Choose what type of Pokémon you want like fire, water, grass etc. Keep in mind that better designs come out of more unique types: For example, there are no Poison/Steel types, so a Pokémon of those types will inherently show more ingenuity than a Bug/Flying or Water type.
Think of something you want the Pokémon to portray. Gastly is based on gas. Piplup is based on a penguin. Don't let this limit your creativity, however; a Pokémon like Skarmory is modeled after armor and a bird, obviously, but there are nuances in its design that aren't over the top, and make it look unique, yet still like a Pokémon.
Choose a name for the Pokémon. All names of Pokémon are portmanteaus inspired by aspects of that Pokémon. For example, "Pikachu" is a combination of "Pika" meaning "Flash" and "Chu" meaning "Squeak." As another example, Kartana's name comes from the Sanskrit word for "Cutting," spelled the same way; even so, it also draws from the Japanese word "Katana," the sword, and "Charta," Latin for "Paper," each of which are important parts of Kartana's design. Also notice that there are very few Grass/Steel type Pokémon, so the ingenuity of the unique typing and design really pay off. Kartana is an exemplary design in this right. If you can't think of a good name in the moment, do some research or save it until you've built out more elements of the Pokémon. Another idea is to make a play on words, or even a pun. For instance, Ekans and Arbok are "snake" and "kobra" backwards.
Draw what you want the Pokémon to look like. Don't be afraid to change the appearance. Also, think about the typing of your Pokémon and how it might affect the appearance of the Pokémon. For example, Ghost and Dark Pokémon tend to have dark color palettes and eerie appearances, while fire types have a warmer color palette and possibly fire somewhere in their design. Keep in mind, however, that Pokémon like Octillery have a very warm color palette, yet are water type, or a Pokémon like Tapu Bulu, who has no green on it, is a Grass-Type. Also keep in mind that the Pokémon shouldn't be too realistic. All of GameFreak's designs have a cartoonish aspect to them, so detailed fur and eyes similar to real animals creates a disturbing chimera rather than a lovable character.
Now ask yourself this - do you want the Pokémon to evolve, or is it a non-evolutionary or Legendary Pokémon? Remember, it doesn't have to evolve, but if it does, how? Does it have a baby evolution, like Pichu or Cleffa? Most Pokémon evolve by level, but Pokémon can also evolve by held item, friendship, evolutionary stone, trading, trading while holding an item, being in certain weather or in certain times of the day, when a certain other Pokémon is in the party, or any combination of these. Some Pokémon can also have different evolution possibilities in the same line depending on their stats, gender, held item, or even personality value. Sometimes, Pokémon change type when they evolve, like Skorupi into Drapion.
Think of the moves it can learn. Be sure to think about both moves it can learn by leveling up and TM/HM moves. If applicable, also think about breeding moves and tutoring moves.
If you want extra credit, add catch rate (3 being lowest and 255 being highest), gender ratio, species name (like how Pikachu is the Mouse Pokémon), Pokedex Number, Egg Groups, Hatch Time, Height, Weight, Experience Yield, EV Yield, Body Style, Footprint, Pokedex Color, Leveling Rate, Possible Abilities, Mega Evolutions, Exclusive Z-Moves, names in other languages (Japanese, German, French, namely), Base Stats, Pokedex Entry Text, Shiny Forms, Event Moves, Moves by a prior evolution, Trivia, Name Origin, and Design Origin (this is how much thought Nintendo puts into every single design!)
Decide if your Pokémon should have any evolved forms. If you are considering this option, it would be a good idea to figure out how similar or different they would be from the original Pokémon.
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