How to Use Tracing Paper

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Transfer images easily with this art guide

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• Tracing Your Drawing
|
• Transferring Your Drawing
|
• Transferring with Charcoal
|
• Q&A

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Tracing paper is a semi-transparent paper you can use to trace an image or drawing. Once you've traced an image onto tracing paper, you can easily transfer it to another piece of paper or even a canvas without having to erase and redraw it over and over again. We chatted with art specialist and educator Kathy Leader to find out the best way to trace and transfer your artwork to make every sketch into a gorgeous finished product.

Things You Should Know

• Place a sheet of tracing paper over your drawing and tape down the edges so it doesn’t shift.
• Trace the drawing onto the tracing paper with a graphite pencil. Focus on transferring the lines rather than the shading.
• Place the tracing paper face-down onto a blank sheet and use a hard object like the back of your pencil to rub the traced drawing onto the blank paper.

Steps

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Tracing Your Drawing

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1. 
   1
   Place a sheet of tracing paper over your drawing and tape it in place. Make sure the tracing paper is flat and that the entire image is covered by the tracing paper. Then use masking tape or painter’s tape to secure the edges of the tracing paper to your drawing surface.

   • For easier tracing, work on top of a light box, or even tape both drawings to a window to let the light illuminate them from behind.
   • If you don’t have tracing paper, use culinary parchment paper instead.
2. 
   2
   Trace the original image onto the tracing paper with a graphite pencil. Use a soft graphite pencil to carefully follow the lines of the original image. Don’t worry about tracing the shading in the original image. Focus on copying all the lines from the original image onto the tracing paper.

   • Don’t use a pen, marker, or colored pencil or you won’t be able to transfer your traced image onto another sheet of paper.
   • If the tracing paper slips out of place as you’re working, line it back up using the lines you’ve already traced.
   • Erase mistakes with an eraser, but be gentle so you don't tear the tracing paper.
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3. 
   3
   Remove the tracing paper. Peel off the tape that was holding the tracing paper in place, and set the sheet of tracing paper next to the original image. Look at the two side by side and make sure you copied all the important lines.

   • If you notice you missed a spot, place the tracing paper back over the original drawing and trace over the line you missed.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Transferring Your Drawing

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1. 
   1
   Tape your traced drawing face down onto your new medium. Flip your tracing paper over so that the graphite marks touch the new surface, like a blank sheet of sketchbook paper. Tape the tracing paper down at the corners with making tape or painter’s tape.

   • Make sure your tracing paper lines up with the new sheet of paper below it, so that the entire drawing will transfer.
2. 
   2
   Rub the back of the traced drawing to transfer it onto the medium below. Use your pencil, the end of a marker, or another hard, smooth object. Apply firm pressure and rub over all of the lines in your traced drawing. This presses the graphite on the tracing paper onto the paper beneath it.
3. 
   3
   Remove the tracing paper and touch up the transferred drawing. Peel off the tape and set the tracing paper aside. You’ll see a faded copy of the drawing you traced on the new sheet of paper. Fill in any lines that may not have been transferred with your pencil. Then, use a pen, marker, or paint to go over the pencil and complete the drawing.

   • Note that the finished transfer will be a mirror image of the original work.
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Transferring a Drawing with Charcoal

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1. 
   1
   Cover a blank sheet of tracing paper in charcoal. Use a charcoal stick or a charcoal pencil to cover a blank sheet of paper, coating it with an even layer of shading. You don’t need tracing paper for this method—use sketch paper, newspaper, or any other type.
2. 
   2
   Tape the charcoal-covered paper face-down onto blank paper. Turn over the paper you scribbled charcoal onto and place it on top of your new medium, like a blank sheet of sketchbook paper. Tape the corners down with masking tape or painter’s tape.

   • Make sure the charcoal-covered side touches the blank paper.
3. 
   3
   Place the original drawing face-up on the charcoal paper and trace it. Set the drawing you want to trace face-up on top of the other 2 sheets. Then, art specialist Kathy Leader says to use a pencil or pen to go over the lines, and to “press hard on the lines so that the graphite transfers to the paper.”

   • Trace over your original drawing in colored pen or pencil to keep track of which lines you’ve traced already.
4. 
   4
   Remove the charcoal paper and the original drawing. Peel off the tape, then set the top 2 sheets of paper aside, revealing the transferred drawing. Touch it up or shade it in with a pencil, pen, or whatever medium you like.
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Community Q&A

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• Question

  How do I transfer my image from the tracing paper to another paper without the image ending up backwards?

  

  Community Answer

  Flip your tracing over and cover the drawing area part of it with a layer of graphite. Use an HB pencil. Then flip your tracing over and position it on your drawing paper. Put a second piece of tracing paper over the first piece, so that you can clearly see your first trace and retrace the drawing. Use a sharp H or 2H pencil. Use medium pressure. The result will be a transfer image of your original tracing onto the drawing paper, a mirror image.

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• Question

  Is a mechanical pencil acceptable to use? Or is a graphite pencil strictly required?

  

  Community Answer

  Mechanical pencils are graphite pencils. Most pencils are HB, your mechanical pencil likely is too.

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• Question

  How can I trace something onto a waterproof page?

  

  Community Answer

  You can trace by putting the image you want under the waterproof page and tracing it. If you can't see your image, put the image and waterproof paper on a light source.

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Video

Things You’ll Need

Tracing Your Drawing

• Tracing paper
• Masking tape
• Graphite pencil

Transferring a Drawing with Charcoal

• Charcoal stick or charcoal pencil

Tips

• Feel free to use your tracing paper multiple times to transfer the same drawing to different surfaces, though you may need to retrace the image.
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