Transcripts
1. Intro Colour Menu Book For Artists: Hi, I'm Sara and I'm an artist. Today, I wanted
to share with you my menu book and how I
sample out any paints that I get and paints that I'm mixing when I'm trying to figure out color
scheme for an artwork. So in this book, I'll begin to show you just the
different colors, how I use it and why it's so important to
do it and keep everything together so that
you've got it there as an easy reference
for when you want to quickly pick up
your paints and paint something that you know exactly
what colors you've got, how to mix them and it's
all here in one book. These here are some
samples of a palette that I have that I use
regularly in my studio. I can easily pick
up this and know exactly what color and
we and the hue as well. Colors sit differently
in the pan to when they actually come out of the pan and onto the paper. With using this, you can
see exactly which color is where it also helps when you're refilling your pans
with the paint as well. You know exactly the name and the paint pick up to
fill back into your pan. Here's a few more samples of different ways that
I swatch out colors, especially when I'm
trying to work on a new artwork and decide
what color to use. I can't wait to get into this with you and
we'll go through my book and see exactly
what I do and what colors. It's not just for
watercolor paints that you will see
that I swatch out my silk paints as well as acrylic paints in here as
well. Let's get into it.
2. The Book I Use: Okay. This is my
color menu book. It's a 300 DSM watercolor paper is what I like to swatch
everything out on. It's just a student
grade pad of paper, but it is 300 DSM. It does hold up nicely.
You can see here. Um, watercolor paper,
300 GSM, A five size, which is 148.5 millimeters
by 210 millimeters. It's also 50 sheets in this pad. So being 300 GSM, I can paint and swatch on both sides comfortably with the paper holding
out beautifully. I do like to pop a bit
of color on the front, and you'll also see I am very
afraid of the first page. I don't know why.
I didn't get used. Probably never will. But I'd like to take you for
a short little tour. Through my watercolor book and let me explain to
you how I mix my colors. There's a little bit
of color theory, as well as a whole lot of information about
something that I use in my studio probably every day that I pick up
paperbushes and paint, and I'll use this as a reference probably
nearly every day. So just a quick flick through. There's lots of swatching, which we'll go through in a
little more detail for you. Anyway, these are some colors, so let's get into it. Yes.
3. Swatching watercolour paints: Right, oh. This is just some very basic color swatching that I've done. When I'm swatching something, I will use a side that is
very highly pigmented, going out to something with
a whole lot more water. These are watercolors
that I've swatched here. This method can be
used for anything. As you'll see later, some of the other paints that I
swatch in here as well. Very careful to make
notes when I swatch. So we've got Quin aquadoneRd
that brand is Daniel Smith, and we've got Parole red. So just this gives me the
fairly saturated color here and going out to a lot of water and just how it reacts
with the water as well. Another one here with
the pirate Bow roll red, beautiful colors here. Very quick to reference
and easy to pick up. Here's another one more
Daniel Smith colors, Quin aquedone Rose, nthweblue. Oh, that's an art spectrum one. So it's mixed up. And then I would say,
Well, these two together, I've mixed here to give me a purply color and
different shades, as well. So we've got hands yellow
medium in the Daniel Smith, and then these mixed together, give me these out here. So these are also giving me an idea as to how
it granulates as well, and which ones are
going to granulate. I'm very careful to go back and make my notes as to
exactly what I do need. Here's another sample, another sample of just some paints that I've got in tubes. So Oprah pink and
TarloblueGreen shade, both Daniel Smith ones and the green gold as well
as Sap Green, as well. And then mixing them together, bring them into the middle, giving you some ideas of
how they mix together and more how it reacts with
the water on top as well.
4. Swatching Pan sets: In this section, I'm going to give you an
idea of what I do just watch out my pans
of watercolor paints. So this is an etchapack
that's a half pan set. I've squatched out every color, mixed it through with
water in each thing. So I can then grab that pan set, and this will be exactly
where I know it is. Turn to the right
page and I know what paint I'm using where
I'm picking them up. I've also done here the
actual color that was the color coding that was on the little pans when I
unwrapped them. And the name. So we have a PG 36, and it's called turquoise
in the echa pan. This is a keratake
yamsi tambi set. So I set it up exactly
how it is in the pan, so I forgot the pan
sitting right beside me. These are exactly where
they are in the pan. I have named them
again, their number, and cadnum scarlet, Cadnum
red, green, sap green. It takes a bit of time, but
it's also good to get to know your paints
and what they are. And it just makes it
so much easier to grab the right color when you are
working and you need it. Okay. Here's another one. Oops. Y. These are my liquid
watercolors that I've got. It's a range of liquid
watercolors by paper mill, so I know exactly where
I bought it from. I do love the gold
and the silver in here. They're
great for Christmas. Once again, these
are just a drop of the actual liquid watercolor, and in some places, Yeah, so I've popped a little
water beside it, so I can see just how it reacts. A little bit of mixing
as well and quite detailed notes as to what
I've done in the mixing. This makes it easier. And so much easier to go back.
