Maybe you sit down to paint, and before you’ve even begun, your brain’s already juggling too many colors, too many details, and too many decisions. And halfway through, it’s the same problem – everything feels important, and you don’t know what to focus on. 

But what if I told you it doesn’t have to be that complicated? 

The truth is, watercolor gets a lot easier when you stop trying to do everything, and start simplifying. In this lesson, I’ll share 8 simple tips that help you start a painting without the overwhelm and keep it manageable all the way through. And believe me, you’re not alone if you struggle with this – more than 1 in 7 of my masterclass students say simplification is their biggest challenge!

8 Beginner-Friendly Ways to Simplify Your Watercolors 

Often when you sit down to paint, everything feels important, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the details and the different steps… The secret to getting past this confusion is, you guessed it, simplification!

And this is something I learned the hard way. So for example, back when I first started, I thought using every color on my palette would make a painting look better – but all it did was turn into mud! Or I kept fighting the paper, layering more and more, until everything looked dull and overworked. It took me YEARS of trial and error to discover that keeping things simple was the real answer.

And I don’t mean randomly leaving things out. It’s about making smart choices that let your painting say more with less.

The good news is, learning to simplify is a skill you can build over time. 

So to demonstrate what I’m talking about, I’m going to be painting this photo I took of a baking dish full of mushrooms. 

BEFORE PAINTING

To get started, here are few things you can do to simplify even before you put brush to paper:

Tip Number 1: Use a limited palette

One of the easiest ways to simplify a painting is to limit your color choices. 

Beginners often think more colors means a better painting, but honestly, it usually just means more confusion, and the possibility of ending up with muddy looking results. 

Simplifying your colors has two big advantages:

• Color mixing becomes much easier
• And the finished painting will look a lot more harmonious.

If you pick just two, three, or maybe four colors, suddenly your decisions are way easier. You don’t have to juggle fifteen different paint colors, and your painting will look more harmonious because all the colors naturally relate. 

The result is, fewer choices, fewer mistakes, and a calmer brain while you’re painting

Tip Number 2: The One-brush rule 

Try choosing a single, versatile brush and make it do all the work. Using a larger brush forces you to think in broad strokes instead of getting lost in tiny details. And if you’re anything like I was—a perfectionist obsessed with every tiny detail—this trick is a lifesaver for keeping things simple!

You’ll find that using a bigger brush keeps things loose and forces you to simplify the details. And it’s a brilliant way to stop yourself from fussing. 

The brush I used for the whole of this painting is this one-inch long sable brush by Rosemary & Co.

Using just one large brush might feel frustrating at first – but oddly enough, it makes everything simpler. You’ll be surprised how much you can achieve with just one good, large round brush.

Tip Number 3: Squint to See Big Shapes and Values

This one is a classic artist trick: 

Squint! 

Yep, literally half-close your eyes until everything blurs out. Squinting softens the scene and helps you focus on broad shapes and values instead of details. This simplified view is what you want to try to capture, not the complicated jumble of details crammed into your reference photo.

So try this: Squint like you’ve just lost your glasses! Suddenly, the world breaks down into big shapes and clear contrasts.

If you prefer a less squinty method, you can even turn your reference into a black and white version with a phone app like I did here… 

These quick and easy value studies give you a kind of roadmap to follow when painting. They help you plan your tonal values, and highlights – and over time, they also train your eye.

Tip Number 4: Pick References with Clear Contrast

This is another step that happens before you even start painting: 

Choose a reference photo that’s simple to read! 

If the lighting is flat and everything’s the same mid-tone, you’ll spend the whole time guessing what shapes to paint! Instead, use a photo with clear light and dark areas.

For example, with my mushroom subject, the overhead light created these strong highlights and deep shadows. That made it so much easier to decide where the values go, without getting bogged down in every last detail.

Simplified references work because they make it more obvious where to place shapes and colors.

DURING PAINTING

Tip 5. Paint Shapes, Not Objects

When you start painting, don’t think, ‘I’m painting a mushroom.’ Think, ‘I’m painting a light shape, or a dark shape, and maybe a few lines for suggestion.’ 

Don’t paint what you think is there — paint the shapes of different tonal value and color that really are there.

For example, I began the mushrooms with some big, loose variegated washes of color – just enough to lay down the foundation.

And all those little ridges on the underside of the mushrooms could drive you mad if you tried painting them realistically. Instead, I just used very loose brushstrokes to paint a few dark lines and shapes. And that was enough. Our brains are brilliant at filling in the gaps.

That’s really the heart of simplification: you’re not trying to spell everything out in detail, you’re suggesting just enough for the viewer to complete the picture in their own mind.

Tip Number 6. Work Light to Dark, & Broad to Detailed

Watercolor works best if you go from light to dark, and from broad shapes to sharper details. 

I say this often, but watercolor lends itself to this approach because of its transparency. Ideally you should build your painting gradually: start with your lightest and largest shapes, then add mid-tones, and finish with dark shading and details. Oh, and preserving the white of the paper for highlights.

Think of it like stacking transparent sheets of colored glass – each one adds depth without covering what came before. That’s why this approach simplifies things: instead of trying to solve the whole painting in one go, you build gradually, step by step.

Tip Number 7. Use Your Techniques Intentionally

For most paintings, you really don’t need a hundred different fancy techniques.  Just focus on two core techniques

• wet-on-wet 
• and wet-on-dry. 

For example, at the start, I used wet-on-wet to lay down big, loose shapes. This creates those beautiful blended transitions that watercolor does so well. Once that layer was dry, I switched to wet-on-dry for sharper edged shapes and details — and I can follow my “value roadmap” to add the next darkest shapes to lay on top of the underlying colors.

Sometimes I even mix a bit of both techniques in one layer. For example, I might drop in some wet-on-wet color to create variation, then define a shape with wet-on-dry leaving the edges unblended. 

By using just these two techniques thoughtfully and swapping between them as needed, you cover about 90% of what you’ll ever need in a painting — and it keeps techniques simple..

Tip Number 8. Avoid Overworking

Sometimes the hardest part of painting is simply knowing when to stop. Overworking is one of the most common struggles I hear from beginners.

So if you find yourself fussing with your brush for no real reason, that’s usually the moment to step back. One simple way to avoid this problem is to plan your layers ahead of time — and then stick to your limit. Most watercolor paintings only need three or four layers at most.

Sticking to just a few layers not only prevents overworking, it also simplifies the whole process by keeping your choices clear and your painting fresher. 

