How to do Watercolours







Things you'll probably need:



Quick tips on how to do watercolours for the anon on my FS! WARNING: I'm not the best painter, neither am I a qualified teacher. So please pardon my incompetent ways and means of explanation.  Special thanks to Adelia for being my Hand model.







Paints- It really depends on your personal preference - whether you get your colours in a pre-packed set or hand-pick the tubes individually. I personally like the latter because you can get the colours of your liking and would frequently use (Ultramarine 123, Rowney Orange 636, Purple 433, Lamp Black 035, etc.).  This would probably cost more though.




Water cups- Always have at least 2 of these. 1 for washing your brush & 1 for fresh water (adding water to your new paint). Remember to change your water frequently.

  

Brushes- These few brushes have lasted me for years. Lol. They're all scratched up and old already. Watercolour brushes tend to last longer than Acrylic brushes. But by saying that, it also depends on how well you maintain them. I like to use Sumi brushes/Calligraphy brushes (pic on left & top right) because they absorb a lot of paint at once (Y) They're really affordable- $1-3 for each brush! Other than that, you could also go for Omni (which is a cheaper choice) or Ashley.
Thickness of brushes go according to numbers. The bigger the number, the thicker. I'd suggest you get a variety.

Edit: As for paper, I'd recommend Watercolour paper of 101gsm! It spreads nicely&evenly. 



 Kleenex or Dry towel- Since this medium is water based, you'll need to constantly change the thickness of the paint. This means thinning or adding water to your mix. By dapping your damp brush on these, you'll be able to create perfect gradients and layers.








Art Masking Fluid- This is quite optional. Picture on left shows an example. What it effectively does is to act as a literal "masking layer" (like those in Photoshop). Peal the layer off after and you'll find your paper has remained its white texturey touch. OR you could just use a damn white crayon. Lol. Please pick the white crayon. I never used the Mask after this one painting.



Faber-Castell Watercolour Pencils-  I love these. They're magical things, no doubt, simply amazing, but they don't give you the same effect as actual watercolours. Upgrade!






Preparing your paint:


Squeeze a small amount of watercolour paint on your palette and add 1 or 2 drips of fresh water using a number 8/so brush. Mix to create even pigment. Load your brush by swirling.


 Once you've gotten the colours you want, you're ready to begin!




Painting:


It's all about layering your paints. Unless you're using some "Wet-on-Wet" technique, try to wait for one layer to dry before adding the next. If you don't, your paper'll become crinkly & ugly. You barely have to use white watercolour paint, unless you're mixing to get the colour you want. Thin/fade your colours by adding water. 


Enjoy yourself :)
Hope this helps a little.
There're some really good tutorials online. 
Don't waste your money on books. LOL.


PS:// to the other anon on my FS that asked about my home, I'll post next week kay :)
sorry v.busy this week. heehee.
xoxo.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm just a random reader btw and I just had to say this: very nice! what do you do with all your pieces of art? do you put them up or...?

Amanda L. said...

Thank you for visiting then :)
I don't have a fixed place of putting them but they'd usually be pinned around my area and changed when they get old/boring. Lol! It's a queer hobby I have.

Anonymous said...

You do have an amazing talent for the art. Would love to see more of your work (:

Amanda L. said...

Nahh.. I don't see it.. but thank you for your kind words, from the bottom of my heart. It means so much to my budding passion to be a better artist :')

Would love to continue hearing from you too!