Draw of Christmas: Classic and Modern Art Styles

Christmas drawings can be created in an astonishing variety of artistic styles. From traditional ink sketches and watercolor paintings to sleek digital illustrations made on a tablet, each approach brings a unique charm. This article explores classic vs modern art techniques for holiday drawings, offering plenty of holiday art inspiration for both beginners and seasoned artists. We’ll compare the nostalgic warmth of traditional media with the vibrant flexibility of digital art, weigh their pros and cons, and even suggest how you can combine both styles creatively. By the end, you’ll have a clearer idea of how to draw Christmas scenes in digital or traditional media (or both!) to suit your personal style.
Classic Christmas Drawing Styles (Traditional Media)
Classic Christmas art styles use time-honored tools like pencils, ink pens, and paintbrushes. These traditional techniques create a nostalgic, hand-crafted feel that many associate with the holiday season. Here are a few popular classic styles and their characteristics:
Pencil Sketches & Ink Drawings: A simple pencil or pen can produce wonderfully nostalgic Christmas drawings. Think of an old-fashioned sketch of Santa Claus or a reindeer – perhaps reminiscent of 19th-century illustrations. Pencil and ink allow for fine line work and shading. Techniques like cross-hatching (with pen) or soft graphite shading (with pencil) can convey cozy detail. These drawings often have an emotional warmth; every stroke is the artist’s direct hand at work. Classic ink illustrations (like Thomas Nast’s famous 1881 Santa Claus) have a timeless quality that evokes vintage Christmas cards and storybooks.
Watercolor Paintings: Watercolor is a beloved traditional medium for holiday art. Artists dilute pigments with water to create translucent layers of color. A Christmas tree in watercolor might have gentle gradients of green and glowing yellow for lights, bleeding softly into one another. Watercolors excel at mood and atmosphere – for example, a snowy winter landscape can be painted with loose, flowing washes that give a dreamy, nostalgic tone. This technique often reminds viewers of classic greeting cards from childhood, with their soft, muted colors and hand-painted charm.
Colored Pencils & Pastels: Colored pencils and pastels offer another traditional way to capture Christmas scenes. They allow mixing and layering of colors by hand. An artist might create a warm fireplace Christmas scene with pastels, blending reds and oranges for the fire’s glow against a green garland, or use colored pencils for a detailed drawing of a Christmas wreath. These tools give a slightly textured, grainy look on paper that enhances the homey, nostalgic feel of the artwork.
Traditional styles generally carry a nostalgic and personal tone. The small imperfections in an ink line or the grain of watercolor paper showing through the paint add character to the piece. Many people feel traditional art has a tangible warmth – the artwork exists as a physical object you can hold or frame, which can make it feel more intimate. Classic Christmas drawings often emphasize sentimentality and tradition, making viewers think of vintage holiday imagery and simpler times.
Modern Digital Christmas Drawing Styles (Digital Media)
In contrast to the classic methods, modern Christmas art often involves digital tools and techniques. With the advent of tablets, drawing software, and vector illustration programs, artists can create stunning holiday images on a screen. Modern digital styles are known for their vibrant colors, crisp lines, and versatility. Here are key aspects of modern Christmas drawing styles:
Vector Illustrations: Vector art (created in programs like Adobe Illustrator or Inkscape) uses shapes and paths to create images. A modern Christmas vector illustration might depict a Santa Claus or a Christmas tree in a clean, cartoon-like style with bold, flat colors. The advantage of vector art is scalability – your Christmas design can be printed on a small card or a huge poster without losing quality. This style is popular for holiday greeting cards and web graphics because of its clarity and brightness. For example, an artist might draw a playful reindeer with simple geometric shapes, solid fills, and maybe a minimalist background of snowflakes – a style that feels fresh and contemporary.
Digital Painting: Digital painting involves using software (like Adobe Photoshop, Procreate on iPad, or Clip Studio Paint) that simulates a canvas. Artists paint with digital brushes that can mimic oils, acrylics, or airbrush effects. A digital painting of a Christmas scene can be incredibly rich: imagine a hyper-detailed Santa’s workshop with glowing lights and shadows, or a stylized snowy night sky full of stars, all done with digital brush strokes. Modern digital art allows for blending, layering, and effects (like glowing light effects for candles or Christmas tree lights) that are harder to achieve quickly with traditional media. The colors in digital art are often very vibrant (thanks to backlit screens) and you can easily adjust tones or try bold color palettes that pop.
