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Watercolor painting of pansies that show examples of watercolor painting techniques for beginners next to a palette and paintbrush.

Easy Watercolor Techniques for Beginners

Learn how to use ten easy watercolor techniques for beginners in this easy to follow tutorial. Explore the basic methods such as glazing, wet on dry, wet on wet, and dry brush, to name a few.
Explore essential methods of watercolor painting that will improve your painting skills. These techniques are simple to learn and incorporate into your artwork.
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Equipment

  • Water
  • Paper towels
  • Paint brushes - I am using a #8 round brush.
  • Watercolor paper - I am using Strathmore Vision cold press watercolor paper, 140 lb., cut down to 6 by 9 inches
  • Watercolor paint - tube watercolor paint on a pallet or a box kit of watercolor paints. You can use whatever colors that you have on hand, for this lesson I used: Ultramarine Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Yellow Ocher

Instructions

  • Glazing
    Paint a thin layer of paint on the petals. Let it dry completely. Paint another layer of color over the top of the first color. Let some of the first color show through. Repeat with as many layers as you want. Make sure to let each layer dry completely between glazes. This is a technique to build up value with hard edges. Experiment with different colors.
  • Wet on Dry
    Paint with a brush loaded with paint on dry paper. Fill in the petals, leaving some white in the center of the flower. Letting each petal dry slightly before continuing to the next, may achieve soft overlapping edges. If desired, drop in some extra pigment in the center of the flower. Rinse out the brush and then lift off some of the paint on the outside of the petals for highlights.
  • Wet on Wet
    With a clean brush, paint water on the flower petals. Wait a moment or two for the water to soak into the paper. It should be damp but not shiny with a lot of water. Add paint and watch it move over the flower. This is a great method for a soft or blurry effect, like painting things in the distance, foggy, misty scenes, or subtly blended paintings.
  • Charging
    Start with dry paper and paint it with an even coat of wet paint. Dab or drop in some paint onto one spot. It can be the same color or a different color. The added color will spread slightly and then dry with a nice transition between the colors.
  • Lines
    Painting lines is a wonderful tactic to add to your watercolor painting arsenal. Use your paintbrush like a drawing tool to paint lines, hatching, cross-hatching, zig zags, squiggles, flamboyant swirls, flourishes, and more.
  • Dry Brush
    Squeeze as much water out of the paintbrush as possible, so it is barely damp. Dip it in just a small amount of paint. This works well with a flat brush or use the side of a round brush. Drag the brush across the paper for an irregular, scratchy texture. You can layer the dry brush strokes for more depth and texture.
  • Scumbling
    Using loose irregular strokes gently scrub the paint onto the paper. Make sure to leave bits of white paper between the paint strokes. Scumbling usually works best when using two or more colors. This is a great technique when you want to create a lot of texture and color quickly. It is perfect for trees, grass, fruit, animals, hair, any object with texture, abstractions, or even people and portraits.
  • Dragging
    Add a little bit of paint to one of the petal areas. Rinse out the brush and then drag the paint out a little bit at a time. Rinse out the brush again and repeat until there is a soft transition between the darker paint and the washed-out tint.
  • Gradient
    This method is similar to dragging but uses more than one color. Drop some yellow ocher in the center of the petal. Rinse out the brush and then drag the color out toward the outside of the petal. Add some purple to the outside of the petal. Rinse the brush and then drag the paint toward the yellow paint. Bring the two colors together and then soften the edge between them. Practice controlling the paint and be careful not to allow large blobs of color swirl together
  • Blotting
    Paint some color onto the flower petals. This technique will work with one color of paint or with more than one. Twist a paper towel, tissue, or rag into a point and then blot the paint. The tissue will lift some of the paint off, leaving a highlight and texture.

Notes

Mix, match, and overlap these painting techniques for a wide array of techniques to create with.
Keep in mind, that watercolor paint will dry slightly lighter in tone than when it is wet.
Don’t forget to use both sides of your watercolor paper when you are learning new techniques.
For watercolor projects for kids, use white construction paper or card stock if watercolor paper is not in the budget.
Practice, practice, practice! Watercolor painting is not easy. Believe me, I know. Just don’t give up. Enjoy the process of learning and don’t worry about the finished product.