Winter Northern Lights - Using Watercolors

1. Welcome to the class!: Have you ever witnessed northern lights? It's such a beautiful phenomenon, isn't it? Some call it as nitrous fireworks. I live in a country where there is no snowfall at all. Well, I wish to witness this through my own eyes someday. But for now, I have decided to paint a gorgeous winter Northern Lights scene and grab all the happiness by just watching that in-person. Hello everyone. I'm Ashley and engineer by proficient, a watercolor artist on the creative side and an art instructor based out of India. I love watercolors and it is by far one of the favorite mediums to work with. Watching the paints flow on the paper makes me so mesmerized. It's a wonderful medium and at the same time and uncontrollable one. In this class, we will be painting a stunning winter Northern Lights seen. This class consists of a single project, and I have designed it in a very simpler manner so that you will be comfortable in following and painting. Along with me. Everything you need to know before we get started is clearly explained in the class, like the materials that you will need. Then we will take a look at the colors and the color palette that you will need before we start. And then finally, we can start our class project. So if you're convinced throughout the introduction that I gave you and you are happy with whatever I have explained so far. Go grab your art supplies and whatever you need, and I'll see you soon in the class. 2. Class Overview: Alright, so this is the class project that we're gonna be working on. So let me give you a brief introduction or a class overview before we start. So for this class project, I will be using the paper from the brand Archie's, and this is the size that I will be going with. But you can choose to work with a bigger size or you may even go with a smaller size, but don't go with two smallest size. So I'm using 18 by 16 cm approximately. So you can choose to use the same size or a little bit smaller than this. But make sure you're not going with two small paper. Alright? So, yeah, this class is divided into different sections. Like first, we are going to be painting the sky. Okay, so then we're going to be painting the snowy ground. So I have divided it into different, different sections so that it'll be easier for you to follow along with me. And then once we add the foreground, we will be a tiny little cable. And then we will be defining the details onto the cabin. Alright, so this is about the class project that we are gonna do. And I would highly recommend you to post your projects into the class project section. And I will be personally reviewing each one's project. And I would also give you a feedback which will help you for your upcoming projects. And if you have any issues or doubts regarding the class, you could feel free to start a discussion in the discussion section, and I would be happy to help you. Alright, I'll see you soon in the class. 3. Materials You'll Need: Alright, so let us take a look at the materials we will need. So first let us talk about the paper. So for this particular class, I will be using the watercolor paper from the brand Archie's. It is 300 GSM, hundred percent cotton, and it is of 140 LB thickness. You can go with any watercolor paper of your choice, but I highly recommend you to use an artist grade to get the best results. So that was it about the paper. Now, let us take a look at the colors. For the colors, I will be using the colors from the brand White Nights. But you can go with any colors that you have got. And you'll also need a little bit of white gouache to add the snowy details onto your painting. And the detail list about the colors and pigment which we are going to use for our class. I will be talking about it in the upcoming section. And I will also use some colors from my palette to paint the cabin. So as I said, I will talk more about the colors in the upcoming section. Now, let us take a look at the brushes. So for this particular class, I will be using the brushes from the brand silver black velvet. So you will need a wash brush and you will also need larger size brush. This is of size number 12 to add the larger washes like to paint the sky. Then you'll also need a brush, which is of size number eight. And you'll also need size number six to paint the cabin and to add some tiny details. And finally, you will need a detailing brush, which is of size two. This is basically to add some details onto your. And then you'll also need a mixing palette to mix your colors. And you will need two jars of water. One has to stay clean and the other one is to rinse off the dirty paint from your brush. Okay. Then you will need a masking tape to fix the paper onto the boat. And you will also need a pencil and an eraser to add a pencil sketch. Then you will need some tissues or paper cloth to wipe off the excess amount of paint or water. And finally, you'll need a backing board to fix the paper onto it. We're not going to fix the paper onto the table because we have to tilt it. Alright, so that was it for the materials. Go grab them and I'll see you soon. 4. Colors: Alright, so let us talk about the colors. So I will be using the colors from the brand White Nights. So these are all the colors from the brand White Nights. But you can go with the colors that you have. God, I mean, you can go with any brand that you have with you. And to colors I will be using from the brand camel, that is the Prussian blue and violet. I will be using from the brand Camel because I was running out of stock and hence I'm going with a different brand. Then you'll also need white gouache basically to add a lot of snow. Since this is a snowy Christmas painting, you will need some white gouache as well. Alright, so now I'll swatch all the colors onto the paper, and let's begin. So the first shade is a very nice and beautiful shade. This is basically the turquoise and this is from the brand White Nights. So we're going to use turquoise to add our northern lights on such a beautiful and gorgeous shade, right? And the next