It’s tempting to keep going, but remember: in watercolor, less really is more. Your painting will thank you for it

Final Thought:

Simplifying isn’t about doing less — it’s about focusing on what really matters, and letting go of unnecessary details. So give yourself permission to stop overthinking or chasing perfection — trust me, your painting (and your sanity) will thank you for it.

Oh, and if you want more help getting started without overthinking every brushstroke, check out the free lessons in the link below.

The post Simplifying Watercolor for Beginners (8 Simple Tips) first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

This one simple idea completely changed the way I paint. It turned my flat-looking artwork into paintings that had real depth.

In this lesson, I’m going to show you how to apply that same idea, step-by-step, as we paint this artichoke still life together – and I’ll tell you why this idea made such a difference for me.

So… back when I was trying to make my paintings look more realistic, I was a bit obsessed with detail. I thought that if I could just draw everything accurately enough – every little shape, every detailed line – then surely, the painting would turn out looking real.

I used to marvel at those hyper-realistic paintings – like the diner scenes by Ralph Goings, or the incredible portrait works by Chuck Close – and I genuinely believed it was all about the level of detail.

(Includes brief references to artworks by Ralph Goings and Chuck Close, used under fair dealing/fair use for educational commentary. © respective copyright holders).

So…

I’d spend hours making really careful pencil drawings before I even picked up a brush. But even after all that effort, the end result still didn’t quite work.

The final paintings just looked… flat. 

They didn’t have the depth or the sense of space I was aiming for. And honestly, I didn’t understand why.

It wasn’t until years later – when I came back to watercolor after a long break – that I finally understood what I’d been missing. I was reading a book by Tom Hoffmann called Watercolor Painting: A Comprehensive Approach… and there was this one line that completely changed how I thought about painting. (Amazon link)

He wrote something like this:

“ Of all the tools we use as painters, value is the hardest worker. You can be loose with your brushwork or even use exaggerated colors – but if the relative values are reasonably true, we can still produce a believable sense of light and space.”

And I remember just stopping and thinking—wait a minute… is it really that simple? 

That was the light bulb moment for me!

“The key thing I learned from all this?”

If you want to create paintings that don’t look flat, with a convincing sense of depth, focus on values first.

And by the way, when artists talk about “values,” we just mean how light or dark something is. 

That’s it!

So in today’s tutorial, I’m going to walk you through exactly how I applied this idea when painting this artichoke still life. I’ll go through it step by step, and if you want to follow along, there’s a few links below to download the reference photo and my outline sketch for tracing. 

Hopefully this will show you how you can use values too, to bring more depth into your own work.

Step 1.

Begin by sketching or tracing the outline onto a sheet of watercolor paper.

Mix up a light green color and start painting the shape of the artichokes in one continuous wash – but be careful to leave some white highlights by painting around them. 

To help me with the painting process, I used a value app on my phone to quickly convert my photo into a black-and-white image – this just makes it so much easier to see the light and dark areas without getting distracted by the colors.

As you work towards the shaded side, make your green mixture a bit darker. I used the value study as a guide here. And you’ll see that once the first shape was complete, I kept working wet-in-wet –  dabbing in a bit of darker paint while the wash was still damp, to build up those deeper shadows in the leaves and stalks (this is a technique known as “charging-in”).

Next, paint the second artichoke in the same way.

Leave everything to dry before moving on. I’m not trying to define any detail with this first layer –  the result looks relatively flat, but there’s already a gentle gradient of greens that sets up the light and shadow. That’s all I need at this stage – just a foundation to build on later.

Step 2.

After the first wash of color was dry, I used a glazing technique to start adding form and shading to the leaves and stalks. (By the way, glazing just means painting a thin, transparent layer of color over a dry one – it lets the colors underneath show through, so you can gradually build up depth.)

Each leaf slightly overlaps the one below it, which creates a natural shadow at the base, (a bit like shingles on a roof).

That overlap creates lighter highlights on the tips of the leaves, where the light hits them, and darker shadows underneath, where they tuck under the ones above.

So when I’m painting, to keep it simple, I just keep this in mind:

• Lighter top edge
• Darker bottom edge

So for each leaf, you can see I’m adding a few darker brush marks along the bottom edge then roughly blending them out.

Also, I treated the head of the artichokes a bit like a sphere – thinking about where the light hits from the top left.  So I used lighter green for the leaves catching the light, and gradually deepened the color as I moved towards the shaded side of each artichoke.

It’s really just about gently adjusting your greens to match the lighting.

Step 3.

After this layer, I let the paint dry completely again.
Then I started adding darker green shapes to define the deeper shadows – in the folds between the leaves and along the stalks.

This builds up more depth, but this time I’m working with smaller, darker shapes to suggest the deepest shadows.

So far, you’ll notice the shapes I’m painting are gradually going from big to small – and that’s a pretty typical approach in watercolor.

You start by establishing the overall structure, then work your way towards the finer details.

Step 4.

By this stage, the artichokes are starting to look more three-dimensional. This illusion of depth has been built up gradually, layer by layer, working from light to dark.

But they still look like they’re floating on the white page.

So next, I added a background and some cast shadows using a wet-on-wet technique to get soft, blended edges.

To do this, I started by wetting the whole background with clear water. It’s a bit tricky to paint around the artichokes, but it’s worth the effort – the damp surface makes it easier to apply color and helps prevent streaky brush marks.

You can see how the colored pigments spread smoothly into the moist surface, creating soft transitions with no harsh lines. (I’m using a reddish-brown mix made from burnt sienna, toned down with a touch of French ultramarine.)

Then I added the cast shadows with a darker mix, using the same “charging-in” technique as earlier — dabbing color into the paper and gently pushing it around with the brush. This wet-on-wet method gives you those nice, gradual shadow shapes with soft edges.

You’ll notice how the shadows help anchor the objects — they suddenly feel like they’re sitting on a surface, rather than hovering in space.

Step 5.

In the final stage of the painting, I added a darker wash to the background (to contrast with the lighter colors in the foreground), using a mix of Burnt umber and French ultramarine.

I did this to help create a stronger sense of depth from front to back. Visually, lighter tones tend to come forward, while darker ones seem to fall away into the distance.

It’s a simple trick that’s often used in still life painting — but it works.

And that’s it

From flat shapes to something that (hopefully!) feels a bit more three-dimensional. All with a few layers of paint, a bit of patience… and maybe a few cups of tea along the way.

The post This Changed How I Paint Watercolors: Step-by-Step Tutorial to Add Depth first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

In this lesson, I’ll show you step by step how I painted this cute robin. If you’d like to try this for yourself, you can download a free sketch outline and reference photo – just check the link below.

