Watercolor Spring

1. Intro to watercolor flowers: C everything, and let's continue skin share, glass, water canal spray. Hi Vanita I'm a water tort in spring de passion for capturing the tian kpture. Especially the spring flow. I've been wattle with watercolors for many years, and I'm so excited to share my techniques and doses with you. In this csv a colorful journey to attain a variety of spring damp floor and subject. We'll explore everything from loose expressive flowers, more detailed studies. You have to bring the vibrancy of the spring season to your word or capturing its unique cells in watercolor. What you? I don't know why it's important, specifically you learn key skills like painting the loose watercolor spring flamers, creating Hamstn cherry Boss and compositions and depicting a beautiful spring middle sun. We'll also cover capturing the delicate details on the springtime Bricks. Learning this is critical because it's close to you to not only create beautiful orange, but also to connect with nature. On a deeper level, I express your unique perspective on the world around you. By the end of the class, you'll be able to confidently paint a range of spring for subjects in water color developing your own person on the side and technique. What makes me so excited to teach this class is my deep love for watercolor. The joy it brings me to see others discover it's magic. The relation in the white fair with the medium empowering you to work your product. This class is started in 24 lessons each focusing on a different aspect of painting spring flowers. We start with the spring without. Then we'll go to springtime blooms and cherry blossoms. But finally what I can you with watercolor spring flower. Dance project is your chance to put everything you plan into practice. Create your watercolor plain college. You choose at least two of the objects with coloring plants, herrblosoms or spring blooms and your own interpretation encourage you to explore your own side and make these paintings to running jobs. I can't wait to see what you can make. Please share your completed painting in the project color it out. With a brief started statement about your process and what in f. Thank you so much for joining me let's celebrate the spring with water cotton. 2. Cherry blossom: Let's start with the painting process. First, I lightly sketch the general shape of the flowers clusters, just enough to place them on the paper. Then I mark the center of each flower, which will help guide the composition. Using a clean round brush, I apply water around the flowers to soften the edges and blend the paint into the background. Remember to leave some white space between the petals. This allows the painting to breathe and keep the flowers from looking too tight or closed. I continue painting the rest of the flowers the same way. I use water to soften the pink, then drop a slightly dark pink mix into the center and onto some petals for depths and contrast. Next, I wet the background using clean water so I can apply the wet on wet technique. This time, I'm using a more concentrated paint mix so the colour spread softly, but not too much. I also like to vary the colors a little to add and dress. For the flower in the corner, I use the wet on dry techie first, and then gently soften some of the petal edges with a damp brush. Again, I make sure to leave a few gaps between petals to keep the for airy and natural. While the background is still damp, I drop some manganus blue and a touch of emerald green into the shadow areas of the flowers. This step is optional, but it adds a beautiful contrast if you like the effect. Now, for the tree trunk in the foreground, I use a dryer brush loaded with sepia. This creates a textured look that works really well for bark. The middle branch, which is more out of focus is painted with a wetter brush and a more diluted color. Then I go back to the first trunk and enforce it a bit with the same brush. At this point, I like to add some loose colour splatters for movement and energy. If you notice that a branch or any painted area has spread too much, you can use a damp, not wet clean brush to gently left and clean the edges before the paper dries completely. Now I use a flat brush to wet random areas on the left side of the background, especially where the branches are. By now, this area should be almost dry, which gives you more control. To finish, I define the flower centers using a smaller brush and more saturated versions of the same colours we used earlier. If you like, you can add a few details to the petals with more concentrated paint. Just small touches where it needed. Don't overwork it sometimes less is more. 3. Spring Meadow 1: All right. For this video, let's go over the supplies I'll be using. I'm using 100 cotton cold press watercolor paper size 24 for 30 centimeters. For brushes, I'll be starting with a flat brush, then switching to a size 12 and eight round brushes or something smaller for details. I actually used white masking fluid, but I tinted with a little bit of red so it would show up better on camera. Don't worry. I won't strain the paper. I've tasted this method before and it works just fine. I'll use it too loosely sketch in some flower shapes, maybe some cluster date dandolins I might change up the background at a bit more depths and shift away from the overly yellow tones. I like to work very loosely. So we'll be doing some splattering and wet on painting process. Once the masking fluid is dry, we'll move on to the fun part wetting the paper and playing with the color. Be generous with your water. You want the paint to flow. Even though the reference has a dark green background, I'm thinking of using a mix of greens. Blues maybe maybe for a more dramatic effect. Let the colors drip and blend. You can also splatter a bit to create textures. Color suggestions. Prepare your colors ahead of time. Green with a mix of blue and cadmium yellow, dark green, yellow green, ultramarine blue, maybe some pepper and cadmium bread. You want this ready to go so you can work quickly while the paper is still wet. I like to mix some areas with blue to make certain parts stand out more, especially around the flower shapes. You can totally use the colors you already have in your palette. Just play around with them, mix them together, and