How to Draw Hands Holding Chopsticks Step by Step

This tutorial shows how to draw hands holding chopsticks in four different positions. It can apply to traditional art as well as anime and manga.

Chopsticks are a very common item in anime and manga when it comes to scenes involving food. Various characters can be seen using them in school lunches, home dinners, eating out and more. However drawing such hand poses in different views can be quite complex.

To help make drawing process easier to understand this tutorial shows a step by step breakdown of some of the more common poses/views of hands holding chopsticks.

Some of the situations these can be used in are:

• Handing food to someone else
• Eating normally
• Looking at the hand
• “Stuffing” one’s face

Please note that this tutorial is slightly more advanced and does not cover drawing hands as in depth as some other here on AnimeOutline. For a more detailed breakdown of drawing hands (positioning of the joints, etc…) see:

How to Draw Anime and Manga Hands Step by Step

For drawing hands holding other objects see:

6 Ways to Draw Anime Hands Holding Something

Also note that you will need to do some erasing between the various steps. For this reason it’s recommended that you use a pencil if drawing on paper and make very light lines until the final stage of each pose.

Drawing Chopsticks for Character Eating

This view of the hand holding chopsticks can be used for simply drawing a character that’s eating/grabbing food form their plate.

Step 1 – Draw Part of the Palm/Fingers

Start by drawing one side of the palm as well as the combined shape of the middle, ring and little finger as shown in the example above.

The goal is to get the overall proportions and shape of the different parts of the hand without any of the smaller details.

Step 2 – Draw the Index Finger/Thumb & Other Par of the Palm

Add the index finger and part of the thumb showing from behind it and the fingers. Also add the other side of the palm between the first part and the fingers.

Step 3 – Draw the Individual Fingers

Draw the individual fingers as well as the knuckles. Add the fingers starting with the index followed by the ring and little finger. Erase any extra/overlapping lines left over from the outline drawing after you are done.

Step 4 – Draw the Arm

Going down from the hand add part of the arm. You can do this with just two lines.

Step 5 – Add the Chopsticks

Add the chopsticks with one positioned behind the index finger and the other one going roughly from the knuckle of the index finger to the upper tip of the middle finger.

As the chopsticks are partially hidden by the hand you may wish to draw them as though the hand is see through. You can then erase the part that should be behind the fingers. This way you can avoid having misaligned looking chopstick ends.

For more on this and some other common drawing mistakes see:

Common Mistakes When Drawing Anime & Manga

Step 6 – Finish the Hand Drawing

To finish the drawing add the fingersnails as well as some curved lines to emphasize the join areas and give a hint of the wrinkles they tend to have.

After adding the small details you can go over the entire drawing with darker lines.

Drawing Chopsticks for “Looking at Own Hand”

This view/pose of the hand can be used for a character looking at their own hand and ready to put something in their mouth. Basically a first person view of the hand/chopsticks.

Step 1 – Draw the Base of the Hand

Start by drawing a basic outline of the palm of the hand along with the base of the thumb.

Step 2 – Draw the Index & Thumb

Onto the palm add the outline of the index finger and thumb without any of the smaller details such as wrinkles or fingernails. Draw the thumb and finger overlapping the outline of the palm and then erase the parts that should be covered by them.

Step 3 – Draw the Fingers

Finish the basic drawing of the hand by adding the rest of the fingers as shown in the example above. Keep in mind that the fingers will be “stacked” on top of one another so start with the middle finger followed by the ring finger and then the little finger/pinky.

Step 4 – Finish the Base of the Hand

Below the palm add just a pair of lines to show part of the arm.

Step 5 – Add the Chopsticks

Finally add the chopsticks with one between the index finger an the tip of the thumb and the other between the bend of the thumb and the tip of the middle finger.

In this view the chopsticks will be pointing slightly towards the viewer and therefore should be drawn shorter due to their angle. For example if you were to hold the stick pointing directly at your eyes it would pretty much appear as just a circle. If you are to tilt it it will start appearing longer until you look directly at it’s side.

