drift is enough to make the whole letter feel drawn.
How to draw the letter B in four steps
- Sketch the skeleton. Draw a straight stem, then two flat-backed bowls that share it. The upper bowl is roughly two thirds the height of the lower one, and the lower bowl is slightly wider. Get the two counters unequal on purpose — a B with two identical bowls looks mechanical, and one with the lower bowl smaller looks upside down.
- Inflate the strokes. The two tight inside corners where each bowl meets the stem are where inflation does damage. Push the bowls out and those corners fill in, welding the bowls to the stem until the letter is a single blob. Inflate the bowls outward from the stem, and keep a visible notch at both junctions.
- Check the neighbors. B sits well with R and P, which share its stem-and-bowl construction, and against E and F, whose flat bars make the round bowls read as round. Two Bs in a row are a problem — the double counter repeats and the word looks like it has a stutter.
- Add your own twist. Bend the stem very slightly outward in the middle. A perfectly straight stem beside two curves looks stiff, and a two or three pixel drift is enough to make the whole letter feel drawn.
Questions about the letter B
Why does my B look like an 8?
Because the two bowls met in the middle. There needs to be a visible waist where the bowls meet the stem — a notch, not a continuous edge.
Which bowl should be bigger in graffiti lettering?
The lower one. It is a rounder, heavier shape and it carries the letter; making the upper bowl larger makes the letter look top-heavy and unstable.