Painting with Watercolors
 

watercolors, painting with watercolors, artist's brushes, paint brushes, artist's easels
This article discusses the art of painting with watercolors, includes paints, artists paint brushes and  watercolor paper
There is a huge choice of watercolor materials available. It can seem overwhelming to a beginner, but you can begin slowly and add to your collection of watercolor materials as you develop your talent.

As with most things, you get what you pay for. If you can afford it, buy the best quality. Rather buy fewer items than a lot of items of inferior quality. Artist's Quality watercolor paint goes a long way and good brushes can last a lifetime.

Student quality materials have their place, but you will soon see the superior quality of Artist's Quality materials.

Take yourself seriously enough to begin with and you will soon be producing masterpieces! Keep your initial investment simple.

Don't be tempted to buy every paint color, brush and gizmo available.

Paint:

The magic and distinguishing feature of watercolour is its transparency. The "traditional" watercolor technique is achieved by using layers upon layers of paint to achieve a luminosity and depth seldom seen in other mediums.

When purchasing watercolor paint for the first time, you really don't need many colous. In fact, you could get by with just 3!

Before you spend a huge amount of money, buy just 3 colous and play. I would pick:

* Ultramarine blue
* Winsor yellow
* Magenta

These 3 primary colours, mixed in varying ratios and with varying amounts of water, can produce pretty respectable paintings. All those lovely colours in the art shops seduce many beginners.

Rather wait until you have practised a bit!

Watercolour paint comes in two different forms:

* pans (or cakes)
* tubes

Even if you are painting for the first time, buy the best paint you can afford. The Student's ranges are not as good and don't go as far as the Artist's ranges.

Once you have experimented with these colors, you can buy more colors, depending upon what you will be painting.
 

Brushes:

I always thought that top quality ­ expensive ­ brushes were over-rated ... until I tried one!  Now I'm hooked!

Nonetheless, I do think that these deluxe brushes are a bit wasted on a total beginner. Rather ease into watercolour gradually. By the time your inexpensive brush is ready for only doing trees, you'll be ready for a good brush or two.
Begin by trying out a few different sizes, from small to large.

000 ­ the smallest size which I had to have for my postage stamp paintings. One 0 for each hair of the brush!
Biggest size ­ super for doing big areas of washes

In practice, you will probably seldom use these extreme sizes, so begin with an in-between size, such as a 5, 6, 7

In addition to different sizes, watercolour brushes also have different shapes.
Rounds and Flats are the most popular. Round brushes are described from 000 to ---, whilst Flats come in sizes measured in inches (e.g. 1/2 inch, 1/4 inch, etc). To begin with, try both. You will soon find your comfort level.

Brushes are also available for several "specialist" tasks. Examples include

* a fan shape (used for painting foliage),
* a rigger (so named because it paints thin lines, like yacht's rigging, very well ­ great for branches too),

Don't be tempted to buy every shape when you are starting out. You'll know when you're ready for these brushes.

A good indication of a brush's quality is its price. You pay a premium for a red sable or kolinsky brush. They are good for several reasons

* They carry more liquid, so you can take your brush for a walk on your paper for longer without having to re-charge with more paint
* They come to an excellent point, so details are easier
* They have a characteristic springiness to them, which gives individual brush strokes more calligraphic interest.

Paper:

Volumes have been written about paper! It's a huge and fascinating subject.

The choice of watercolour paper is pretty huge. I can tell you what I like, but it may not work for you. As is the case with brushes, you need to find your own favorite paper.

Saunders Waterford 300 gm rough surface. It's a medium weight (300 gm - or 140 lb ­ refers to the weight). I wouldn't recommend using a lighter paper because it tends to do weird and not-so-wonderful things when it's wet. And I ALWAYS stretch my paper. See stretching paper below.

Even if you're trying watercolour for the first time, use a good paper. It makes a world of difference:

* The paper absorbs the water-based paint easier
* The paint reflects its true color
* When the paper dries again, it dries flat

Several paper manufacturers offer watercolor paper in block form. Now and then, I use these, usually in the field when big boards can be a hindrance. The blocks are gummed along the edges, so you can use the topmost sheet as though it were stretched to a board. Despite this, the paper does tend to buckle while wet. You should wait until the paper is completely dry before removing it from the block.

TIP: To remove paper from a block, insert a dinner knife under the paper and detach it as though using a letter-opener. Most manufacturers leave a few centimetres unglued for this purpose.

Good watercolor paper has a neutral pH or is acid-free. Acid is commonly used to manufacture paper and it is this acid that turns ordinary paper yellow with time. Put a newspaper and a piece of watercolor paper in a dark cupboard for a year and you'll see the difference! In the past, paintings on paper were notoriously fragile, but modern paper-making technology has solved that problem.

Paper is available in different surfaces. I get totally confused by all the terminology ­ hot-press, NOT, cold-press it is probably all a bit more technical than it needs to be. I use mainly a rough surface. I find it takes the paint well and is suitable for a loose approach. Smooth paper usually allows for more details. If you're into detail, try the smooth paper first.

As with most art materials, paper's quality depends upon its price. Test them until you find the right one for you. When you've been painting for a few years, you will understand the quasi-religious devotion afforded to paper!


HOW TO stretch watercolor paper

You'll need:
A sheet of good quality watercolor paper... 300gsm rough surface
A thick board, bigger than your paper size
Gummed paper brown tape, about 10cm (±3 inches) wide

* Run a bath to a few cm/inches full.
* Rest your board horizontally across the top of the bath.
* Tear your gummed tape to the size needed (must be placed along all 4 edges
of the paper). Keep it close by.
* Immerse a sheet of paper in the water for a few minutes, until it loses its
surface sheen.
* Gentlly lift the paper out and place it flat on the board. Work as quickly as
possible now, especially if you live in a dry climate like I do. Do not worry
about air bubbles.
* Dip the strips of tape into the bath, take off excess moisture and smooth
down on all 4 sides of the paper. Allow about half the width of the tape to
cover the edges of the paper.
* Use a damp sponge to gently mop up excess moisture.
* Leave alone!!!

Buckling is normal. Do not move the board or the paper until the paper is dry. Never put the board upright.
(If the paper is buckled when dry, cut it off the board with a sharp knife and re-stretch.)
Do not remove the paper from the board until your painting is completed
Cut your painting off the board using a sharp utility cutter
Trim the gummed tape off your paper

TIP:
Don't try to hurry the drying process - if you put your board in the sun or use a blow-dryer, the paper is more likely to ripple. Leave your board flat until the paper is completely dry.

INFO:
When wet, watercolor paper initially has a surface sheen. This is due to the paper's "sizing", a sort of seal from the paper-making process that resists water. Stretching the paper "breaks" this seal, allowing watercolour paint to penetrate the paper more effectively. Without stretching, the watercolor paint tends to glide off the surface of the paper and also to form puddles.
:
When stretching watercolour paper, don't try to hurry the drying process - if you put your board in the sun or use a blow-dryer, the paper is more likely to ripple or buckle.
Leave your board flat until the paper is completely dry.
 

Topics covered in this article include; watercolors, painting with watercolors, oil paintings, framed paintings, picture frames, artist's brushes, artist's easels, paint brushes