Learn How to Paint a SImple Christmas Tree Step by Step
Learn how to paint a simple Christmas tree step by step in this online art tutorial. Discover the best way to paint a quick Christmas tree in watercolor.
Practice painting Christmas trees and find out tips and tricks to making watercolor painting easy and fun! This step-by-step art class will lead you through everything you need to know.
Facebook
Pinterest
Email
Print
Equipment
- Watercolor paper - I am using Strathmore 400 Series, cold press, watercolor paper, 140 lb., cut down to 6 by 4.5 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 use: Cadmium Yellow, Prussian Blue, Black, Cerulean Blue, Cadmium Red Light, Alizarin Crimson, and ultramarine blue
- Paint brushes - I am using a #8 round brush.
- Water
- Paper towels
Instructions
- Lightly sketch a simple cone shape for the Christmas tree. Sketch some circles for ornaments or lights.
- Sketch in some long narrow oval patches of snow. Include some where the outer branches will be and some in the main cone of the tree.
- Include as many or as few ornaments and patches of snow as you would like. Keep in mind that you will paint around them, so fewer will be more simple. For a challenge sketch more ornaments and snow.
- Combine cadmium yellow and a small amount of Prussian blue paint. Use this light green to paint some branches swooping down from the main cone of the tree.
- Then fill in the rest of the tree with light green, keeping the strokes loose and easy. Carefully paint around the ornaments and patches of snow.
- Mix together cadmium yellow, Prussian blue, and a tiny but of black paint to make a middle green. Use this color to paint a few more branches on the sides of the tree and some branch clusters in the middle.
- Leave some of the light green visible, especially on the tops of the branches. Again painting around the white ornaments and snow.
- Combine Prussian blue, black and a little bit of yellow to make dark green. Add this to the tree, mostly on the undersides of the branches and in shadowy patches around the tree.
- Let the tree painting dry completely before adding the shadow and ornaments.
- Brush some clear water on the paper below the tree. Let it soak in just a bit and then paint on some cerulean blue to indicate a light shadow that the tree is casting. When it dries the blue edges will softly blend out.
- To paint the ornaments paint around the outside of each ornament then wipe the extra paint off the brush. Drag the paint toward the middle of the ornament living a small white highlight in the middle.
- I used alizarin crimson, orange, and ultramarine blue for the ornaments but you could use what ever colors you want.
Notes
- Allow the paint strokes to be loose.
- Keep the branches and light and dark shapes irregular, avoid painting in a pattern. Overlapping the three shades of green in different ways gives you a wide variety color in your Christmas tree.
- Watercolor paint will dry lighter than it is when wet.
- Don’t overthink it! Christmas tree paintings can be as simple or detailed as you like.
- Enjoy the process of painting!