The truth is I wasn’t entirely sure how this painting would turn out when I started. I had a rough idea of my approach, but watercolor is unpredictable, and it’s all about working with its quirks. In the process, I used three specific techniques to build layers of texture and add depth, and one very useful method to create the illusion of feathers – something that is often tricky when painting birds! 

If painting delicate textures in like feathers has ever felt intimidating to you, you’re not alone!

In this lesson let me show you how I did it, to give you some guidelines for your next bird painting!

Watercolor Robin – Getting Started

Ok… so to get started trace the outline of the robin onto a sheet of watercolor paper… I’m using cold-press cotton paper for this exercise… Then fix the sheet onto a flat board with masking tape. (I use a light box like this one on Amazon for tracing)

Before I started the painting I used some masking fluid to cover some of the small highlights in the eye and on the wing…

Wet-on-wet Underpainting

The first step is to wet the body of the bird with some clear water – I’m going to be using a wet-on-wet technique to establish a foundation of color, but I avoided wetting the red feathers on the bird’s breast to prevent any color from bleeding into that area.

The colors I used were Burnt sienna, mixed with some Hansa yellow deep, and a little Burnt umber. For the underside of the bird and the areas where the form is in shadow I dabbed in some French ultramarine. 

I often use a wet-on-wet technique like this to establish the “underpainting” of a subject – it’s a bit like laying down the foundation, creating a smooth base with soft blends of color before adding the following layers.

I adjusted the pigments on the surface, pushing them around with a clean damp brush – there was too much color on the front of the robin so I needed to remove some paint and smooth out the blending.

While the surface is still wet I continue to charge in some darker spots of brown – all the time I’m looking at the reference image to gauge where the light and dark colors should go.

I took advantage to add some color to the beak and smooth out the transition with the body before letting everything dry. 

Next I apply the same wet-on-wet technique to add the robin’s red breast. I only dampened the front of the bird so the color doesn’t spread too far. 

Here I’m using Hansa yellow deep and Pyrrol scarlet to paint the bright orange feathers on the breast. These are both warm pigments so mixing them together creates a wonderfully bright vivid orange color. I started with yellow, then an orange mixture, and finally dabbed in some pure red paint – this gives a nice variation of color across the surface rather than simply painting everything orange!

A couple of areas needed lightening up – on the front of the bird and around the eye. You can do this with a clean blotted brush to soak up damp paint off the paper – this is known as a “lifting” technique. 

I let the orange paint dry completely before adding some detail to the eye…

Next, I wanted to create feather-like textures on the robin’s body. To achieve this, I used a dry brush, pressing it into a cloth to splay the bristles. This spreads them out into smaller, random strands.

With only a small amount of paint on the brush, I gently touched the paper using light brush strokes. This technique creates a textured, broken pattern that mimics the soft appearance of feathers. And by varying the direction of the brush marks, this effect suggests the fluffiness of the robin’s feathers.

Although this particular brush technique is known as “dry brushing”, we’re essentially adding another layer of paint over the foundation color – which in watercolors is known as “glazing”.

And both of these techniques fall under the category of “wet-on-dry” – in other words where wet paint is applied to dry paper. This technique gives you more control and precision over your brush marks or for adding details.

So to sum up, during this painting you’ll see me alternating between these three specific techniques:

• Wet-on-wet
• Wet-on-dry
• Dry brushing

This lets me build up the colors and the darkness of the values little by little, as I try to create a more three-dimensional appearance.

And this is how I slowly progress the painting with several layers of color … you can watch the rest of the painting process and the techniques I used to get to the finished result on my YouTube channel or in the video here:

Happy painting

The post Painting a Robin in Watercolor (3 Techniques!) first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

A lot of beginners get caught up in things that just don’t matter. For example, they obsess over the ‘perfect’ supplies or dive into complicated paintings before learning how to break subjects down into simple shapes. 

Knowing what I know today, there are a few things I’d approach differently, things that would make a real difference in getting faster results. 

So in today’s lesson, I’m going to walk you through exactly what I would do if I were starting watercolor from scratch, with everything I’ve learned along the way. 

By focusing on just a few basics, you’ll see real improvement sooner than you’d think.

So…

Tip 1. Supplies – Keep it Simple

In the beginning, I’d keep my supplies as simple as possible!

You only need a couple of “versatile” brushes, a small but well-chosen palette of colors, and some decent paper. 

I believe the key is quality over quantity!

Quality matters more than quantity at this stage, since quality supplies make watercolors easier to handle and therefore simplify the learning process. But also, keeping things minimal prevents overspending!

Here’s what I think you need to begin with and why:

Brushes.

The best brushes to get started would be a large and a small round brush. 

Earlier I said you want “versatile” brushes, and a large round brush is probably the best all-round type of brush you can get. You can apply a large range of brush strokes with a round brush, from detailed marks to broad washes. 

A large round, which for me means about 1 inch long, is what I use most of the time. 

The second most used brush would be a small round. This is extremely useful for more intricate details.

And it doesn’t really matter in the beginning if you choose a synthetic or natural haired brush!

Natural hair, like sable for example, has better water-holding properties. But brush manufacturers have made a lot of progress with synthetic watercolor brushes. 

If your budget can extend to natural hair then that’s great! Otherwise, stick to synthetic to start.

A few recommendations:

• Rosemary & Co Red Dot Pointed round size 10
• Princeton Aqua Elite Round size 10
• Rosemary & Co Red Dot Pointed round size 4 
• Princeton Aqua Elite Round size 4 

Paper

Paper is the foundation and the source of light for your watercolor paintings. Which is why quality also matters.

But watercolor paper can be quite expensive!

The best type of watercolor paper is made from 100% cotton. This is generally known as “professional” grade paper, whereas “student” grade is often made using less durable wood pulp. 

Cheap, student-grade paper can be useful for watercolor sketches, but it doesn’t absorb or disperse water evenly, which can lead to streaky washes, or unwanted blooms!

Luckily there are a few less expensive cotton papers that have good handling properties. 

For example the brands Arteza and Meeden make cotton papers that are more affordable, and still provide good watercolor handling.

• Link to Arteza paper on Amazon
• Link to Meeden paper on Amazon

Once you find a brand and type of paper you like, try sticking with it for a while. Getting used to how one type of paper handles makes a big difference, so you’re not constantly adjusting to new textures or absorption rates – otherwise, it just takes longer to get the hang of things

Paints

Just like other supplies, paints come in both professional and student grades.