see what kind of greens you can get. There is no need to overstink it. Just have fun with it. That's the whole point of this painting in a way. I have a reference photo here, but I'm not going to follow it exactly. I'll just use it for inspiration and don't worry about perfection. Just play around with it. Make some small flowers, some big ones, even a butterfly if you like. There is no sketch or tracing. Just move in the brush and fluid around freely. Final thoughts. This process is very loose and experimental, don't be afraid to play. Let the paint flow, splatter freely, and enjoy the magic of watercolor. You'll find all the material I use link in the description box. Details and final touches. Once the painting is dry, I use my finger, but you can also use a rubber to remove the masking fluid and revve the preserve white shapes. At this point, you can refine your flowers at yellow centers if you want them to look like daisies. To make the petals look more natural, you can add some soft shadows using paints gray or a diluted blue. For finishing touches, I sometimes platter a bit of white quash to create extra light and movement. 4. Spring meadow 02: And I also did another version of this painting. But this time, instead of using masking fluid for the white flowers, I added white gauche at the end. You can use any brand of gauche as long as it's opaque. I just use the one I had at home, nothing fancy. Other than that, the process is pretty much the same as the first painting. And to keep it fun and not too repetitive, I've left a little time laps of that version for you to watch. Just sit back, relax, enjoy the flow. 5. Springtime Blooms: Today, I'm sharing a fun little experience with you. How to collect wild flowers and turn them into a watercolor painting. For For this painting, you'll just need a few basic supplies. First, watercolor paper. I'm using this one, which is 100% cotton. For paints, I've got my usual Windsor and Newton palette. And for this piece, I picked some colors that I already had on it cadmium red, Cambo, cadmium orange, Azoren crimson, some kind of purple light permanent mauve or anything similar, coberd blue, and that's pretty much it. Oh as for brushes, I use a few small to medium sized round brushes and also to fine detail brushes with smaller tips. And, of course, some clean water and the paper server always come in handy. I'm starting with colors. Just testing out which ones match the flowers I pick the best. I like to begin with a quick swash test, and for each color, I mix a really diluted version first, just to see how they behave on paper. For this painting, I decided not to sketch any beforehand. I just wanted to go straight in with the brush. That way, it feels more natural, and I won't have any pencil lines left to erase later. But if it's easier for you, feel free to do a light pencil sketch first. Just something simple and loose, and then start painting on top to whatever feels right for you. For the first flower, the daisy, since the petals are white, I'm only adding a touch of pink to the very tips using a fine brush, just a light hint to show that slight brush at the edges. For the white parts of the petals, I'm leaving those areas blank, letting the white of the paper do the work. In this way, when we paint around them, the flower naturally starts to take shape. This is also known as the negative painting technique. For the next flower, the grape hyacinth, which has lots of tiny petals. I decided to start directly with the petals first. Using a soft purple, I mix mostly based on cobalt blue. Once that's done, I'll go in and add the state. The key here is to just take your time, observe the shape, and don't worry about making it perfect. Let it stay loose and expressive. U Now I'm going back to my first flower and I'm adding a touch of another color with the tip of my brush, a little bit of glaze to make it more interesting and add some depths. Why the petals are still wet, I'm adding a darky mix of green with the tip of my brush. Just a tiny bit to create some contrast and have a nice blend of different greens. I've decided to add the leaves of Dandel to this flower arrangement using a mix of both techniques, wet and dry first. Then I also use the wet and wet technique with the same colors I mentioned earlier. The one I used for the other flower stems. For the green, I mix a bit of yellow and cobalt blue, and I keep it very watery to get a soft delicate look especially for the stems and those lighter grassy areas. Some parts of stem seems to have warmer tones like hints of orange or red. So I'm gently adding that with the tip of my brush, while the green is still wet. I drop in the color slowly, so it blends in nicely. And for a bit of shadow underneath, I'm using a very diluted mix of indigo and Azarin. It gives a soft reddish tone that works really well here. Working wet on wet like this really helps the colors blend naturally into each other. It creates those soft transitions without any harsh lines. Just make sure not to overwork it. Let the water do most of the blending for you. Next flower called ground ivy, which has very small petals, I'm starting with an even smaller brush. First, I'm using a very eluted color for the petals, and then I'll go back and add more layers to build up the shape of the ground ivy. This one has a few small leaves as well. If you like, you can also add more to the mix. I'm going to do another version of my flower, the daisy. But I'm going to do another version of my first flower. But this time I'll quickly ton natural shading using the same colors I used before. However, this time, I place the flower in a different position. I'm experimenting and you should do the same. N. Try placing your flowers in different angles and positions and play around with them until you see how they take shapes in each position. You'll also notice which shadows appear and how they change as you adjust the angles. For this flower, I quickly applied the yellow I used earlier, and now I'm using a darker shade. For a stem, my green mix is very concentrated with very little water on the palette, and I put it on the bottom part of the flower. In this case, a very light shadow appears on the petals. You can apply this with a very diluted wash of the same warm color you used earlier. As you can see, the shadow gradually softens as it moves closer. It creates a slight curve in the shape of the flower. This effect, when applied to your painting, gives it a more dynamic, not flat appearance. For painting these wild flowers, I gather I simplify some of the details or left out something I see the flowers to keep the work from feeling too heavy. I recommend I recommend you to the same. Don't feel the need to copy your reference exactly. Instead, try to summarize it. This way, you add your own personality and touch to the work. Ultimately, if it feels through to you and is something you enjoy, then it's the right approach. For creating this painting, you can use either cotton paper or either types of paper. The important thing is to understand how your paper behaves. So be sure to test and practice with it to get to know it better. 