Tablet Drawing & Procreate Art: Many artists now sketch and draw directly on tablets with a stylus. Apps like Procreate (on iPad) or SketchBook allow for quick, on-the-go creation. The style range is huge – one artist might do a cute digital doodle of a snowman in a loose, hand-drawn style, while another creates a polished illustration of a family by the Christmas tree with near-photorealistic detail. Digital drawing often combines line art and coloring seamlessly. For example, you can draw clean line art for a Christmas ornament and then add perfectly staying-inside-the-lines color on a layer beneath. You can also use textured brushes that emulate real watercolor or ink, blending some of that classic feel into a digital piece.
Modern digital styles are incredibly flexible. You can zoom in for details, undo mistakes with a tap, and experiment freely without wasting materials. This flexibility encourages creativity: artists might try three different backgrounds for a holiday scene to see which looks best, or easily move elements around (like repositioning a Christmas star in a sky). The sharing potential is another huge benefit – once the digital artwork is finished, it’s easy to share it online on social media or send it to friends in seconds. In an age where many enjoy exchanging digital holiday greetings, modern digital art techniques shine. At the same time, digital art can mimic traditional styles too. There are digital watercolor brushes and ink pens that look surprisingly like the real thing. This means a modern Christmas drawing can have the appearance of classic media (say, a “watercolor” Christmas card made entirely in Procreate) while retaining the conveniences of digital creation. This blend of style is a hallmark of today’s art scene: artists freely mix and match to achieve the desired look.
Classic vs Modern: Pros and Cons of Each Style
Both traditional and digital approaches have their strengths and challenges. Here’s a quick comparison of the pros and cons of classic vs modern art techniques for Christmas drawings: Traditional Art – Pros:
Tangible & Nostalgic: You get a physical original piece of art. A hand-painted Christmas illustration can be framed as a one-of-a-kind keepsake. The textures (like rough paper or thick paint) are real, not simulated, giving a warm, authentic feel.
Simple Tools, Low Tech: Starting out with traditional art can be as easy as a pencil and paper – very low cost of entry and no complex software to learn. Many find drawing with real tools more intuitive (you’ve been using crayons since childhood, after all).
Emotional Connection: Viewers often feel a personal connection to traditional artwork. Seeing brushstrokes or pencil lines reminds them that a human hand crafted it. People are often amazed by skilled traditional drawings and paintings in person and feel more connected to them​
medium.com
​
medium.com
.
Relaxing Process: For the artist, working with traditional media can be meditative. There’s no screen glare or notifications, just you and your sketchbook by the cozy light of a lamp (you could even draw by candlelight on a winter night!). It’s a nice way to unplug and get into the holiday spirit.
Traditional Art – Cons:
Harder to Edit: Mistakes can be difficult to fix – there’s no “undo” button. If ink lines go astray or watercolor washes bleed unpredictably, you often have to adapt or start over. Adjusting a composition (say, making a tree taller or changing a character’s pose) means erasing or redrawing by hand, which isn’t always easy.
Materials & Mess: Art supplies can be costly over time. Quality paper, paints, brushes, and pens add up. Also, traditional art can be messy (spilled ink or paint water, anyone?) and requires cleanup and space to dry if you’re painting.
Sharing & Reproducing: To share a traditional drawing online or make prints, you need to digitize it (scanning or photographing), which can be an extra step. Without a good scan, details or colors might not come through accurately. The original art is also one-of-a-kind; if it gets damaged or lost, it’s gone for good.
Portability: Carrying a sketchbook and pencil is easy, but transporting a whole set of paints, easel, etc., is less so. If you travel during the holidays, doing a watercolor on a plane is trickier than doodling on a tablet. Traditional artists are somewhat limited by needing the right space and lighting to work (though a small sketchbook is always handy).
Digital Art – Pros:
Easy to Edit & Experiment: Digital art offers unmatched flexibility. You can undo mistakes instantly, use layers to separate elements (draw a tree on one layer and presents on another, for example), and try countless color variations without repainting from scratch. This makes it easier to iterate and refine your Christmas drawing until it’s just right.
