creativity
Beginner’s Guide: Painting with Watercolors Made Easy
Painting with watercolors: The star shows a guide for beginners.
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Watercolor painting is always an eye-catcher on greeting cards, framed pictures, etc. And using brushes and paint is not as difficult as it might seem at first. From basic materials to simple techniques: The star shows how you can become a watercolor artist.
Watercolor painting is one of the most beautiful forms of artistic activity. It may seem intimidating for beginners, but with a few basic techniques and a little practice, anyone can enjoy painting with watercolors.
In this guide, we’ll share some basic tips and tricks for beginners to help you on your watercolor painting journey.
Painting with Watercolors: What You Need
The first step is to get the right materials. Watercolors come in a variety of forms, including tubes, bowls, and pens. Bowls are usually recommended for beginners as they are easier to handle. You also need Watercolor paper or special painting paper for watercolors, brushes of different sizes, a water container and some paper towels to dry the brushes.
The Color box from Faber Castell with 48 artist-quality watercolors is a versatile tool for watercolor artists or beginners. The colors enable an ideal mixing of light and dark tones. The box also contains a removable mixing palette and a high-quality water tank brush, making mixing and applying the colors easier.
When purchasing Watercolor paper There are some important aspects to consider:
- Grammar: The grammage indicates the weight of the paper per square meter and influences its strength and stability. For watercolor painting, it is advisable to choose a paper with a grammage of at least 200 gsm to ensure that it has enough strength to absorb moisture without curling.
- surface: Watercolor papers are available in a variety of finishes including smooth, slightly textured (cold pressed or NOT), and more textured (rough). The choice of surface depends on your personal preferences and painting style. Smooth paper works well for detailed work, while textured paper can create interesting effects.
- absorbency: A good watercolor paper should be able to absorb moisture well so that the colors are distributed evenly and natural gradients result. Test the absorbency by putting a small drop of water on the paper and observing how quickly it is absorbed.
- Acid-free: Make sure the watercolor paper is acid-free to ensure long-term durability of your artwork. Acidic paper can yellow over time and affect colors.
Basic techniques
Before you start painting, you should familiarize yourself with some basic techniques. Here are a few to get you started:
- Wet-on-wet technique: Lightly moisten the paper with water before applying paint. This allows the colors to merge with each other and create soft transitions.
- Dry painting: Apply the paint to dry paper. This creates sharp edges and details.
- Salt technique: Sprinkle some salt on wet paint to create interesting texture and pattern effects.
- Masking technique: Use masking fluid or painter’s tape to mask areas you want to leave white. After the paint dries, you can remove the mask and the white areas will remain.
For those looking for a practical and elegant solution to store their art supplies, this one offers Brush cardboard box with magnetic closure the perfect option. Included are three brushes from the series 5522 (size 8), 5822 (size 12) and 5527 (size 10), which are equipped with high elasticity and extra fine tips. This compilation is ideal for giving as a gift to creative friends or family members who want to create their works of art using high-quality tools.
Experiment and practice
The most important part of the learning process when painting with watercolors is experimenting and practicing. Take time to try different techniques and find what works best for you. Don’t be discouraged if your first attempts aren’t perfect – practice is the key to improvement.
Painting watercolors: finding inspiration
If you want to get new ideas, there are many watercolor painting resources: books, online tutorials, art courses, and even social media can help you expand your skills and unleash your creativity.
Painting with watercolors can be a rewarding and relaxing experience that is accessible to beginners. With the right materials, basic techniques, practice and inspiration, you can develop your artistic skills. So grab your brushes and immerse yourself in the wonderful world of watercolors.
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