Student grade paints are cheaper because they use less pigment – in other words they have a lower pigment load. Or sometimes they use inexpensive alternatives to more costly pigments.

As a result, the colors may appear less vibrant and intense, which can lead to disappointing results in your paintings.

For this reason I usually recommend starting with a small collection of “artist” grade paints…

Tip 2. Choosing a Limited Palette (5-6 Colors)

The goal of a limited palette is to choose a set of colors that give you a broad range of mixing possibilities. You want to spend less, but still be able to mix a full range of colors.

The basis for any useful color palette includes the primary colors, red, yellow and blue.

But three primary colors alone often fails in creating a full range of hues and vibrant color mixtures. This is because each primary color has a color bias – in other words it  “leans,” towards either a warmer or cooler hue. 

So instead you can opt for a mixture of primary and secondary colors – or use a split-primary palette which includes warm and cool versions of each primary.  

Here’s what these might look like:

Primary & Secondary Mix:

• Hansa Yellow Medium – PY97
• Phthalo green (yellow shade) – PG36
• Phthalo blue (green shade) – PG15:3
• Ultramarine Violet – Pigment number: PV15
• Pyrrol scarlet – PR255

Split Primary:

• Quinacridone rose – Pigment number: PV19
• Pyrrol scarlet – Pigment number: PR255
• Hansa Yellow Deep – Pigment number: PY65
• Lemon yellow – Pigment number: PY175
• French ultramarine – Pigment number: PB29
• Phthalo Blue Green Shade – Pigment number: PB15:3

If you struggle with color mixing and want to be able to mix colors with ease – try my “Color Mixing in Seconds” course !

A few well-chosen colors can yield a surprising range of mixes, and the smaller choice of paints helps you understand color interactions quicker.

Tip 3. Experiment and Explore

Your very first steps should involve plenty of experimenting!

For example, spend time mixing colors – or let pigments flow together on the paper and see how they interact with different amounts of water. 

You could try simple exercises like layering shapes (using a glazing technique) to explore how the transparency of watercolors works, and how layering affects the final appearance.

One of the best exercises for testing out your new paints is a color wheel or a color chart. These charts help you see how your paints blend and reveal the full range of colors you can achieve. They’re a great way to understand the characteristics of each color and how they interact. And they’re fun!

If you’d like to learn how to make these, here’s a link to a tutorial.

Tip 4. Understanding Values Early On

Values (or the lightness and darkness of colors ) are even more important than colors themselves in a painting. Understanding “values” early on helps bring depth and realism to your work. 

A lot of the students I’ve helped in the past told me things like:

“My paintings always look so flat”. 

 Or “My paintings lack life and I have difficulty getting a three-dimensional look”.

If I could go back to the beginning, learning to create depth with tonal values would be one of the first things I’d do! Values help us convey light, shade, and shadow, which gives subjects a three-dimensional feel. 

But visualizing values in a complex scene can be very tricky! 

To make this easier, try using a simple value finder or a phone app to convert photos into value studies. 

Here are some links to a few tools and additional articles if you want to explore this further…

• ChromaMagic
• See Value app
• Guide to making & using a value scale

Tip 5. Start with Small, Manageable Projects

At first, you should avoid the temptation of jumping straight into complex subjects.

Instead, focus on small, achievable paintings that build confidence and skills little by little. 

This approach is something known as “purposeful practice”, and studies have shown this is one of the fastest ways to improve any skill.

This is the method I use in my Watercolor Masterclass, and it allows my students to focus on one element at a time and see progress quicker.

For example, if you want to work on layering and glazing, start with simple shapes and practice applying thin, transparent layers on top of each other. Observe how colors shift and darken with each added layer. Then, apply this technique to a single painting, such as a still life or floral painting, concentrating on layering to build that skill even further.

Tip 6. Embrace Mistakes and Learn from Them

Watercolor has a mind of its own, and unexpected effects and blends of color are part of its beauty!

So embrace these ‘happy accidents’ as learning experiences, and try not to see them as failures. It’s normal for your first attempts to fall short of your expectations.

The trick is to observe the conditions under which certain effects occur: 

• Was the paper almost dry when you added the color? 
• Did you use a lot of water, or just a small amount? 
• Was the brush loaded with strong pigment, or was it a mix of light, watery paint? 

Noticing these details helps you understand how to recreate (or avoid) specific effects, and you’ll gain more control over your watercolors with time…

Tip 7. Commit to Regular Practice for Consistency

I know you’ve heard it before, but consistency really is the key to faster progress. 

Paint as often as you can, without leaving too many big gaps between painting sessions!

To make this easier, put your painting practice in your daily schedule. Aiming for 15-20 minutes a day is often better than a single long session every couple of weeks. Or if you don’t know what to paint, consider using a structured program that guides you step-by-step.

Small, regular practice sessions build muscle memory and familiarity with techniques, materials, and colors, speeding up your overall progress.

Tip 8. Master Water Control Early On

Water control is one of the first big challenges a beginner faces. 

A lot of people think it’s just about how damp or dry the paper is… 

But it also comes down to how much water is on your brush, and how much water is in your paint mixtures too!

For example, a wet brush loaded with watery paint applied to an almost dry paper can cause a flood of pigment, sometimes causing watermarks like blooms. Whereas a thicker mixture of paint applied to a moist wash will disperse evenly onto the surface.

These differences can be quite subtle, so again the key is observation! 

Watching how the wet paper interacts with different water-to-paint ratios helps you understand how to control the flow of watercolors. 

So in the beginning, try playing around with different moisture levels, on your paper, brush, and in your paint mixtures… then observe the results, and make notes of the resulting effects.

Tip 9. Be Patient and Enjoy the Process

When you start learning watercolors it’s normal to feel a bit lost at first. Painting should bring you joy, not stress. So celebrate small victories, stay patient, and enjoy each brushstroke as part of your artistic journey. 

Positivity is a big help towards better results

I know that sometimes perfectionism is a common hurdle for beginners. So if perfectionism is something you’re battling with, go and watch this video next, where I’ll share 7 practical tips to help you overcome it and let go of the fear of making mistakes.

The post If I Was Starting Watercolor from Scratch – I’d Do This… first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

And those little ghosts that chased you all around the board…?

Well… that was the inspiration for the first watercolor bookmark painting in this fun little painting series

I had a lot of fun painting these, I think you will too!

I’ll be releasing these, one at a time, over the next few days as soon as I get them ready…

They only take a few minutes each! Here’s part 1:

Halloween Bookmark Idea No.1

You can paint this watercolor Halloween bookmark in just three easy steps!