color we will be using is Prussian blue. This is from the brand camera. Okay, So this is again a beautiful and a gorgeous shade. So we will be using Prussian blue to add the darker regions onto the sky. Okay? So not only Prussian blue, we're going to have a set of different colors. So the next one is YA lit. So this is again from the brand Camel, and this is again a beautiful shade. Now, I will also be using indigo. This is from the brand White Nights. So indigo is to add the deeper tones onto the sky. So basically what I'm gonna do is I'm going to mix Prussian blue and violet indigo. So I'm going to mix all these three together into the palette. And the resulting color would be a mixture of all these three colors. So I'll quickly swatch that. So I already have the mixed paint in my palette. So I'm just going to go ahead and quickly swatch that particular shade. So you can see it's such a beautiful, gorgeous shades. So it's a mixture of all the blues and the indigo together. So we're not going to add just one color onto the sky, but it will be a combination of three different colors. Okay? So, yeah, I think we have covered all the colors for the sky. Now. For painting the cabin, we will need some browns. So first I will be going with burnt umber, again for painting the cable. When we are not going to directly add burnt umber, we are again going to mixing it with transparent brown or Van **** brown. Okay, so in this way, you will get a natural look for your cabin. So I'm going to use burnt umber. And the next color would be, is the Van **** brown. So I'm going to mix both of this to get a nice golden brown shade. So let me mix both of this and swatch that color for you. I'm mixing that in my palette. And yes, this is a nice, beautiful, dark, golden brown shade. So you can go with any brown that you have got. Nino be the same colors that I'm showing. The colors here are just for your reference. Okay? Yes. Then, now to add the tiny window onto the cable, we will be going with a nice bright Indian yellow shade. Okay? So this is one of my favorite color. It is such a nice warming and a glowing shade. And to give it a nice look for the window, I will be mixing this Indian gold with my golden deep. So I'm going to mix both of these colors. And then I'm going to add this onto the window. This will make your cabin look more glowing. Let me swatch the resulting shade. So after mixing Indian gold and gold, indeed, this is the resulting shade that you're gonna get. So yeah, you'll also need another shade, sepia. This is basically to add depth to your cabin. I forgot to mention about this shade. So yeah, you can go with sepia. And if you don't have sepia, you can add a little bit of Payne's gray to the brown and create the shape. So now go grab your colors and I'll see you soon in the next section. 5. Let's make a pencil sketch: Alright, so let us begin by adding a quick pencil sketch. It's really simple and easy pencil sketch. We're just going to add a teeny tiny cabin. So you can wait for me to complete the sketch, and then you can pause the video and do a sketch for yourself. Alright? So I'll quickly go ahead and finish up adding the pencil sketch. Alright, so now that we have added the cabin, let us define the horizon line. So just go with an organic shape, just a rough shape. Don't draw a straight line. Okay, so I think I'll fix the shape of the horizon line a little bit just to make it look more natural. Alright, That's our pencil sketch, and I'll see you soon in the next section. 6. Masking the pencil sketch: Alright, so now that we have added the pencil sketch, let us quickly go ahead and mask out the pencil sketch. For masking the pencil sketch, I will be using my masking tape. So I'm just going to mark out the shape of the cabin on the masking tape. And then I'm going to cut out and stick it accordingly. Alright, so this process is a little time-consuming, so take your own time and do it just roughly go ahead and mask out your entire cabin. Alright, so you can see I have masked out the cabin. Now in the similar way, we're also going to mask out the horizon line. So again, I'm going to mark out the shape of the horizon line onto the masking tape. And then I'm going to cut out the shape accordingly. Alright, so let me go ahead and quickly finish off this. Meanwhile, you can go ahead and mask out your pencil sketch. All right, so we have masked out our pencil sketch. And now I'll see you soon in the next section. 7. Wetting the background: Alright, so let us begin by applying and even coat of water. So since we're gonna be working on the wet on wet technique, we need to ensure that our paper has soaked enough water. Alright, so I'm using my hockey brush to wet the paper. You can go with any flat brush or any wash brush that you have got. Alright? So yeah. Alright, so we need to apply several layers of water. Before that, we will just make sure like we are mixing some paint until the papers, you know, soak the fibers of the paper so the water really well. Let us make use of the time and start preparing our colors. So first, I am going to be mixing my Prussian blue. So you can see it's a very nice color. This is from the brand Campbell. We're gonna be taking Prussian blue in larger amounts. And the reason why I'm preparing the colors well in advance is once we start painting, I need not look for my colors. I can directly pick it from my palette and drop it onto the paper. So you can see I'm mixing a really good amount of pollution, blue, preparing the color well in advance will help you begin your painting. And you will also need not wait for your paper to get dried. So while the paper is still wet, you can work quickly. Okay, so the next color that I'm adding to this Prussian blue is while it, if you don't have violet, you can go with purple. Okay. Yeah. I'm taking slowly little amounts of purple or violet and adding it onto this Prussian blue mixture and don't make them external to watery needed. It should be to take it should be equal equal amounts of water and equal amounts of paint. So yeah, propel the mixture as per the