L 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.
L is an upright and a foot, and the foot is a gift to anyone who likes linking letters. It runs along the baseline and can slide under the next letter, so L often starts a connection that carries the word forward. The risk is a stiff right angle that looks like a plain ruler, which is why most graffiti Ls bend the foot, tilt the stem or turn the corner into a curve.
Outline version to colour or trace
How to draw a graffiti capital L
- 1Draw a leaning vertical stem and a foot that leaves the bottom at an angle, rising slightly toward the right.
- 2Round or cut the corner where the stem meets the foot, so there is no plain right angle.
- 3Thicken the stem more than the foot, and let the foot taper as it travels right.
- 4Outline the body and keep the space above the foot open, since that gap is the L's only counter.
- 5Finish the foot with an arrow, a flick or a spike, then fill, highlight the left of the stem and add a block under the foot.
Tip: Make the foot at least as long as the stem is wide times three. A stubby foot makes the L look like a post with a bump.
How to draw a graffiti lowercase l
- 1Draw a single tall stem leaning forward, with no foot at all for the plain form.
- 2Thicken it and give the top a cut, arrow or small curl for character.
- 3Add a small flick or kick at the bottom to link it with the next letter.
- 4Outline and fill, leaving the stem the same width from top to bottom.
- 5Add a highlight along the left edge and a block along the right.
Tip: The lowercase l is a plain stem, so it is the one place where decoration at the top and the foot carries the whole letter.
What makes L awkward or easy
L is a hook of two strokes, and the right angle between them looks mechanical. The empty space above the foot makes the letter look unbalanced in a word, so writers fill it with a neighbour's overlap or a stretched arrow. Its straight stem and long foot make it one of the easiest letters to link, and one of the easiest to make dull.
Variations
A tag L is a looped stroke ending in a long flick. A throw-up L is a fat upright with a short foot, outlined once. A piece L might feature a curved foot that wraps under the next two letters, an arrow on the top of the stem and a block along the baseline. Wildstyle L stretches the foot until it holds the whole word together.
Common mistakes with graffiti L
The corner is a sharp right angle that looks like a ruler.
Round the corner or cut it with a diagonal, and tilt the foot slightly upward.
The foot is much thinner than the stem.
Thicken the foot to at least two thirds of the stem's width and taper only at the tip.
The foot runs into the next letter and creates a blob.
Raise the foot or stop it before the neighbour so the outlines do not merge.
The stem is perfectly vertical against leaning letters.
Tilt the stem to match the lean of the rest of the word.
Ideas for graffiti L
L is the first letter in names such as Leo, Lily and Luna, and in words such as Live and Legend. Try drawing a word where only the L foot changes, as a flick, a loop, an arrow and a block, and compare how each shifts the feeling of the whole word.
Printable graffiti L sheet
Trace the outlines, then fill the empty rows with your own letters.
Graffiti letter L l Name: ____________________ · coolletteringgenerator.com
Graffiti L you can copy and paste
There is no graffiti alphabet in Unicode. For copy-paste approximations use bold gothic 𝕷 𝖑, the black square 🅻 or bubble letters Ⓛ ⓛ. They are fixed glyphs, so the foot will not stretch or link the way it does in your sketchbook.
Graffiti L: questions
How do you draw a graffiti letter L?
How do I connect an L to the next letter?
How is a lowercase l different in graffiti?
Why does my L look stiff?
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 L: The Easiest Letter to Practise FirstDraw a bubble letter L in a few quick steps, and see how the lowercase l differs. A good first letter for learning the inflate method.
- How to Write L in Cursive
- L in Different Fonts