All-in-One Toolkit: With digital software, you have a vast array of tools and effects in one device. You can switch from an “oil paint” brush to an “airbrush” or add text, all without buying new supplies. Want snowflake patterns or perfect circles for ornaments? Digital tools can do that with ease. This efficiency means full-color artwork is faster and cleaner to produce​
medium.com
.
Sharing & Publishing: Once your artwork is done, sharing it is immediate. You can email a high-resolution Christmas illustration to a friend or post it on Instagram without any loss of quality. Digital files are also easy to resize and format for different uses (a design can quickly become a card, a social media post, or even an animation).
Cost Effective Long-Term: While the initial cost of a tablet or software can be high, digital art can save money long-term​
medium.com
​
medium.com
. You’re not repeatedly buying paper, markers, or paint. If you draw a lot of holiday art every year, going digital might actually be cheaper over time. Plus, you won’t run out of your favorite color – digital paint is infinite!
Portable Studio: A tablet or laptop is a compact studio you can carry anywhere. Whether you’re at a café or traveling for the holidays, you can work on your Christmas drawings on the go. There’s no need to lug around a toolbox of supplies – a digital device contains everything you need.
Digital Art – Cons:
Steep Learning Curve & Tech Issues: Learning to use advanced art software can take time, especially for beginners. Layer masks, vector paths, brush settings – it can be overwhelming compared to picking up a pencil. There’s also the frustration of technical glitches: software crashes, battery dying mid-sketch, or stylus calibration issues. And if you’re not tech-savvy, even setting up your digital tablet can be a hurdle.
High Initial Cost: Getting into digital art often means investing in expensive equipment (a good tablet, a stylus, possibly a computer and software subscriptions). This can be a barrier for some artists. Traditional art, by comparison, might only require a few dollars for basic supplies up front.
Intangible Output: With digital creations, you don’t have a physical original. Some artists miss the satisfaction of holding a painting or sketch. While you can print digital art, it’s not quite the same as an original painting with layered paint textures. This also means you can’t sell an “original” piece (though you can sell prints or NFTs in the digital realm).
Less Hands-On Feeling: Drawing on glass with a stylus or using a mouse can feel less tactile than paper and pencil. Some artists feel there’s a slight disconnect in digital – you don’t feel the tooth of the paper or the resistance of a brush on canvas. It can also be less immersive if the temptations of the device distract you (it’s easy to tab over to social media or get notifications while you work, which might interrupt your creative flow​
medium.com
).
Eyestrain & Comfort: Digital art means screen time. Hours of staring at a bright screen can strain your eyes, and hand-eye coordination is different on a tablet. Traditional art has a more natural physical feedback (and no blue light). Artists need to take breaks to avoid eye fatigue when working digitally.
In summary, classic vs modern art styles each have advantages. Traditional art provides a personal, nostalgic experience with a physical result, while digital art provides incredible versatility and convenience. Neither is “better” across the board – it often comes down to what you enjoy and the effect you want in your Christmas drawing. In fact, many artists use a mix of both to get the best of both worlds!
Blending Traditional and Digital Styles Creatively
Why choose one when you can do both? Blending classic and modern techniques is a popular and highly creative approach. As one illustrator observed, “there are some looks that can only be achieved by using traditional media and in turn digital media”. By combining them, you can create art that is truly unique – capturing the qualities of traditional art and the flexibility of digital editing. Here are some creative ways to combine traditional and digital styles for your Christmas drawings:
Hand-Drawn Sketch, Digital Color: Start with a pencil sketch on paper to plan your idea. The sketch gives you that loose, organic feel. Then scan or photograph the drawing and import it into a digital program to add color and polish. For example, you could sketch a Christmas tree with presents by hand, then digitally paint in rich colors and add a glowing star on top. This method preserves your original line work (and that classic vibe) while leveraging the vibrant coloring and effects possible digitally. Many comic artists and illustrators use this hybrid approach – hand-drawn lines combined with digital coloring – to get a lively yet refined result.
Digital Drafting, Traditional Finish: The reverse works too. You can plan or rough out a composition digitally (taking advantage of easy resizing or trying multiple layouts), then print the outline lightly onto art paper and paint over it with real paints or inks. For instance, you might block in the shapes of a snowy landscape on a tablet to nail down the composition, print it in light blue on watercolor paper, and then paint the final piece in watercolor on top of that guide. This way you’ve used digital tools to save time on planning, but the final artwork has genuine painted texture. It’s like having a high-tech sketch under your classic painting.
