How to Draw Skulls: The Beginner’s Step-by-Step Guide to Drawing Skulls for Teens & Adults
If you’ve always wanted to draw skulls but weren’t sure where to start, this book was made for you. How to Draw Skulls by Vault Editions takes 40 iconic skull designs — from precise anatomical studies to bold, imaginative compositions — and breaks each one down into a clear, approachable 12-step process, developed by a professional illustrator and designed specifically for beginners.
Each tutorial starts with basic geometry and walks you through every stage — proportion, structure, and the finishing details that give each design its character. The 12-step process is designed to be accessible and confidence-building, so every tutorial you complete makes the next one feel more achievable. And with a free digital PDF included, you can work through the book on your tablet or take it with you wherever you draw.
What Makes This Skull Drawing Book Different?
Most how-to-draw guides treat skulls as a single subject, describing basic compositions and straightforward perspectives. How to Draw Skulls from Vault Editions goes much further. The book covers two distinct areas. First, the fundamentals; you'll learn to draw skulls from multiple angles and perspectives, building a solid understanding of skull anatomy and structure. Then it goes further, teaching you how to incorporate skulls into dynamic compositions: flames, snakes, spiders, bat wings, roses, and more. By the time you've worked through the book, you'll have the tools to create your own original skull-based designs.
The book was illustrated by Syadat Baihaqi, founder of Blasphemy Ink Studio and one of the most distinctive illustrators working in the heavy metal and dark art scene today. He specialises in work for musicians and bands, producing posters, merchandise, and album artwork loaded with atmosphere and technical precision. Syadat is also the artist behind several other titles in the Vault Editions How to Draw series, including How to Draw Dinosaurs, How to Draw Dragons, and How to Draw Monsters and Beasts.
What’s Inside the Book?
40 Skull Designs Across Every Style and Category
From anatomically accurate studies to richly symbolic compositions, this book covers the full range of skull art:
What you’ll learn to draw:
Skull - Frontal View · Frontal Skull - Rotated Forward · Frontal Skull - Rotated Backward · Frontal Skull - Angled View with Open Jaw · Frontal Skull - Underside Perspective · Skull - Profile View with Open Jaw · Skull - Profile View with Jaw Closed · Skull - Underside Profile View with Jaw Dropped · Decaying Skull · Skull & Snake · Skull & Anchor · Skull & Crossbones · Skull & Scythe · Skull & Sword · Skull & Bat Wings · Skull & Arrows · Skull & Candle · Skull & Roses · Skull & Fungi · Skull with Pipe · Cloaked Skull · Flaming Skull · Horned Skull · Winged Skull · Sugar Skull · Butterfly Skull · Crowned Skull · Skull Flower · Skull Heart · Skull with Crown of Thorns · Skull with Flower Garland · Skull with Laurel Wreath · Mystic Skull with Third Eye · Memento Mori · Skull Spider · Skull in Medieval Helmet · Skeleton Key · Skull Gripped by Claw · Skeletons Embracing · Pile of Skulls
Skull - Frontal View · Frontal Skull - Rotated Forward · Frontal Skull - Rotated Backward · Frontal Skull - Angled View with Open Jaw · Frontal Skull - Underside Perspective · Skull - Profile View with Open Jaw · Skull - Profile View with Jaw Closed · Skull - Underside Profile View with Jaw Dropped · Decaying Skull · Skull & Snake · Skull & Anchor · Skull & Crossbones · Skull & Scythe · Skull & Sword · Skull & Bat Wings · Skull & Arrows · Skull & Candle · Skull & Roses · Skull & Fungi · Skull with Pipe · Cloaked Skull · Flaming Skull · Horned Skull · Winged Skull · Sugar Skull · Butterfly Skull · Crowned Skull · Skull Flower · Skull Heart · Skull with Crown of Thorns · Skull with Flower Garland · Skull with Laurel Wreath · Mystic Skull with Third Eye · Memento Mori · Skull Spider · Skull in Medieval Helmet · Skeleton Key · Skull Gripped by Claw · Skeletons Embracing · Pile of Skulls
The Vault Editions 12-Step Drawing Process
Every design in the book is taught using the signature Vault Editions 12-step method — a structured, repeatable process that breaks complex forms into manageable stages. You start with the most basic geometric shapes and build through proportion and structure, finally to the surface detail and decorative elements that define each design. Each step builds logically on the last, so there’s never a moment where the complexity jumps without warning.
Here’s a look at the Skull - Frontal View tutorial, explaining how you can go from a single circle in step one to a fully realised anatomical illustration by step 12:
And here’s the Frontal Skull with Angled View and Open Jaw tutorial, which demonstrates how the 12 step drawing method handles perspective and foreshortening — note how the proportions are locked in from the earliest steps before any detail is introduced:
This simple 12 step approach makes it ideal for:
- Complete beginners who’ve never drawn skulls or anatomy before
- Tattoo apprentices looking to develop a strong foundation in skull design.
- Intermediate artists wanting to tackle more complex and imaginative compositions
- Digital artists who want a structured workflow to adapt in Procreate or other apps.
- Illustrators and designers working in dark art, heavy metal, or gothic aesthetics
Pro Tips Throughout
Every design comes with a practical Pro Tip — focused guidance on topics such as understanding skull anatomy, refining composition, managing symmetry, and improving the flow of decorative elements, they’re the kind of insight that comes from a working illustrator with years of professional experience.
The Digital Download Package
Your purchase also includes a free digital download containing:
- Custom Procreate brush set — liners and shaders optimised specifically for drawing skulls, so you can work digitally straight away.
- Free digital copy of the book — perfect for drawing alongside on your tablet
- Printable gridded practice workbook — designed to support your progression as you work through each design
This makes the book equally useful whether you work traditionally with pencil and paper or entirely digitally.
Who Is This Book For?
This book is built for anyone drawn to the darker side of illustration — fans of tattoo art, fantasy genres, heavy metal visuals, and the gothic aesthetic. You don’t need any prior drawing experience to start. But by the time you finish, you’ll have worked through 40 professional-level designs and built a genuine foundation in skull illustration composition.
Explore the Full Vault Editions How to Draw Series
How to Draw Skulls is part of a growing library of drawing guides from Vault Editions, each illustrated by world-class artists from the dark art and illustration scene. Other titles in the series illustrated by Syadat include:
Each book uses the same 12-step method and includes a digital download with Procreate brushes and a practice workbook.
Explore the full Vault Editions How to Draw series.
Ready to Start Drawing?
Whether you’re picking up a pencil for the first time or adding a new subject to an existing creative practice, this book gives you everything you need to draw skulls and build your skills from day one.
Vault Editions publishes premium illustrated drawing guides for teens and adults. Browse the full How to Draw series.