Start by cutting out a strip of watercolor paper for your bookmark – the one I’m using here is about 6 inches high by 2 ½ inches wide.

Step 1.

Trace the ghost pattern on the paper. For this you can download the free outline template below – or just sketch something similar, filling up the sheet with a bunch of little ghost shapes.

Next, tape down the bookmark onto a flat board using low-tack masking tape. The tape will protect the edges of the paper and leave a nice white frame around the painting. Make sure the tape is well stuck down so that the paint doesn’t bleed underneath the edges while you paint.

Choose which ghost shapes you want to leave completely white, and which ones will be darker.

You can mark each shape with a pencil to remember which ones to keep white, so you don’t accidentally paint over them.

Step 2.

Mix up a fairly transparent wash of paint and start painting around the first ghost shapes. I’m using a small brush for this because the details are quite delicate, and it helps me stay within the lines. Just take your time and slowly work your way around each ghost, letting the paint flow smoothly.

To get a nice even wash of color the trick is to pick up plenty of paint with your brush, and keep picking up more paint so the paper surface doesn’t have time to dry. Working with a wet surface like this helps you avoid streaky brush marks. Just keep your brush loaded and pull the paint across the paper, letting the wet paint blend smoothly.

As you paint around the ghost shapes, don’t forget to go back and paint the other side before the paint has time to dry. 

When you finish the background, go back and fill in the eyes for each of the little white ghosts

Leave the paint to dry completely before the next step (if you get impatient, just use a hairdryer to speed things up!)

Step 3.

Using another transparent mix of watercolor, paint the background with a second layer of color – only this time you need to paint around the second set of little ghosts as well as the first set of white ghost shapes!

Building up the layers of paint like this in watercolor makes them darker with each new layer – and painting layers onto a dry surface like this is a technique known as “glazing”.

When you’ve finished the background, go back and fill in the eyes on the second set of ghosts – but ALSO, don’t forget to add another layer of color to the eyes on the first set of white ghosts, so they have the same “darkness” as the background color…

Leave the paint to dry completely before carefully removing the masking tape around the edge

And there you go!

A Halloween watercolor bookmark filled with cute little ghosts!

Halloween Bookmark Idea No.2

This next watercolor bookmark uses an easy wet-on-wet blending technique.

Again, I started with a strip of watercolor paper about 6 inches high by 2 ½ inches wide.

Step 1.

Trace the pumpkin pattern onto the paper. For this you can download a free outline template below – or sketch something similar, filling up the sheet with a bunch of little pumpkin shapes that overlap.

Next, tape down the bookmark onto a flat board using low-tack masking tape, using the tape to protect the edges and leave a nice white frame around the painting. Don’t forget to make sure the tape is well stuck down so that the paint doesn’t bleed underneath the edges while you paint.

Step 2.

Mix up three colors in your palette – a yellow, a red and an orange. I used a warm yellow and a warm red paint to get the brightest possible orange mixtures when the colors blend.

Begin painting the pumpkin shapes, altering the paint color on your brush as you progress. Constantly changing the colors on your paint brush like this and painting while the previous shapes are still wet will create beautiful smooth blends of color. 

By painting wet into wet like this, the pigments merge together creating nice transitions of color – and if you use a warm yellow and warm red you’ll get rich, vibrant oranges that don’t lose any saturation. 

The key is to keep the colors flowing into each other while they’re still wet, so pick up plenty of paint with your brush and apply nice wet brush strokes.

Work down the page, and as you paint each pumpkin shape let them overlap so that the colors seep into the adjacent shapes. The colors blend naturally. Let the wet paint bleed into the neighboring areas, forming soft transitions.

From time to time you can also leave a small white highlight by painting around a small area, allowing the white of the paper to show through. These highlights can add a touch of “sparkle” and give your pumpkins a more lively and interesting appearance. 

Keep painting, moving quickly while the surface is still wet.

Step 3.

Mix your yellow with a bit of blue paint to make a puddle of green, then start adding small stalks to the little pumpkin shapes… If the surface is still wet then that’s fine… just let the colors merge together!

Leave the paint to dry completely before carefully removing the masking tape around the edge

Voila!

A Halloween watercolor bookmark filled with cute little pumpkins!

Halloween Bookmark Idea No.3

You can paint this spooky Halloween watercolor bookmark in 5 quick steps! 

This graveyard scene was painted using a simple layering technique, building transparent layers of watercolor one on top of the other…

Getting Started.

Trace the sketch outline onto the paper. You can download a free outline template below – or just sketch something similar, with 5 layers of tombstones getting smaller and smaller into the distance.

Next, tape down the bookmark onto a flat board using low-tack masking tape. The tape will protect the edges of the paper and leave a nice white frame around the painting. Make sure the tape is well stuck down so that the paint doesn’t bleed underneath the edges while you paint.

Step 1.

Paint the first layer using a light gray, transparent mixture of paint. You want the layers to become progressively darker with more and more pigment and less and less water – so this painting is also a great way to practice your water to paint ratios in watercolor!

Use lots of water to dilute this first layer of paint – you may be surprised how much water you need to mix in to get a very light gray appearance.

Paint a smooth even wash, keeping the paint moving quickly while the surface is still wet.

Then leave the paint to dry completely before moving on…

Step 2.

Add some more pigment to your puddle of paint to make a slighter darker mix. Then, begin painting the next row of tombstones below.

You want the mixtures of gray paint to go from very light to very dark in just 5 steps – so try to judge your water to paint ratio based on this objective. 

This layer should be somewhere between mid-gray and very light gray.

Try using a scrap of paper to judge the strength of your paint mix…

Leave the paint to dry fully before starting the next layer. If the surface is even slightly damp, the next layer may cause unwanted blooms or watermarks.

Step 3.

Mix up a mid gray puddle of paint and paint the next row down. 

This layer should be noticeably different to create a clear step in darkness.

You guessed it! … Now leave the paint to dry again.

Step 4.

This time the mix of paint should be between mid gray and dark gray…

You can also begin to see how the different shades of gray create a sense of depth as if each layer of tombstones fades into the distance.

Step 5.

Mix up your final puddle of paint, adding lots more pigment, but make sure your paint is still liquid and watery enough to spread evenly on the paper.

Leave the paint to dry completely before carefully removing the masking tape around the edge

And there you go!

A fun-to-paint Halloween watercolor bookmark of a spooky looking graveyard!

Happy Halloween!

The post Halloween Watercolor Bookmarks! first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

This may be the quickest Easter watercolor painting you’ll ever try

This tiny painting lesson is all about painting these cute Easter chicks in watercolor using a wet-on-wet technique.

