10 ways to watercolour
Draw your picture with a light touch (H pencil)
Use good quality paper 300 gsm is great, it wont tear when the paper gets wet
Tape your work to a board with masking tape if you are painting wet. Otherwise the paper will stretch and buckle
i find it useful to put the board on a slight tilt so the paint can run downwards towards you.
When you decide where to apply your paint e.g. a lovely moody sky, wet the sky with a big brush, then use a lighter touch when putting in paint, let the paint run. (I use both cerulean and a Prussian blue for skies, I add a tiny bit of crimson to make a darker, rainy sky).
Leaving areas of white is not essential but it adds contrast, if you don’t add water to those sections, the paint won’t run into that spot. You could also use masking fluid and let it set, rub it away when everything is dry and you want to expose the unpainted surface. You could also paint in a little white with ink or acrylic paint.
Try your paint on a separate page before painting your actual picture , each brand is different, they mix differently, some are more translucent than others and can work great on layers and layers of paint. Opaque paint is best left until you need a bit of wow at the end.
If you want to add texture or something different, try adding a few pinches of salt when your paint is wet and then shake the salt away when the work is dry.
Keep a supply of cotton buds handy to quickly correct paint runs that go astray.
Enjoy the paint, you can take watercolour anywhere, it dries quickly, when you are finished you just close the lid and admire your effort. HOW HARD CAN IT BE?
