Girl With a Bow Coloring Page

That bow is almost as wide as her head, and she clearly loves it. This girl with a bow coloring page shows a smiling girl at a party, holding a wrapped gift against her chest. Long wavy hair falls past her shoulders. Four balloons float beside her, a paper banner runs across the wall, and two cupcakes wait on the table in front.

It is a comfortable pick for ages 4 to 9. The large shapes are easy to fill, so a younger child can finish in 20 minutes. An older child may take twice that, because the hair has long curving locks that look best with more than one shade.

Details from the bow down

Start at the top. The bow has two big loops, a small knot and a fold inside each loop, so one color will work but two look richer. Her dress has puffed sleeves with a white band at each cuff, plus a round collar with a scalloped edge.

The gift has its own smaller bow, which gives kids a fun matching job. Below that, the tablecloth ends in a row of soft scallops with a little dot at each join. Tiny bits of confetti sit on the floor, and small hearts and stars fill the wall.

Color ideas for the girl with a bow coloring page

Red is the classic bow color, and it looks sharp against brown hair. If your child prefers something softer, try a pink bow with a lavender dress. A blue bow with a yellow dress feels sunny and bold.

Here are three full color plans to try:

• Red bow, pink dress, yellow gift with a red ribbon
• Purple bow, mint dress, orange gift with a white ribbon
• Gold bow, navy dress, pink gift with a gold ribbon

Balloons are a nice place to use up the colors nobody picked yet. Make all four different, then repeat those same colors in the banner flags. The page will look planned even if your child chose them at random.

Tips for neat coloring

Do the hair in long strokes that follow the waves. Going up and down the lock looks far better than scribbling sideways. A lighter brown first and a darker brown along one edge will make the hair look round.

Save the face for last, when the hand is warmed up. Leave the small white dots in her eyes alone. They are what make her look alive and happy. A pink crayon on its side, rubbed gently, gives her cheeks a soft blush.

Markers can soak through plain printer paper, so slide a spare sheet underneath. Crayons or colored pencils work well on normal paper with no extra steps.

A fun fact about those balloons

Party balloons began as science equipment. Michael Faraday made rubber balloons in 1824 to hold gases such as hydrogen during his lab experiments. Long before that, people blew up dried animal bladders. Kids tend to find that part very funny, and a little gross.

Something to do afterward

Cut around the finished girl and glue her to the front of a folded card for a homemade birthday greeting. Write a note inside the card. You can also ask your child who the gift is for and what might be inside, then have them draw that surprise on the back of the sheet.

For a counting game, ask how many balloons, hearts and stars they can find. Then make it harder: which color did they use the most? Which one did they use only once?

More pages she might like

Kids who enjoy party scenes can move on to the birthday cake coloring page. For a simpler portrait with big pigtails, print the girl coloring page. Cat fans will smile at the cat with a bow too.

Questions