If you’re short on time but really want something to paint, give these a try!

Step by step easter watercolor chicks

Step 1

Begin with a sheet of watercolor paper taped down onto a board and using a large brush, wet the surface so that it is evenly moist. I use a mop brush like this because it holds lots of water…

You want the distribution of water to be as uniform as possible. Otherwise you’ll get differences in drying times to different parts of the paper. 

And what does that lead to?

Blooms! Those unwanted watermarks that sometimes spoil your paintings…

There is a delicate point where watercolor paper dries and becomes “damp” rather than “moist” (damp being dryer than moist in this example). This can happen unevenly across the surface of the paper, depending on the wetness of your brush strokes.

This is why “timing” in watercolor painting is an important factor.

Step 2

After wetting the paper with clear water, you now need to wait until the paper is moist (but before that delicate “damp” phase of drying). 

Don’t paint into the wet paper immediately while the paper is wet. This will mean your paint will spread over a wide area of the paper. We want to limit the spread to a round shape on the paper, not diffuse across the whole sheet.

Use your fingers to touch the paper and judge the wetness of the surface, or turn it into the light to see how it reflects. 

A wet surface will be very shiny. But on a moist surface you can start to see the water absorb and some of the paper’s grainy texture is revealed. (A damp surface looks almost dry, with very little shine).

This is great practice for wet-on-wet control

The better you get at judging stages of drying the more control you have over your painting process.

So… when the paper is “moist” start painting three yellow circles, side by side. Use a medium strength mixture of paint, not a very wet and diluted mixture.

Observe how fast and how far the pigment spreads. If the pigments run away too far, you can rinse and blot your brush, and use it like a sponge to soak up some of the unruly pigments. Then wait a little longer to try again.

You should have three nice round circles with sift diffuse edges. 

While the painted shapes are still moist, mix up a slightly orange color and add some curved shapes to the underbelly of the chicks, just to give them a little bit of depth.

Now let the shapes dry completely!

Step 3

When the chick shapes are nice and dry, You can use colored pencils to dry beaks, eyes, and feet on each of the cute easter chicks!

I’m using Prismacolor pencils – they lay down nice rich colors and are pleasantly “chalky” to draw with.

And that’s it!

Told you this would be quick

Hope you have a wonderfully creative Easter…

The post Easy Easter Watercolor Painting (Wet-on-Wet) first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

But if you follow the painting process I used for this painting of a mug of hot chocolate, you’ll see that it follows the same basic set of principles I use for simpler looking subjects. 

So if you’re up for a bit of a challenge, in this lesson I’ll give you some tips on how you can paint seemingly complex scenes more easily.

Observing the Reference

After you’ve decided what you want to paint, the starting point for painting any subject is observation. 

And for an artist, simply put, you need to develop observational skills that allow you to see differently. Rather than seeing the object itself (in this case a mug of hot chocolate), you should look for the underlying structure of the subject. 

This means trying to perceive it in terms of its shapes, and the different colors and values of those shapes.

So, not a mug…

But lots of component parts that come together to give us the visual impression of a mug.

This is what you want to translate onto the paper.

To do this, the techniques used in observational drawing or painting are all about simplification. The whole idea is to find ways to break down a complex-looking scene or subject into simple parts that are more easily manageable in the painting process.

This applies to anything you paint… even the complicated looking stuff!

Tips for Painting Complex Subjects

1. Sketch First

As part of the simplification process I always begin by sketching a rough outline of the subject. You’re essentially breaking down the subject into its most basic shapes and forms. These guidelines do not need to be very detailed. Instead of getting lost in the complexity of details, you focus on the overall structure. 

I consider this a roadmap for the painting process that helps to establish proportions.

Also, by keeping the sketch simple you allow for greater spontaneity in the painting process since you’re not constrained by intricate details.

You could draw this freehand or use a grid drawing method for more accuracy, but I prefer to get started quickly and trace the subject using a light board (like this one).

2. Focus on Values

When you observe the subject, pay close attention to the shapes of different values – values meaning “lightness and darkness” of different parts within the subject. Proper values help create depth and a sense of three-dimensions in your painting.

But remember, these shapes don’t have to be perfect.

Begin by looking for big masses of value rather than individual parts. Then go in and pick out smaller shapes and the values and colors of those.

To help with judging values, one handy tool I like to use is a homemade “value finder” like this: 

I use this to help me isolate parts of my reference images. It’s basically a small piece of paper or card with a hole cut out of the center. When I hold it up to my reference image, I can look through the hole to single out the part I’m interested in. It helps me see the colors and values of that specific area more clearly in comparison with the wightness of the card.

You can also use various online tools or apps to simplify the values of the subject. Most of these turn the image into a black & white version that has a limited range of value “steps”. Usually you only need 3 or 4 values ranging from light to dark to get a good understanding of the value structure of your reference.

3. Build up with a Layering Technique

Now that I have the basic shapes and proportions of my subject, and an overall idea of the values,  I can begin to paint. 

To do this I seek out the lightest values first. This begins with the white highlights which I mask using masking fluid. 

Then I use a layering technique to gradually build up the colors and details of the subject, starting with lighter washes. (This layering technique is known as glazing). 

Because I’ve established that the light is coming from the left hand side, I begin painting in the middle of the cup, leaving the left side completely white. But as I progress to the shaded side of the cup on the right, I darken my paint mixture. 

This lays the foundations for the painting, and I leave the paint to dry completely before applying another layer. If I go back in too early, I risk creating unwanted watermarks or “blooms”.

The next layers darken the values further. But I only add brush marks to the smaller shapes of darker value that I can distinguish from the reference photo. As before, I begin by using a diluted paint mixture, and then I apply a darker mixture for the areas requiring the darkest values.

4. Work from loose to detailed (big to small)

You’ll notice that I also begin with broader strokes and bigger shapes, and gradually refine the details as I go. 

For example the shiny liquid chocolate starts as one big brown shape. Once I’ve established the general shapes I then refine. With each new layer the idea is to let the first lighter color show through. The darkest brushstrokes are also the smallest.

Details like the patterned lines on the cup and the small shapes of shading on the marshmallows are applied towards the end of the painting process. 

Think about laying down the foundational shapes before adding smaller details. 

You want to paint from “big to small”…

Again, the accuracy of the details is not important. Focus on capturing the essence of the subject rather than every tiny detail, especially in areas where it might be overwhelming.

5. Take a Step Back!

Throughout the painting process remember to take a moment to step back from your painting. This lets you assess your progress and make adjustments as needed. 