Digital Textures + Traditional Elements: Another approach is to create or find traditional textures and incorporate them into digital art. You could splash some real ink on paper or create a watercolor wash of wintery blues, then scan those and use them as background texture layers in a digital Christmas illustration. Conversely, you might print a digital design onto canvas and then add real brushstrokes or metallic gold highlights by hand for a mixed-media effect. Scrapping together bits of paper, fabric, or stamped patterns, and then assembling or touching up the collage digitally, is also a fun mixed technique. The result is a piece with depth and character that blurs the line between old and new.
Many artists report that working in both media helps them overcome creative blocks. If you’re feeling stuck digitally, try stepping away and doodling in a sketchbook – you might find it refreshingly relaxing and intuitive​
medium.com
. On the other hand, if a traditional painting isn’t turning out as you hoped, you can scan it and tweak colors or add details digitally instead of scrapping it entirely. Remember, there’s no one “right” way to combine styles. Feel free to experiment and find a workflow that suits you. Some artists start with a digital sketch and then add traditional techniques, while others begin traditionally and finish with digital polish​
medium.com
. By mixing media, you can achieve effects that purely traditional or purely digital art might struggle with. For example, you might capture the unpredictable beauty of a real watercolor wash and the precise shine of a digitally drawn ornament in one image. The possibilities are truly endless, and exploring them is half the fun.
Examples of Christmas Themes in Classic and Modern Styles
To see how style impacts a piece, let’s look at a few classic Christmas themes and imagine them in both traditional and modern interpretations. The subject might be the same, but the art style gives each a distinct mood:
Santa Claus: In a classic style, Santa might be drawn with ink and watercolor. Picture an old-world Santa Claus in a red coat illustrated with delicate pen lines and soft watercolor shading – perhaps similar to illustrations in a 1950s children’s book. The colors might be slightly muted and the lines showing gentle aging, evoking nostalgia. In a modern digital style, Santa could appear as a sleek vector cartoon or a polished digital painting. For example, a vector Santa might have bold shapes, a big jolly expression, and flat colors with a minimalist background (great for a contemporary greeting card). Or a digital painter might render Santa with dramatic lighting – the glow of the fireplace reflecting off his suit – for a more cinematic look. Both versions celebrate Santa, but one feels like a treasured vintage card while the other feels trendy and fresh.
Christmas Tree: A traditional take might involve a colored pencil or oil pastel drawing of a Christmas tree. You’d see the texture of the pencil strokes on the paper, the layering of greens to depict dense pine boughs, and maybe a soft yellow wash for the glow of candlelight or string lights. It might remind you of a tree illustration in an old holiday storybook – cozy and a bit rustic. In a modern rendition, an artist using digital painting might create a tree with perfect twinkling lights that actually glow, using bright neon colors against a dark night background for contrast. Or as a vector graphic, the tree could be stylized as simple triangles and circles (for a minimalist, modern graphic Christmas look). Traditional media might capture the warmth and imperfections of a real tree, while digital art can emphasize the sparkle and precision of a holiday display.
Reindeer: A classic style reindeer might appear as a pencil sketch or an acrylic painting. Perhaps you imagine a realistic reindeer painted in rich earth tones, pulling a sleigh through a snowy field, each stroke of fur visible – something that feels like it could hang above a mantle. Alternatively, a playful hand-drawn reindeer cartoon with ink outlines and watercolor fills would have that storybook charm. In modern style, a reindeer could be a cute digital character – for instance, a kawaii (cute) style reindeer drawn on an iPad with big eyes and a Santa hat, ready to be an emoji or sticker. Or it could be a 3D-rendered reindeer used in animation, giving a polished look with shading and texture created by software. The traditional reindeer might evoke calm winter realism or retro whimsy, whereas the modern one might be optimized for cuteness and shareability (imagine a fun animated e-card featuring that digital reindeer dancing).
Snowy Scene: Traditional approach: think of a serene snow-covered village painted in watercolor or gouache. The artist might use broad washes of pale blue and gray for sky and snow, with fine opaque white paint for falling snowflakes. Edges would be soft, and the overall effect very peaceful and nostalgic (like a scene on a classic holiday postage stamp). Modern approach: a digital artist could create a snow scene with intense detail or dynamic motion. For example, using digital brushes, one could paint a night-time city square at Christmas with realistic reflections on the ice skating rink and individually glowing street lamps – something that looks almost like concept art for a film. Or they might go the opposite direction and make a flat-design winter scene: simple shapes for houses, uniform white dots for snow, and vibrant colors for doors and scarves, giving a cheerful infographic-like style. Traditional methods give a painterly, soft impression, while digital can either amplify realism or push stylization to the max.
