Solid black hair buns, blunt bangs, and a permanently flat expression make Mai one of the most visually read-at-a-glance characters in the Avatar roster, and this step-by-step tutorial on how to draw Mai captures all of that in clean line art. The 17-step walkthrough stays in black and white, which actually suits her design well given how much of it depends on contrast and ink weight.
What Makes This Drawing Worth Taking Slowly
The tutorial runs through 17 steps and lands on finished line art with no color added, so the focus stays entirely on line confidence and shape control. The hair buns are filled as solid black circles and the long framing strands include ink splatter texture near the ends, which means the later steps have more going on than the early structure work suggests. Proportions are tight, with the face and hair taking up most of the visual complexity.
Mai’s Design at a Glance
- Double bun updo in solid black
- Long straight strands framing the face
- Blunt bangs across the forehead
- Narrow eyes with a stern expression
- Open-collared jacket or robe silhouette
If you want to build out more of the Avatar cast after this, Asami Sato and Korra are both covered on the site and make a natural next step. For something a bit different from the same world, the Appa guide is also available if you want to sketch the sky bison.
Reading the Step Colors in This Tutorial
Each step uses a three-color system to show what is new and what came before:
- Red Color: lines added in the current step.
- Black Color: lines completed earlier.
- Gray Color: base sketch for structure.
How to Draw Mai: Step-by-Step Tutorial
Finished Your Sketch? Share It
Drop your finished Mai drawing in the comments below. It helps others see what the steps look like in practice, and it’s always good to see how different artists interpret the line work. New tutorials go up on Facebook and Telegram as soon as they are posted, a new YouTube video based on existing guides goes live every single day, and Pinterest stays updated regularly if you prefer saving references there. If you enjoyed this guide, the Bumi and Zuko Book 3 face tutorials are worth checking out next. Supporting the project on Patreon keeps new guides coming and gives you access to unique hand-drawn coloring pages.