5. Swatching Pan Pallets: Okay, moving on to
some more swatching. This is another
palette that I've got. It's a mixed palette
I've named, again, every color is named Art
Spectrum Daniel Smith, their color, their name
and the brand, as well. This is just another
palette that I use that I was filling
up some pans out of my favorite colors to use. This is another
palette that I use. I can't remember the
brand of this one. I know the palette
and there again, I do know the palette, but
I can't remember the brand, but there again, notes, a lot of water,
the straight color and a lot of water
coming through as well. Okay. Then we go on to
swatching individual colors, which is what I also like to do, especially when I
get new paints. I'll swatch them out and just see how they
work with each other, as well as the highly
pigmented piece up on the top, walking through
with lots of water. So we've got Daniel
Smith cascade green, Daniel Smith Pains gray, and Daniel Smith
Moon glow in there. And here's another
one of some paints. They're right here,
my Mary blue. So that one is the potters
pink. Just this one here. Um, it looks like
it's going to be very nicely
granulated, this one. Give a cadmium red
orange, is this one. And some hookers green. Just that one. It's very nice. Really happy I'm excited
to use those as well. Then we'll come back and I'll show you the
other end of my book, just some more samples and some samples of
different paints, as well.
6. Swatching Other Supplies: Okay, so we've gone to
the back of the book now, which is where I plan
to do this watching of individual colors
out of the tubes, straight out of the tube. And actually, that's the one. So straight out of
the tube onto here. So I grab a little
bit of oh a mi. A few more colors, a
few more swatches. These also move nicely. I'm getting granulation and the watermarks show
you some others. It's also nice to
see how they work together and how they
mix together as well. Quite a lot of
pages. There we go. More again. Now, these
colors I can actually reactivate off the page and
use them in my artwork. It's not waste at all. It's quite a bit of
quinaquidone red there, which I can use in an artwork at anytime
that I feel like it. Now, just to show you
that not everything is always watercolor and dyes, let me show you this is some silk paints that
I have swatched out. I have also used a photo of
the artwork, the artwork. That's the artwork that
I painted on silk. I just took a quick photo and quick printed out copy of it, then these are the
notes that I made of all my colors that I used, how I mix them together, the brands, and what I did. It's not just for, um, what colors or
acrylics or even oils. Silk paints will do the same. There's more silk here. This is more detail of an artwork that I did
gum leaves and blossoms. I can go back to
the actual artwork and know the colors that I used. Some of the techniques
are used as well and the mixtures definitely
what I use for the background and the mixes as well with the dilutant
and things like that. Lots of notes and lots of interesting things
that I can go back and if I'm lost for a
style or a technique, I can always go back to this
book and see what I did in other artworks and see how they work together and if
it's something that I need to use in
the next artwork. So I hope you find
this interesting. And I'd love to see
your color menu book, if you start one, share it
with us in the group chat. I would love to see what you do. It's just such a good place
to keep all your colors and all your swatches all
in one place together. So it's easy to grab. It sits on my studio desk, and I know where
everything is at a glance. There we go. I hope you've
found that interesting. I can't wait to see
what you create.
7. Thank you for watching, I can’t wait to see your colour menu books come to life: So there you go. I hope
that you've enjoyed it, and I hope that it
has inspired you to pick up your own
watercolor book. It doesn't have to be
the same brand as mine. An book will do that
you're comfortable putting your paints onto
whether they be watercolor or acrylic or even dyes,
whatever you use. Sample your colors out and I'd love to see them
and I'd love to see what you share with us as to how you have used
your color menu book. As you know, you can get me
on all the social medias. I am at Sara Ray Wood Artist. Please share what you do, and you can also have a look at my website at some of
the creations that I do. Until next time, thank
you again for watching.
Sahra Raward, Professional Artist
