K in Graffiti Letters
By Maya Chen, lettering designer and type educator · Checked by Jordan Hale · · How we review content
Rendered in the Sedgwick Ave Display typeface, an open-source font. It is a reference shape, not a hand-drawn letter.
K is a spine with an arm and a leg, and its charm is in the flick. The arm and leg meet the spine at a single point, which lets you treat them as a pair of kicks. In graffiti the arm often rises into an arrow and the leg stretches out under the next letter. The risk is clutter at the junction where three strokes meet, which needs thought to keep it from turning into a knot.
Outline version to colour or trace
How to draw a graffiti capital K
- 1Draw a leaning spine, then a diagonal arm from the middle of the spine up to the top right.
- 2Add a leg that leaves the arm near the spine and swings down to the bottom right, longer than the arm.
- 3Thicken the spine first, then the arm and leg, keeping the junction slightly thinner to avoid a blob.
- 4Outline the shape and cut a small notch where the arm meets the spine so the V on the left stays visible.
- 5Finish the arm with an arrow, flick the leg out toward the next letter, then fill, highlight the spine and add a block under the leg.
Tip: Let the leg start from the arm, not the spine. That gives you a clean junction with only two strokes meeting, and the leg gets a more natural kick.
How to draw a graffiti lowercase k
- 1Draw a tall stem with a smaller arm and leg attached at x-height, leaning forward.
- 2Make the arm a short diagonal and the leg a longer swing, both starting at the same point on the stem.
- 3Thicken the strokes, keeping the junction clean and the arm slightly thinner than the leg.
- 4Finish the leg with a flick that points toward the next letter or a block foot for a throw-up.
- 5Outline, fill and add a highlight to the upper left of the stem.
Tip: Lowercase k carries a tall stem, which is the perfect spot for an arrow or a cut-off top.
What makes K awkward or easy
Three strokes meet at one junction, and the outlined version of that junction becomes a dark knot unless you simplify it. The spine looks heavy against two thin diagonals, so it benefits from a bit of slimming, and the arm and leg need different lengths to avoid looking like an X. The open space between the arm and leg is a good place to tuck a neighbouring letter.
Variations
A tag K is two strokes: a line and a quick V. A throw-up K is a fat spine with two chunky diagonals, outlined once. A piece K may use a long arrow on the arm, a swoosh on the leg and a deep block. Wildstyle K tends to wrap its legs around the spine, producing a knot that looks complicated but follows the same skeleton.
Common mistakes with graffiti K
The arm and leg meet at a thick blob on the spine.
Start the leg from the arm and slim the junction so the two diagonals separate clearly.
The arm and leg are the same length and the K looks like an X.
Make the leg longer than the arm so the letter has a lead stroke and a trailing stroke.
The notch between the spine and the arm closes.
Keep a small triangular gap there, and widen the angle between the strokes if needed.
The strokes have different thicknesses without reason.
Match the arm and leg widths, and keep the spine slightly heavier, so the weight is consistent.
Ideas for graffiti K
K shows up in names such as Kai, Kira and Kev, and words like King and Krew. Try drawing the K leg as a series of five flicks, long, short, curled, split and arrowed, and pick the ones that read well beside A, E and O.
Printable graffiti K sheet
Trace the outlines, then fill the empty rows with your own letters.
Graffiti letter K k Name: ____________________ · coolletteringgenerator.com
Graffiti K you can copy and paste
There is no Unicode graffiti alphabet. For close copy-paste styles use bold gothic 𝕶 𝖐, black squares 🅺 and bubble letters Ⓚ ⓚ. They are fixed glyphs, so the leg and arm will not flick the way they do in a sketch.
Graffiti K: questions
How do you draw a graffiti letter K?
How do I stop a K from looking like an X?
How is a lowercase k drawn in graffiti?
Can the leg of a K connect to the next letter?
Keep going
- 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.
- Graffiti GeneratorThis graffiti generator previews your name in five graffiti-style display fonts. Pick tag, marker, bubble, chunky or 3D, then download a PNG to use as a sketch or design base.
- How to Draw Graffiti Letters, From Skeleton to Finished PieceHow to draw graffiti letters: sketch the word in plain capitals, bend each letter's skeleton, add body, arrows, an outline and 3D blocks, then fill and highlight. Start with a bubble throw-up in pencil, and practise on paper or at a legal wall.
- Bubble Letter K: How to Draw Round Diagonal ArmsDraw a bubble letter K with two rounded diagonal arms that touch the stem without fusing, and a lowercase k that stands tall. Mistakes and FAQs.
- How to Write K in Cursive
- K in Different Fonts