These examples show that any Christmas theme can shine in either style. It often comes down to the emotion and effect you want. If you aim for coziness and nostalgia, traditional techniques or convincing traditional emulation in digital work well. If you aim for bold impact or modern cuteness, digital techniques (or very graphic traditional work) may be better. Looking at different versions side by side can be a great art exercise as well – it helps you see what each medium emphasizes.
Tips for Artists: Choosing Your Christmas Art Style
Whether you’re just starting out or you’re an experienced artist looking for new ideas, here are some tips for choosing between classic, modern, or a mix of both styles for your next holiday art project:
Follow Your Comfort (and Curiosity): If you’re a beginner, start with what you have. A simple pencil drawing of a snowman or a Christmas stocking is a great beginning. You can always color it with crayons or markers – traditional doesn’t have to mean complex. On the other hand, if you’re curious about digital art but don’t have expensive gear, try free smartphone apps or simple drawing programs to get a feel for creating a digital Christmas doodle. The key is to get drawing in any medium and let your interest grow naturally.
Consider Your Skill Level: Some techniques are easier for certain skill levels. For example, watercolor can be tricky for total beginners because paint can be unpredictable, but it also creates beautiful “happy accidents.” Pencil and ink offer more control to start with. Digital art has a learning curve (software basics, using a tablet), but there are tons of tutorials for things like “how to draw Christmas in digital” on YouTube or art forums. If you’re intermediate or advanced traditionally, you might enjoy translating those skills to digital by trying out a program like Procreate – many find that their drawing fundamentals carry over once they get used to the tool.
Mix It Up for Inspiration: Don’t feel you must pick one lane. If you usually draw in one style, try the other as an experiment. A seasoned watercolor artist could try doing a quick Christmas tree sketch on an iPad to see how layering works digitally. A primarily digital artist could try an afternoon of ink drawing for a fresh perspective. You might discover new ideas in the process that you can bring back to your usual style. Plus, switching mediums can break creative blocks and keep art fun and challenging.
Leverage the Strengths of Each: If you have a specific project in mind, think about which medium’s strengths align with your goals. Want a one-of-a-kind gift to physically give someone? A hand-drawn piece (perhaps a portrait of them as a Christmas elf in watercolor) would be heartfelt. Need to create a holiday graphic for all your social media followers? A polished digital illustration might be more efficient (and it ensures consistency and quality when sharing online). For those who love fine detail and polish, digital might satisfy with its precision; for those who love texture and tactile processes, traditional will likely feel more rewarding.
Personal Style and Aesthetic: Your personal art style might lean towards one medium. If you adore lots of texture, layering, and organic lines, traditional media (or digital that imitates it) will complement you. If your style is very clean, cute, or graphic, you may enjoy the vector or digital route. Some artists even develop a signature holiday art style by mixing – for example, sketchy pencil line art combined with digital coloring in a pastel palette. Think about what styles of Christmas art you love to look at: Are they vintage Victorian cards or modern cartoon avatars? Use that as a clue for what you might enjoy creating.
Practice and Play: Regardless of medium, making art is a skill honed by practice. If digital painting feels awkward at first, remember how long it took to get good at drawing with pencils – it’s similar. Allow yourself to make imperfect drawings as you learn. For a holiday twist, you could do a “12 Days of Christmas” art challenge, alternating media each day (Day 1: pencil partridge in a pear tree, Day 2: digital turtle doves, etc.). This kind of practice not only improves your skills but also helps you discover which techniques you truly love.
In conclusion, the world of Christmas drawing styles is rich and varied. Classic and modern art techniques each offer something special – and you don’t have to limit yourself to just one. Try an ink sketch for that nostalgic holiday feeling, or whip up a digital illustration for the next festive social media post; better yet, do both and get the best of both worlds. By understanding the pros and cons and experimenting with combinations, you’ll find a workflow that brings you joy and captures the holiday spirit in your own unique way. Happy drawing, and may your season be filled with creativity and cheer!​