When checking against the reference, you constantly look back and forth between the painting and the reference image. Taking a step away gives you a new perspective for comparison, and allows you to identify areas that may need adjustments in relation to the original subject. 

This back-and-forth process helps catch any discrepancies so that the painting captures the essence of the reference image more closely.

6. Enjoy the Process

Lastly, remember to enjoy the process of painting complex subjects. 

Embrace the challenge and observe your progress along the way. Each painting is an opportunity to learn and grow as an artist

The post How to Paint Complex Subjects (Surprisingly Easy!) first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

And what better way to express your affection for your loved one than by creating a personalized Valentine’s painting for them?

In this article, I’ll show you a few different creative approaches to crafting Valentine-themed paintings. And this assortment of painting ideas features various techniques that can serve as inspiration for other paintings! 

Let your imagination flow

Valentines Painting Ideas for Beginners

I’m going to show you a collection of watercolor techniques for creating valentine’s paintings. You’ll be able to see the step by step process I used so that you can easily reproduce them for yourself. 

It’s possible that as you go through these paintings, the various techniques will inspire other creative ideas! Feel free to expand on these suggestions and come up with your own unique creations

And above all, have fun!

Getting started

I wanted to paint these in the form of valentine’s cards. To do this I simply cut down a standard 12×9 inch sheet of watercolor paper, and folded it in the middle.

Remove a 3 inch band of paper along one side, so you end up with a sheet that’s 12×6 inches. Then score a line down the center of the sheet to help fold the paper in half. I also used the flat edge of the ruler to firmly press the fold down.

Simply tape the “card” onto a board to help keep it flat during the painting process, and you’re ready to go!

The colors I used for this project were as follows (Affiliate links) :

• Quinacridone rose – Pigment number: PV19
• Pyrrol scarlet – Pigment number: PR255
• Transparent Pyrrol Orange – Pigment number: PO71

I used Artzena watercolor paper (Amazon) for all these paintings which is a student-grade paper with good wet-on-wet handling.

Also, there’s a bonus video version of these paintings available only to my premium Patreon members – click the button to find out more

Eternal Echoes (Layered Watercolor Hearts)

This first valentine painting uses a glazing technique to slowly build up the color intensity of the concentric heart shapes.

I started by sketching a heart shape that fills the entire square. Then worked my way inwards to the center.

Next I painted the first heart shape, leaving the center heart untouched. This is a fairly diluted mixture of paint. I’m just painting loosely and not worrying whether the paint accumulates on the surface. If the excess water creates any watermarks then this will add some interesting texture of the finished painting.

Because this is a glazing technique, you need to let the first layer of paint dry. (Glazing in watercolor is another word for layering, but must be done on a dry surface).

Now you can paint the next concentric heart shape, using the pencil lines as a guide, and still leaving the center heart white.

Next, you guessed it!… Leave the paint to dry angina then finish off the painting by filling in the smallest heart shape.

Notice how the final heart has the deepest color intensity thanks to the successive layers of transparent paint. This also sets up a high amount of color contrast with the white heart in the center and helps draw the eye to this part of the painting. 

Contrast is an excellent way to create a focal point!

Valentine Whispers (Watercolor Lifting Technique)

For this second valentine painting idea I used a simple lifting technique to create rows of wispy looking hearts…

Start by painting a strip of color at the top using a nice wet wash of red watercolor.

Before the paint has time to dry, use a brush to soak up some of the color from the surface. I’m using a stiff, flat bristle brush. This is what watercolor artists call a “lifting technique”.

Lifting works better when the paint is damp. You can lift to a certain degree after the paint has dried, but not so much.

You’ll probably need to repeatedly rinse and blot your brush, then lift some more paint off the surface, until you get a noticeable heart shape. The hearts have a nice diffused appearance.

Paint another strip of color and follow the same process as before. Painting one strip after another gives you enough time to lift the paint before the surface dries. Trying to do this on a larger surface is trickier to do.

Repeat again with the final red stripe

Love’s Embrace (Using a masking technique)

This next technique uses masking fluid to protect the white paper and write a message in the center of the heart shape.

Start by sketching a heart that almost fills the sheet, then write your message across the center making sure to give your letters some thickness. Then use masking fluid to fill in the letters.

Make sure the masking is dry before moving on…

Thanks to the masking fluid, you can now paint your heart shape using one big wash of watercolor.

I loaded up my brush with plenty of paint, then when I reached about the halfway point, I started adding more pigment to the mix, to darken the intensity of the wash. I also started adding a different color by introducing some pink. This adds a bit more interest to the heart shape and I end up with a slight gradient in color strength and some variation in color as well. 

Blended Affection (Wet-on-wet blending)

The final idea is a simple composition where I painted rows of hearts. The little heart shapes are all painted with a wet on wet technique, and combine two slightly different colors. The idea here was to let the two colors mingle and blend together while the paint is still wet.

To paint small hearts like this, pick up some of the first color with your brush, then think of painting a small slanted oval shape like you see me doing. Then dip your brush in the second color, and paint another oval shape, this time slanted to the other side.

If you think there’s too much paint on the surface, blot your brush and lift some of the paint off the paper.

Keep painting rows of hearts using the same technique until you reach the bottom of the sheet.

And there you go… I hope you had fun painting these simple compositions, and if you came up with your own designs, let me know in the comments below! Happy painting and Happy Valentine’s Day!

The post Valentine Painting Ideas (Easy Step by Step Tutorials!) first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

This is a fun watercolor painting that I’ll show you how to paint yourself, but it will also show you an interesting example of how watercolor paints can be layered to achieve a desired end result. 

Layering paints, of course, is a technique also known as “glazing”. But it’s not always obvious how to build up your layers when painting with watercolors. 

So in this easy to follow painting you’ll get to see how each layer of paint, and the choice of colors for each new wash, influences the appearance of the finished painting.

How to Paint a Gingerbread Man in Watercolor 

To get started, copy the outline of the gingerbread man onto a sheet of watercolor paper. 

I fixed the paper onto a flat board. Then I used masking fluid to cover the small details on the gingerbread man, like the icing and his buttons. Doing this will free up my brush strokes without having to worry about painting around any fiddly shapes.

CHECK OUT MY PATREON TODAY!

As usual, anyone should be able to easily follow along with this painting… But for those of you who want to go further, you’ll also find the full length video, the outline sketch, and all the reference material for completing this painting on my Patreon : you’ll find my full library of ad-free video tutorials, plus other exclusive bonuses that I only share with members of my Patreon channel. Follow the link to find out more...

