D in Bubble Letters
By Maya Chen, lettering designer and type educator · Checked by Jordan Hale · · How we review content
Rendered in the Bagel Fat One typeface, an open-source font. It is a reference shape, not a hand-drawn letter.
D is a straight stem with one large bowl, like half a balloon pinned to a ruler. The capital is simple but easy to make lopsided, and the lowercase d is the mirror of b, with its bowl on the left and a tall stem on the right. Most mistakes with this letter come from getting the belly of the bowl too pointed or the lowercase stem too short.
Outline version to colour or trace
How to draw a bubble capital D
- 1Draw a vertical line, then a large half-oval to its right that starts and ends on the stem at the top and bottom.
- 2Make the bowl's widest point sit exactly halfway down so the curve is symmetrical above and below.
- 3Inflate the stem with rounded top and bottom ends, and wrap the bowl in an outline at the same distance as the stem.
- 4Draw the inner counter as a smaller D shape or a plain oval, about a stroke width inside the outer shape.
- 5Erase the skeleton and shade the lower right of the bowl, letting the highlight run down the left side of the stem.
Tip: Where the bowl meets the stem at top and bottom, round the corner a little. A bubble D has no sharp elbows, even at the places where straight meets curved.
How to draw a bubble lowercase d
- 1Draw a circle at x-height and a straight stem on its right edge that rises to the ascender line.
- 2Let the circle overlap the stem slightly so the outlines can merge into one solid shape.
- 3Inflate the circle into a bowl and the stem into a tube with a rounded top, keeping the thickness equal in both.
- 4Draw the inner hole as a circle slightly left of centre, so the wall beside the stem is the thickest part.
- 5Erase the pencil and shade the lower left of the bowl and the left side of the stem's top.
Tip: To avoid confusing d with b, finish the stem before the bowl, then check that the bowl is on the left while the tall line is on the right.
What makes D awkward or easy
The capital D is among the easier bubble letters, with just one counter and a single junction at top and bottom where the bowl meets the stem. The risk is a bowl that looks flat on the right, since D is mostly a straight line plus a curve. The lowercase d is awkward only for people who keep drawing it backwards, and its tall stem must clearly outrun the bowl.
Variations
Graffiti artists often sharpen the bowl into a rounded triangle for a speedier look. A cartoon D can have the counter turned into a window or mouth. Outline-only D is very quick to colour in. In a 3D version the extrusion on the bowl gives a lovely curved side wall, so choose a dark colour for it.
Common mistakes with bubble D
The bowl is flat on the right, like a squashed D.
Draw the bowl as a true half-circle first, then widen it only if you need to. A flat belly breaks the balloon look.
The top and bottom corners of D are sharp.
Curve both junctions with a small radius. The stem and the bowl should flow into each other without an angle.
The lowercase d has a short stem and looks like an a.
Extend the stem to the same height as your capital letters, so it is clearly the tallest part of the letter.
The inner counter is lopsided and thick on one side.
Mark the counter's outline with the same stroke width as the outer wall, and measure at top, middle and bottom before inking.
Ideas for bubble D
D works for names such as Daisy, Dev and Dina, and for a classroom door that spells DAY or DOOR. A huge bubble D with a face in its counter makes a friendly dinosaur or dog starter. In a sticker sheet, D is often paired with a drop shadow because the heavy belly takes shading well.
Printable bubble D sheet
Trace the outlines, then fill the empty rows with your own bubble letters.
Bubble letter D d Name: ____________________ · coolletteringgenerator.com
Bubble D you can copy and paste
The circled shapes are Ⓓ and ⓓ, and 🅓 is the black-circled capital, with no lowercase version in black. Unlike your hand-drawn D, the character has no stem and no bowl, only a D sitting inside a ring, so it cannot show the straight-versus-round contrast.
Bubble D: questions
How do you draw a bubble letter D?
What does a lowercase bubble d look like?
How do I tell a bubble d from a b?
Why does my bubble D look lopsided?
Keep going
- Bubble Letters AlphabetThe bubble letters alphabet is the full A to Z of thick, rounded, inflated-looking letters, in uppercase and lowercase, with the numbers 0 to 9. Everything here is free to view, print and trace, with no sign-up. Pick a letter to learn how to draw it, or print the outline sheet to colour.
- Printable Bubble Letter GeneratorThis bubble letter generator turns your word into hollow outline letters in four fat fonts. Download the PNG, then print it to trace over or colour in.
- How to Draw Bubble Letters, Step by StepHow to draw bubble letters: write the word in thin capitals, draw a rounded outline around each as if inflated, ink it, erase the skeleton, then shade, highlight and colour. Round every corner and keep the outline thickness even.
- How to Write D in Cursive
- D in Different Fonts
- Graffiti AlphabetThe graffiti alphabet is a set of bold, connected letters that are deliberately distorted so they look fast, large and hard to copy. This page gives an A to Z reference, explains how graffiti letters are built in layers, and tells tags, throw-ups, pieces and wildstyle apart before you draw your own.