Watercoloring for Beginners
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I love having hobbies. In fact, I’d consider my main hobby, having hobbies!
Basically, I like trying new things and new crafting mediums. I’m not one of those people that has one hobby and has been doing it for years.
I pick up a hobby for a little while, enjoy it, then move onto something new.
I guess I just get bored easily. I’ve always been like this, though. I have an interest in so many things so I dive deep for a little while and get pretty decent at it, or am happy with the results I’ve gotten, then I move onto something new.
That’s what this series is about, sharing what I know about a LOT of different hobbies, the resources I’ve found to try them and everything I used to do it.
Since I try so many things, I try to keep the education part of the hobby free and the supplies as cheap as I can. (Let’s just say I use a lot of coupons at the craft stores!)
When I was in school, we didn’t really have art teachers that taught us the basics of creating. There were the talented kids that got all of the attention from the teachers and the rest of us. The ones without natural talent, left in the dust of art, flopping around like fish out of water. Even the creative ones that just needed a little bit of direction.
I was one of those kids. I can create just about anything with a little bit of direction and a small demo. If I see it in process, I can copy it.
So, after I graduated from college I was hellbent on filling in the art gaps from my public school are classes that failed me.
This week, I want to talk about watercoloring. It’s super overwhelming to know where to start when it comes to watercolors, so i’m gonna do this in 3 parts: The supplies I used, the education/tutorials I used and what my finished product looked like!
Supplies
Paint Brushes: For this project I used these round brushes in a size 2, 3 and 6.
Watercolor Paper: This is the paper I have!
Watercolors: This are the paints I used, but I think I would buy these next time.
You'll also need one of these cheap paint trays for mixing colors!
Lastly, you’ll need 2 cups of water, 1 clean and one for dirty brushes. I typically use two of those old plastic cups you get for free all the time in college!
Education and Tutorials
I discovered the YouTube Channel Let’s Make Art when I was searching casually for tutorials on watercoloring. Once I actually got into it a little bit I was shocked at the depth of education that they were providing on their channel for free!
Let’s Make Art shares tutorials every week that correspond with their monthly subscription box but are open for anyone to follow along with. And I love that they are based out of Missouri just a few hours away from me. I love to support local businesses!
There is a playlist on their channel for beginner watercolors and it was a major help for me. Single handedly the most helpful watercolor channel I’ve found!
These are the first two tutorials that I tried:
My Results!
I did the door scene first and then the pink seahorse, blue seahorse and, the eggs. The door painting was way harder than I expected, but so, so fun!
But the pink seahorse was my absolute favorite! It’s bright and fun and who doesn’t love to do paint splatters to end a project? So. Much. Fun.
I’m definitely going to be watercoloring more. The Let’s Make Art tutorials make it so easy to grasp. Once I get a little more comfortable I’m going to venture into some things on my own. I really want to try making my own art for a Christmas (or other holiday!) card in the coming years.
Wouldn’t that be so special?
I’m gathering my ideas on a Pinterest board here if you want to see what I’m loving in watercolors right now!
Is there a hobby or activity that you want me to try? Let me know in the comments, I’m always looking for new hobbies to research and try!