How to Paint a Watercolor Painting: A step by step Instruction.

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             Beginning Watercolor Painting

Finally, the first step is to have all your supplies

ready with pallet or board , paint, brushes, mixing tray,

paper towels, and a big plastic pitcher of water.

Supplies need:

90lb cold press watercolor paper /Can be found at Walmart.

rigger brush/ the small point paint brushes

Fan brush

one 1/2 inch flat brush

small sponge /they come in a package

your watercolor paint / in a palette

Masking tape

all these can be found at Walmart or hobby Lobby.

Find a nice board and tape your 90lb watercolor cold press paper to that board after wetting the paper.

Let Dry.

Here are the paint brushes only the one in the

middle should be a rigger the small pointed one.

Also your big glass or jug of water .

You are ready to begin.

Mix up your blue and brown with some green to get a paynes  black .
Use this on your paper to draw a horizon line in the
middle of the paper.
Then continue with drawing the trunk of your tree.

Make sure you use thin lines by barely touching the paper with the tip of your rigger brush,

Making a wash by mixing a dab of  Black and blue to

water ,will create a grey blue. Paint this on your

tree truck with your flat brush. This will spread with the

watery paint. Then paint the limb the same way.

While your tree dries, make another wash

with water and blue after you wash your paint

brush.

Then paint a couple of  vertical streaks under

your horizon line in the middle of the

paper.

Continue painting the sky with various sections of the blue

wash.  Let dry and go to the next step.

You will clean your flat  brush very good and mix a wash  of

yellow. One dab of yellow paint and a lot of water.

Paint a few patches in the sky Do not let them be so watery

that they bleed into the blue . That is why you wait for the

blue to dry. If this happens , take a paper towel and dab it.

Then paint with your flat brush yellow above the horizon line.

Clean your brush again and mix a green wash . Paint the bottom

of the paper a green wash for the river bank.

While letting your background dry wash your flat brush.

Now use your rigger the small pointed one and mix some

dark brown with a reddish brown.

You will paint this on the left side of your tree trunk and limb.

Lay down your rigger and take your small sponge to soak

up some of your brown paint.

Then add some of your paynes black that you mixed before to

create a few dark places with your rigger.

You will also go back and dab just a few small sections of

your tree with your sponge.

Do not worry if your lines look gone.  You can go back after

it dries and use your rigger again to repaint a light brown

line or leave it for effect.

The next part you will mix up your black by adding

raw umber ,blue and some green. Take your fan brush

and dab the black on top of the vertical  water line.

This needs to be a little water almost a wash. Then take your

fan brush clean it and wipe dry. Place it on the black and pull

the paint lightly, barely touching the paper with the tip of

your fan brush. If you feel you need to go back and wet the

fan brush to make the black lighter please do that ,and pull

your brush over the black again.

Take your fan brush with the black mixture of paint and dab

some areas of he sky . Sparingly will be good and the lighter

the mixture of paint the better.

Now place your fan brush in the water and get your sponge.

You will be dabbing the black and absorbing a little bit of

the paint. Do not over do it where you have no black left in the sky.

Take your flat brush  that is clean and mix orange with red.

Paint this mixture of red and orange in various places .Make

sure  you get some little limbs. These will be your berries.

Go back with your sponge and dab up some the excess of the

paint and let dry . Remember to not over dab and suck up all your

paint.

Now while the sky dries a little , take your clean fan brush and

make a wash with the mixture of black.  By barely touching 
the paper you can make some strokes of grass very light .

At the base of the

grass place just a timey bit of pressure and make it a little

darker. Now you have grass . LOL,let it dry.

Becoming an Artists: Beggining Watercolor Painting!

                               

                                        Becoming an Artist!

                  Don't let the world fool you, people are not

               born to become artist they are exposed, and

     

              behaviorally taught to be an  artist.

                Any one can paint as long as they are

            taught and exposed  to view the world as

             an artist .Being an artist is acquiring the 

                 skill of color usage and various paint 

              brush techniques.

              So as a 30 year experienced art teacher and

              artist , I am going to give you the opportunity

 

               to  learn the trade of an artist, and help you

                create through the behavior , techniques

                  and thought process of being an artist.

                    Since my last post  I am becoming     

              

practicing artist again.The last two year

husband has been sick and  I have found

     time for my art in little bits and it has been a

                  struggle.  But now , I will return to full time

                      art, as much as possible, with your help.

Join me and we will begin

                 process of  painting and becoming an artist.

                  So, First I would like to talk about mediums.
               
                  You can become an artist ,but first you
                 
                    must decide what type of paint you would

                   like to use to create your master piece.

 There are three types of painting or mediums.   

    Actually ,there are many more than these,

     but we are going to explore the most  popular

      mediums that people have used in basic painting.

      Watercolor , Acrylic, and oil are the three mediums 

'      used in the basics of painting.

           

      Most artist have mastered these and have              

       gone on to enhance their artistic abilities become

       combining them or enhancing them with

       other mediums.

       These three mediums can produce the best of art.

'
        And you can focus on  one or  all as an artist.
          
