Cellulose vs Cotton Watercolor Paper: What to Upgrade First quick tips

If you're upgrading your watercolor supplies one at a time, start with the paper. Cellulose paper is...

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Mini Watercolor Paintings: Paint Many Landscapes on One Journal Page quick tips

If you want to paint several landscapes but don't want to commit to a full painting for each one, tr...

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Flat vs Round vs Mop Brush for Watercolor: What's the Difference? quick tips

A flat brush makes flat edges, a round brush is the all-rounder, and a mop brush holds the most wate...

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Why Purple and Yellow Make Mud in Watercolor (and Get Gray Instead) quick tips

Purple and yellow are complements, so they should mute each other into a nice neutral gray when mixe...

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What's the Difference Between Gamboge and New Gamboge in Watercolor? quick tips

When a watercolor pigment name starts with "new," it typically means a modern synthetic formula that...

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How to Paint Alpenglow in Watercolor: Create Light From Color quick tips

To paint alpenglow, start with a sky gradient that goes from blue to yellow to a little orange and t...

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How to Use Tracing Paper to Transfer an Image to Watercolor Paper quick tips

Tracing paper is an easy way to transfer an image onto watercolor paper before you paint. Outline th...

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What's Holding You Back From Watercolor Painting? How to Spot Resistance and Take a Baby Step quick tips

The one thing holding you back from painting what you want, as often as you want, is resistance. The...

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What Is a Limited Palette in Watercolor? Why It Makes You a Better Painter quick tips

A limited color palette means using only a few colors to mix all of your other colors, instead of us...

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How Can Red Be a Cool Color? Warm vs Cool Reds in Watercolor quick tips

Red can be a cool color because every red has a color bias, a lean toward either warm or cool. Cadmi...

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Hard vs Soft Edges in Watercolor: How to Control Each One quick tips

In watercolor, you get a hard edge by painting onto a dried underlayer, because nothing blends or bl...

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What Is a Watercolor Dot Card? quick tips

A watercolor dot card is a card put out by paint manufacturers showing a whole range of their colors...

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How to Sketch Clouds for Watercolor Using a One-Point Perspective Grid quick tips

Clouds follow the same perspective rules as the rest of a landscape, getting smaller and thinner tow...

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Can You Varnish a Watercolor Painting? quick tips

You can protect a finished watercolor painting by spraying UV archival varnish directly onto it once...

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Why Does Your Watercolor Painting Look Flat? Understanding Atmospheric Perspective quick tips

If a finished painting feels flat, it's usually because the foreground and background have the same ...

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