Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Blow Dry Your Watercolors 

Impatiently waiting to get onto the next step of your watercolor painting?

You can use a hair dryer to blow dry your watercolor painting.

If you're not waiting for the paint to react on it's own or with other colors to create a cool effect then yes it is okay to use a blow dryer to dry the paint and water.

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Color Charts Are Important

Creating color charts using the paints you have in your palette is such an important tool to learn your colors.

Creating a chart with a simple square of color with the name written below is a great way to keep track of all your colors.  Make a little code or key of the various brands along with names of the colors.

Your own color chart is a great reference tool.  Sure you can find them in many books, but having a chart of what is actually in your own palette is extremely important.

Take it a step further and create color mixing charts, check out this old Tuesday Tip:
http://ritasquier.blogspot.com/2009/02/tuesdays-tips-techniques-for-watercolor_24.html

See more color charts on my blog:
http://ritasquier.blogspot.com/search?q=color+chart

You can see the variety of colors you have at a glance.

Tuesday Tips & Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Work Vertical 


Have you ever tried working vertical while creating a watercolor painting?

It's not impossible.

If it scares you, go for the abstract look to try it out.

Tape your watercolor to a board, prop it up on an easel and paint away with no worries or cares!

Work wet into wet.
Splatter on some color.
Spray on a bit of water.

Yes, the colors will drip and blend one into another.

Give it a try, you may be pleased with the results.

Normally, watercolor is painted on a flat surface or a slightly tilted surface, working vertically with the board literally straight up and down can be a challenge.  The reason being, you're working with water and it drips.  I have done several vertical abstracts that have turned out really well.  I love them.

I have been thinking of trying a more detailed landscape or maybe buildings will working vertically.  Could be fun.  Could have a very interesting and unique look.

If you have given it a try ... I want to see your results!

Tuesday Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Splatter Away! 

Have you tried the splatter technique?

Wet your brush, swash it around in some watercolor paint, then tap the wooden part of the brush against the wooden part of another brush held firmly in your other hand and let the paint splatter onto your paper.

You can tap one brush against another brush, a ruler, a pencil or something firmly held in your other hand. It's just likely clanking two sticks together.

Practice over a test sheet of paper.  Tap onto dry paper.  Tap onto wet sections.  Tap one color into another.  Vary the amount of paint and water you have in your brush.  Try different sized brushes.  A round brush versus a flat brush.

Before you know it, you'll have a neat abstract painting!

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

The Old Palette

Dig out that old watercolor palette.  Maybe there is a color waiting there that you have not used in a very long time.  Perhaps it will become your new favorite old color.

Here is a picture of a palette I have not used in a few years.  Permanent Violet Bluish is a color that I have had in all my palettes since ummm 1998.  This palette is not that old though, I think I put it together in the early 2000s.  The turn of the current century!

MaimeriBlu's Avignon Orange, Dragon's Blood and Garnet Lake.  I love these colors!  These are three colors I chose based solely on their names.  Yes, I am guilty of this.  It's gotta a cool name and I want to try it.  Garnet because it's my birthstone.  Dragon's Blood, it's a mythical magical color.  I will be incorporating these colors in upcoming projects.

What colors are on your old watercolor palette?

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Test Paper

Have a piece of good quality watercolor paper handy for testing colors, testing brush strokes before you apply it to your painting.

Use the same type of paper you would normally paint on, don't be stingy and use something cheap.  Colors won't appear the same, the paper won't absorb the same way, the technique or stroke may differ on different types of paper.

Use a small piece of watercolor paper.
Use the back of an old painting you don't like.

Will this color look good?  How do I make that tree stroke?  What will this color combo look like?  Test it on a piece of scrap paper before adding it to your painting.

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

A Clean Brush is a Happy Brush

Even watercolor painting brushes need a good cleaning every now and then.

I like to use The Master's Brush Cleaner and Preserver.  They're slogan is "Keeps Brushes Like New."

It's a nice mild soap for cleaning your brushes.

If you need a helpful how to or step by step, check out my old Tuesday's Tip post from 2009:

http://ritasquier.blogspot.com/2009/07/tuesdays-tips-and-techniques-for_21.htmls

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Crossing Planes

Adding an object that crosses from one plane over top of another will add depth to your painting.  

The tall grasses crossover the pond, this helps to add depth.
The tree on the left, crosses over the middle ground and background adding even more depth and interest to the painting.

This is a simple trick to add depth to your watercolor painting.

Plus the tree relates to last week's tip, its branches extend beyond the top and side of the painting.

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Misting Your Palette

Depending on the brand of watercolor paint you're using, the time of year, the location or the age of your palette it may be necessary to mist your palette with clean clear water before you begin painting.  This will help soften the paint and make it easier for you to pick up more color, more quickly.

This is my very first palette of watercolors.  I started painting in watercolors in 1995.  All but two colors are Winsor Newton watercolors and they are the colors suggested by my first instructor.  The two additions Sap Green and Permanent Violet Bluish are Maimeri Blu watercolors.

The Winsor Newton colors consist of Paynes Grey, Brown Madder, Burnt Sienna, Alizarin Crimson, Cerulean Blue, French Ultramarine, Hookers Green, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Orange and Sepia.  Many of the colors have been replaced over time.  However, the cadmium yellow and cadmium orange I know for a fact I have only purchased one tube of each of those.  A little spritz of water before I begin painting and the paint works perfectly, like a charm.  Yes, you can use that old watercolor paint palette!

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Paint Fresh from the Tube

Sometimes you gotta work out of the box. Take a break from what you normally do. I prefer to squeeze my watercolor paints into a nicely arranged palette allow them to dry and set up before using. Do you do the same? Then today's tip is just for you!

Squeeze a little fresh watercolor paint out onto your palette.

Create a painting using fresh from the tube watercolor paint!

What do you notice that is different?

Perhaps, you'll find it easier to get certain colors to go dark.

Are you someone who's watercolors are normally rather pale?

Splurge a little today, test out what it's like to paint with watercolor paint fresh from the tube.

Enjoy and have fun with it.

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

MaimeriBlu's Sap Green is back!

Cheap Joe's Fall Sales Event flyer has Sap Green listed in the catalog. So exciting!

I love MaimeriBlu's Sap Green. It's my favorite shade of green. I have yet to order a new tube. Pictured here is my very last tube of sap green next to my second choice of sap green made by M. Graham. I have tried many other brands and many other shades of green and these two are the best.

MaimeriBlu stopped producing the color for awhile. I found it listed for sale once again. Let's hope it is as good as ever and here to stay!

MaimeriBlu Sap Green is my best recommendation for green. The hue, the transparency ... love it!

Tuesday's Tips and Techniques for Watercolor Painting

Ironing Your Watercolors


A repeat from June 2009 - An excellent reminder!

Ever paint a very wet watercolor painting on 140 lb. paper only to end up with a warped wobbly painting? There is a very simple cure to this problem. Iron the painting! This works well with paintings done on quality 100% cotton rag watercolor paper. That is 100% cotton rag ... cotton ... yes, you can iron cotton. Just iron on the back.

1. Starting with a wavy watercolor painting, place it on the ironing board, or multi-folded smooth cotton material on top of art table. Preheat your iron, NO steam.

2. Flip the painting upside down and iron.

3. Allow painting to cool and you will have a flat painting ready to frame!

Give it a try! 

If you're nervous about it, test it on a practice painting.