6. Watering Can with Watercolor Spring Flowers 101: So first things first, I'm just going to go in and lighten up those pencil lines a bit. Nothing too crazy, just enough, so they don't overpower the painting later. Then I'm grabbing some super water down permanent rose for those little flowers. In the reference, they are actually white, but I wanted to switch it up, bring a little more vibrancy into the palette, make it pop a bit more. We've got our permanent rose, a bit of purple for the yellows, I'm thinking cadmium yellow, maybe even a touch of lemon yellow. Those are always great for bright springy wipes. Of course, we can't forget our greens. Sub green works great. Honestly, any mix of blue and yellow you already have on hand. That all do just fine for the stems. I want to keep the whole wipe loose and so don't search too much about precision here. This piece is really about capturing that soft, fresh, spontaneous feeling of spring. I'm starting off with a size thin brush just laying in some loose washes for now. Right now, I'm just blocking in some of those soft purple petals. What I usually do is look at the reference to get a sense of the direction the flowers are facing, and then I kind of sketch them in loosely with color not being precious about it. I'm mixing up a slightly cooler shade with a bit of mauve and purple, super light and using the top of my round brush to shape the petals with that sort of needle like feel. I'm using the same mix just a bit more violet for the little flower in the center. All right. Next up are the daisies, starting with the bright punchy centers. I'm going in with some cadmium yellow here, sometime something really bold and sunny. Now we can start bringing in some fresh greens and sketching out those stems. Just a few light strokes to hint at them. I'm switching to a smaller brush now, and I think just a couple of daisy petals, not too much, not too many, just enough to suggest their shape. I like to keep it loose and not overworked. Back to that purple flower, I'm mixing a cooler, slightly more saturated violet to add a few fine lines and soft details just like in the photo. For the center of the flower, I'm adding a little addorne to that mix. It shifts the tone just enough and give it it more depths. Down at the bottom, I'm adding some final little touches to that flower too. Nothing too detail, just a few gentle lines and color to it to bring it to life. 7. Watering Can with Watercolor Spring Flowers 2: I decided to go ahead and add a few extra details to the flowers and leaves. Just to give the piece a little more depths. But honestly, if you love the fresh, simple look, feel free to stop earlier. It totally works either way. Now, let's shift gears and focus on the watering can. First, I'm wetting the whole surface of the can with clean water. That's to get that nice wet and wet effect. So the pigment flows really soft and dreamy. I'm using some paints gray or indigo, whatever's on my palette. I'm just going for it, painting loose, leaving some white areas for highlights and shine. It doesn't have to be perfect. Make sure your flowers are dry before you paint around them that. To. So I'm dropping in a little bit of more concentrated color at the top to give it some way lightly outlining where the game overlaps with the flowers that really helps define the shape. While it's still wet, I'm tossing in a few splashes of color and water. Because why not? Let's make it playful. Now I'm going let that dry and once it's ready, I'll come back in. I'll come back in for just a bit of detail. Okay, it dry up nicely. So I'm grabbing my tiny detail brush like size zero or one, and using some more concentrated paint gray to add those final little marks, keeping it super soft and relax. Letting the brush skip around for a bit of dry brush texture. And if you want, you can always go back in a slightly down brush to soften any harsh edges or add just a bit more detail where you feel like it's needed. And that's it. We've got a sweet little spring book sitting happily in a watering camp, light, playful and full of those lovely watercolor moments. 8. Congratulations! : Share your watercolor spring. Wow, you've made it to the end of the watercolor spring class. I'm so incredibly proud of your dedication and the progress you've made. It's been such a joy to guide you through painting these beautiful spring subjects. Let's take a moment to recap what you covers. You learn how to paint blues and expressive flowers, capturing their great abstractory blossom compositions and dynamic depths and atmosphere in a spring meadow landscape. Paint detailed studies of flower blooms, focusing on color and texture. You've also explored essential watercolor techniques like on bed bushes and layering. Now it's time to share your amazing work with the Skillshare community. Please upload your watercolor spring collection to the project C remember to include a brief artist statement. Tell us about your creative process, what you enjoy it most and what aspects of spring inspire you. Sharing your work not only inspires others, but also helps you get valuable feedback and connect with follows artists. The feedback helps me create even better classes in the future, and don't forget to follow me on schedule to stay updated on my latest classes and creative adventures. Thank you again for taking this class. It's been a pleasure bathing with you. Keep exploring the beauty of spring with buttercolur and never stop creating it.