         However, I would like to start with one an

         give several lesson in supplies, styles and

        techniques. We will at one time discuss

   

        some art history and a specific watercolor

        artist we all know or don't know. So lets begin 

    with watercolor . I hope you come join the fun.

                                  

            Beginning Watercolor Painting

         Watercolor painting is a very translucent type

        of medium.Very beautiful colors can be used

        and blended to create an amazing master piece.

       To begin your knowledge in this medium

       we will talk about the supplies you

       will need to create your art.

  

                                                

                              Watercolor Paper

     '

      You can find watercolor paper just about

         anywhere.The most convenient place to find

         some is Walmart. In the  craft paint department

     

         at Walmart you will see different types of

         watercolor paper. Walmart will sale

         watercolor paper usually in pads. 

        They will sell 90lb paper, or 140lb  

         

        paper pads. Usually the 140lb paper will be

        sufficient for your first painting. And the pads

       will be  9 x12  or 12 x 18.

       This will be sufficient as a beginner and you

       can make beautiful paintings with great  space

       relations. .

            Watercolor paper is designated by weight  of the paper.
         Student grade is 90 lb and is rather thin.It Buckles  
         when wet   and will tear easily.

          A good grade is 140lb paper that will be sufficient
          your first painting. It can be stretched on a board.
          It is thicker and absorbs more.

          300lb paper I very thick , thicker than card stock.
           And it does not require stretching.

          As you go along or paint more  you can decide
           what grade you want.

            Each paper  weight has it usage, and it depends
           how and what you want your painting to look
           and feel like the weight you use.


           Hot press watercolor paper will be smooth and
           some times  glossy a little bit.

          
           Cold press paper will have texture and is usually
            the most popular used.

             So If you are a beginner I suggest  you use
              `140lb cold press to get started.

            But I also suggest someday go to an art store
            Michaels, Hobby Lobby and just feel the texture
             and weight to make your overall decision on
            your choice of paper.

                             WATERCOLOR PAINT

              

       Watercolor paint can be bought at Walmart in tubes

       or pallets.   I suggest the pallets because the pallets

       

       will have all the basic colors you need to start as a

        beginner.

           

     Later as you develop your own technique

    you will learn that in your painting you might use

       

     one color more than another color or use a large

    amount of  color that has to be mixed , so it will be

    

     more convenient for you to buy in tubes to have you

     supply you need on hand.

     However, if you insist on the tubes here are the

     colors you will need:

              Yellow Ochre

      

              Cadmium yellow

     

               Cadmium  red

    

               burnt sienna

' 

               raw umber

               Cobalt blue

              

              ultramarine  blue

               Hookers  green

      

               sap green

              Chinese white

               paynes grey {Black}

     

  Please be sure to get a mixing pallet to mix your colors.

You can also find these at Walmart.

       

Later as you decide whether you like watercolor cake pallets or

tube paint , you can go to the specials art stores and pick out

various wonderful colors. This is a learning process and the more

you utilize you painting the better you will get.

Styrofoam cups for water and paper towels are needed.

                                  BRUSHES

Our final step to get prepared are your brushes.

Water color brushes are a must. 

 I don't use but five types of  brushes for my watercolors.

So, I will give you a list and definition of how I use them.

 Rigger :

this is a fine line brush very thin to make lines for trees,

details, and other specific definitions you need to make

in your paintings

Flat 1/2 inch : this  brush makes paint fill ins

for water houses  etc.

Flat 11/2 inch or 2inch: skies and backgrounds

Sable round medium: dropping gems, and

to make color flow.

Fan brush:  Tree leaves and grass.

Round sponge small:  texture

     

                                Supply List Done

                   So, with the supply list done. 

We are ready to go

So in the next blog we will begin the watercolor
process.

Please as we paint , go back and resource
my listing of supplies,

You will understand better why we
using these as we paint. So, Always keep
the supply list as a resource you can return ,too.

And see you in the next blog.

                      

          

             

               

       

         

              

Becoming an Artist Again!

For the past few years it has been very hard to blog and produce my art paintings.

https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/belinda-lawson.html

                                                                                                                        

 My husband has been very sick the last two years and in the year of 2015 he was in ICU for over six months .

He is the love of my life so my choice was to put my love of my art and art business on hold ,until he got well.

  He is still not in the best of health but I am trying to schedule my art around his health issues .

I have left my regular job as a teacher and will care for him ,as well as produce my passion .





Yes , art is my passion . I cannot live without it and it is what I call me .

My art is what makes me who I am . It creates the way I talk , walk , think, see things and it is everything to me .

My life , my passion , my being.

It will take time to get back to my level of creativity and work. But I am willing to go the course.

Getting back into the groove of painting and creating will take time and work.

So ,if you are like me either returning are beginning an art journey come share my journey.

My anxiety is high but I know I have to do this . For myself , my mental health and my physical  health.

So , if you are a passionate artist , or a beginning  artist , join me in getting to or back into the art grove.

No matter, what your level beginner, or advance do it .

You deserve this for yourself .

And it makes you a better person to yourself and friends and family .

Just some examples of my past work.

Join me in my next blog on my steps to getting back to my passion . Or for some of you getting to your passion.

          you can find my art at:

https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/belinda-lawson.html