River Scene In Watercolor No.1

You can paint along with this project by visiting my etsy shop (http://watercolorgirl.etsy.com) and choosing the icon for the online class. I will send you an email with the reference photo and a ready-to-use drawing for the project.

To Begin: Paint a wash in the background for the sky. You can either wet the area with water first, then use a stronger pigment, or you can just apply a very wet pigment to the paper using the Flat Wash method. Keep your paper tilted in different directions to keep the moisture flowing and thus allowing the paper to dry in a more even manner. You can also control the flow of the darker pigment toward the top of the paper, as most skies will appear lighter at the horizon line. I used a mixture of French Ultramarine Blue, Antwerp Blue and Cerulean Blue. I applied this wash to the entire background, then used a clean, crumpled, paper towel to lift areas where I know I want the lighter greens in the trees to shine through.

Allow to dry or dry with a hair dryer.

Next, apply a mixture of Antwerp Blue and French Ultramarine Blue to the water using a number 10 round brush. Be sure to use horizontal strokes to suggest the same types of values and lines that are suggested in the reference photo.