First Layer (Underpainting)

Next, mix up a big puddle of an orange-brow color and start painting the whole of the shape. Notice that I’m also leaving some additional small white highlights here and there in the places where the form catches the light.  

Also, as I progress from left to right I’m slightly darkening the paint mixture. Towards the end you’ll also see me charging in a darker brown color on the right hand side where the edges are in shade, but also next to the buttons and the icing. These details protrude from the surface of the gingerbread man – so by suggesting shadows I can start to give them a more three dimensional form.

Also notice that near the end of this first layer, the bottom half of the wash has already started to dry. This results in a watery mark called a “backrun” when I come back to finish painting the shape. 

To avoid this I could have completed the whole shape more quickly while the paint was still moist. But for this subject I don’t mind because the watermarks add some texture to the surface of the gingerbread man.

Second Layer (Glazing)

I let this layer dry completely before moving on. Notice how the paint dries much lighter compared to when the paint was wet. It’s much paler, but also has a slightly red undertone. This first layer is sometimes referred to as the “underpainting” and it sets the foundation for the following colors. 

So to intensify the final appearance and make the final color a more vivid orange-brown, I’m adding a layer of warm yellow. 

This, of course, is a glazing technique. But I think you can also see how the combination of the two layers of color combine to produce a new color appearance, thanks to the transparency of the paint.

Notice also that this time I’m painting over the little white highlights that I left previously – This turns them into colored highlights instead of pure white.

I’m also using the same approach as before and charging in some darker brown paint to all the places where there would be shade or shadow. This color spreads into the underlying wash producing a nice diffuse effect.

Adding The Details

When this layer of paint was dry, I then removed the masking fluid so that I could begin to paint the details.

Starting with the icing, I used a very diluted mix of blue to add shadows on the forms of the eyes, mouth, and the fancy details on the arms and legs. To do this, imagine that the light is coming from the top left hand side, and add a few brush strokes to represent form shadows. This gives them a bit more depth and volume.

I treated the colored buttons in a similar way, leaving a bright white highlight on the upper left, and charging-in a bit more color on the shaded side of each button.

When the buttons were dry I added another glaze of paint to enhance the shadows and give a better sense of depth.

Adding the Shadow Details

After adding the details, I’m now going to add some cast shadows to reinforce the three-dimensional impression of the gingerbread man.

To do this I’m using a medium strength mixture of blue – in this case French Ultramarine.

This is another example of the way different layers of paint colors interact to produce a different final appearance.

Blue is the complement of red (in other words, these colors are on opposite sides of the color wheel). Complementary colors when mixed lose their intensity and chroma. It’s said that they “cancel each other out”, or become “neutral”. 

Because the gingerbread man is essentially a slightly neutral orange-red color, blue is the perfect choice for creating shadows. The blue paint takes on a neutral gray appearance when glazed over the orange-red color underneath.

I carry on applying a few shadows following the same idea that the light is shining from above and to the left. This final touch makes the details pop out even more and enhances the three-dimensional effect.

I hope you have fun trying this watercolor gingerbread man for yourself, and enjoyed seeing how layers of watercolor can be gradually built up to the final appearance. If you give this a go, let me know what you think in the comments below.

Adding Soft Highlights (Lifting)

As a final touch I used a stiff brush to add a few soft highlights. To do this I damped then blotted the brush so that it wasn’t too wet, then brushed the surface where I wanted to lighten the color. 

This is known as a “lifting” technique. It has the effect of re-activating the paint so you can remove some of the pigments from the paper surface.

The post Watercolor Gingerbread Man (Easy Painting!) first appeared on Watercolor Affair.

(try saying that three times fast!)

This is a simple illustrative style of painting that anyone can paint in just a few minutes. But there are a few different techniques and tips that I’ll share with you during the painting process.

Follow along to find out how I painted these fun winter hats so you can try it yourself.

Painting Watercolor Wooly Hats- First Steps

I started by sketching a few different ideas for the hats in pencil on an ordinary sheet of drawing paper. When I was happy I then traced them onto a sheet of watercolor paper using a light box.

I did this because the drawing process often involves numerous corrections, and repeated erasing on watercolor paper can damage the surface.

You can copy the design I did for this painting, or if you prefer you can download my sketch outline from my Patreon, where you’ll also find a bunch of bonus material…

CHECK OUT MY PATREON TODAY!

For those of you who want to go further, you’ll also find the full length video, the outline sketch, and all the reference material for completing this painting on my Patreon : you’ll find my full library of ad-free video tutorials, plus other exclusive bonuses that I only share with members of my Patreon channel. Follow the link to find out more...

Tape down your watercolor paper onto a flat board, then use some masking fluid to mask the white parts on all of the hats. To do this I’m using a fine nylon brush that I dip first into soapy water, before picking up some liquid masking. This helps prevent the brush from getting clogged up with dried masking. 

When you’ve painted all the details you want to leave white, let the masking fluid dry completely!

Begin by painting the main body of each hat one at a time, changing colors as you go. Feel free to copy the color scheme I’m using, or come up with your own ideas. However, notice that I’m painting these shapes with a gradient in strength from light to dark. This helps create a slight 3D effect, as if the hats were lit from the left hand side.

To do this, start with a diluted mixture of paint, then charge your brush with a more concentrated color as you progress. You can also lift some of the color off the paper while the paint is still damp using a rinsed and blotted brush.

I painted each of the hat shapes using the same method. But for the sake of creating a bit of diversity, I reversed the gradient for the bottom row of hats, making them lighter on the right and darker on the left

Normally, by the time you’ve painted the last watercolor hat the first one should be dry. If it is, you can keep painting, otherwise let it dry before moving on. This is because if you paint next to a damp wash you risk causing watermarks like backruns or blooms if new brush marks touch the damp paint.

Now I’m painting the brims at the bottom and the bobbles at the crown of each hat. Again, you can follow my color scheme, or make up your own ideas. For some of the details, like the spikes on a couple of the bobbles, I switch brushes to a small round brush.

All that’s left is to paint the smaller details, but before moving on I removed the masking fluid using a rubber cement pickup tool. Just make sure the paint is completely dry when you do this or you’ll smudge the paint !

Again, I swapped over to a small fine brush for adding the final texture details. I’ll let you watch the rest of the painting process where you can see me adding zigzag lines and criss-cross details to the different types of hats. 

Let me know how you get on in the comments below

The post Watercolor Winter Wooly Hats! (Step by Step Tutorial) first appeared on Watercolor Affair.