For more on this see:

Perspective Drawing Tutorial for Beginners and How it Relates to Anime

Step 6 – Finish the Hand Drawing

To finish the drawing add the smaller the details such as the fingernails. You can also add some curves around the joints to emphasize their positioning and create a hint of the wrinkles that tend to be in those areas.

You can go over your drawing with darker lines after you finish placing all of the details.

Drawing Chopsticks for “Stuffing Face With Food”

This pose is often used when a character is eating really fast, often in comical scenes. They hold the chopsticks side by side and use them more like a spoon to quickly “shovel” food into their mouth.

Step 1 – Draw the Outline of the Fist

Begin by drawing a simple outline of the fist without the thumb. Draw it winder towards the bottom area (knuckles) and narrower towards the top.

Step 2 – Draw the Fingers

Add the individual fingers inside the shape of the fist and afterwards erase parts of the outline from the previous step where needed.

To show that the hand is slightly clenched draw the fingers lightly tilted in the direction away from the thumb.

Step 3 – Draw the Thumb

Add an outline of the thumb as shown in the example above.

Step 4 – Draw the Knuckles

Draw the bumps of the knuckles as shown in the above example and again erase parts of the outline from the first step where needed.

Step 5 – Add the Chopsticks

Because of how they are held and when viewed at this angle one of the chopsticks will be pretty much hidden behind the other. You can draw the background chopsticks just barely “peeking out” form the front one.

Step 6 – Finish the Hand Drawing

Add the smaller details of the hand. In this case these can be just part of the nail of the thumb along with a hint of the bone of the knuckle of the middle finger.

You can also add a few curves around the visible joints of the fingers and the thumb.

You an trace over your drawing with darker lines after you’re finished.

Drawing the Hand Holding Chopsticks in Side View

This is a fairly standard pose of the hand holding chopsticks. It offers a fairly good view of the hand and is often used in advertising.

In anime and manga you can use this view in many situations such as the characters looking at their own hand. One very common scene you can use it for it when one character is giving food to another.

Step 1 – Draw the Base of the Hand

Draw the palm of the hand along with an outline of the base of the thumb.

At this angle their combined shapes should be wider towards the fingers and narrower towards the wrist.

Step 2 – Draw the Index Finger & Thumb

Onto the the previous shapes add the outlines of the thumb and index finger. Erase any extra/overlapping lines afterwards so that you have a drawing similar to the example above.

Step 3 – Draw the Rest of the Fingers

Behind the index finger/thumb draw the rest of the fingers as shown in the example above. While not shown in the example you may want to first draw these as though the index and thumb are transparent and then erase the hidden lines afterwards. This can help you avoid misaligned looking finger parts.

Step 4 – Draw the Arm

Onto the palm add part of the arm along with a tiny part of the other side of the palm showing around the area where the hand transitions into the wrist.

This little bit will be visible because the palm of the hand will curve when in this position.

Step 5 – Add the Chopsticks

Add the chopsticks with one between the tip of the thumb and index finger and the other one lower down between the middle and ring fingers.

Similar to previous example you can draw the sticks overlapping the outline of the hand and then erase any parts that should be hidden by them afterwards.

Step 6 – Finish the Hand Drawing

Add the fingernails as well as well as the wrinkles and folds around the joints. As the fingers are slightly bent the folds/wrinkles on the inner side of the hand will be more pronounced and more numerous.

Once you believe everything is in the right place trace over your drawing with darker lines. You can make the lines thicker wherever you want to show deeper wrinkles/folds and thinner for the smaller ones.

Conclusion

Hands are one of the most complex body parts to draw. This is especially so in when it comes to drawing hands in complex poses from various angles. To make the drawing process easier it can be very helpful to take a step by step approach that begins with simplified larger shapes and goes down to the smaller details.

For more tutorial on drawing hands see:

• How to Draw Hand Poses Step by Step
• How to Draw a Handshake Step by Step
• How to Draw a Thumbs Up (6 Easy Steps)

For tutorial on drawing food see:

• How to Draw a Rice Bowl Step by Step
• How to Draw Different Types of Sushi Step by Step
• How to Draw Anime Style Food & Lunch Box