color that you want to expect for your sky. You can either increase or decrease the tonal values of all these three colors. Lastly, I'm going to be adding indigo to make this mixture a little bit more dramatic and more deeper. Alright? Yeah. Okay, So the, another color that we will be using for painting the Northern Lights is the turquoise blue. And this turquoise blue is from the brand White Nights. So for the deeper regions of the sky, we will be going with Prussian blue, indigo, and violet. And for the lighter regions of the northern lights, we will be making use of the turquoise blue. So I'm just going to mix the turquoise blue as well. Okay? All right, so now let us apply another layer of water and make sure our paper is nicely, you bet. So go with another two or three rounds depending upon the region where you stay and depending upon the temperature in your area. So apply lots of water and make sure you apply it evenly so that there are no big puddles, okay? So make sure you do it. Do this very carefully. I'm gonna be gently applying another two or three layers of water. And then we will begin the painting. Right now that I have applied the water now I'm just going to take off my excess amount of water from the edges of the paper with the help of a tissue. So yes, I'll see you soon in the next section. 8. Painting The Sky: Alright, so let us begin the painting. So first color that we're going to add into the sky is our lightest color. That is the turquoise blue. Alright, so we're going to begin by adding this beautiful shade. So just go in and organic manner. Just pick up the paint that you have already prepared and advanced and just go ahead and drop it onto the paper. So you can see, I'm just creating some strokes. I have this picture in my mind and I'm just adding the strokes DVTs. So yeah, everyone's northern lights may turn out to be a different one at the end. So that's completely fine. Just go ahead and add these random strokes. You need not paint in the same manner as I am doing. You can add two or three strokes. You can just add more, more of the turquoise blue strokes and less of the darker regions. So it all depends upon you. Alright, so, yeah, just keep adding these strokes and take enough paint because later on, watercolors tend to fade as they dry. Alright, so now I'm, you know, there's lots of water on my paper. So I'm just cleaning that shape with the help of some tissue. And i'm each time dabbing my brush onto the tissue paper just to remove that excess water. Alright, so, yeah. Alright, so now that we have added the turquoise blue, it's time to add the darker regions. We have already prepared the mixture well in advance. So this mixture contains Prussian blue, it contains indigo and it contains while it. So now it's time to define the darker regions. Wherever you have added the turquoise blue just beside that, in the white region, we're going to fill up this deeper tone. So just keep dropping your colors. Don't worry about how the colors are spreading at this moment. Okay. So we're going to lift the boat and our board and let the water do the magic. Alright, so I'm just going to gently lift the board and tilted, don't tilt it very, you know, like don't build it in a fast manner. Just be very careful and collect all the paint onto the table. Okay? So make sure you are making use of some newspaper or something underneath so as to protect your table. Alright. So, yeah. Alright, so I have collected all the excess amount of paint onto the paper. Now I'm just taking my brush and taking a little bit of turquoise and defining that shape. Just defining that shape of the Northern Lights. Be very gently and carefully. You can see each time and correcting the shape. I'm wiping the paint onto the tissue so that I don't get any Prussian blue onto the lighter regions. Okay? So yeah, it's barely the repetitive process, so just keep repeating that. Alright, so, yeah. Okay, so now I'm going to continue adding more and more deeper tones because I know once the painting gets dried it's going to fade out. So my paper is still wet and I'm making use of the time and I'm adding it. So yeah, just go ahead and add the deeper tones. Make sure you have a well amount of paint prepared well in advance. So this is the reason I prepared the paint well in advance so that I can make use of the time of the paper being wet and keep on painting. Alright, so yeah. So just carefully drop the paint and make sure you're not covering the entire turquoise blue because we want to retain those lighter regions as well. Alright, so, yeah. Now again, I'm going to repeat the same process of dabbing the brush onto my paper and defining the shape of the turquoise. Basically the lighter regions of the scalp. You can see how I'm picking up the paint and dabbing it on the tissue. Okay. So yeah, I told you write, the shape of the Northern Lights has to be organic and dramatic. It cannot be the way you want once you drop the paint onto the paper and once you start tilting, let the paint flow. Don't try to control the paint or the water. Let the water and the paint do the magic for you. Alright, so that is the reason I said in the beginning, you are painting and my painting may look different at the end, but that's absolutely fine because Northern lights do not have a particular shape. So yeah, that's how it's supposed to be. So if you feel the darker regions are getting lighter, you can keep adding more and more paint. But make sure you're doing this step only when your paper is still wet. If your paper has dried, then please do not do this tip. Otherwise, you're gonna get dark patches and dark edges which you do not want to. Alright, So, yeah. All right. Now you can see I'm picking up a little bit of turquoise because I see that some of the turquoise has become lighter. So I want to retain the turquoise regions. So picking a little bit of paint and adding it. Not very much. So make sure don't pick up a lot of water and a lot of pain. Just very gently and very smoothly make this step. But if you're already happy with your northern lights, I suggest you to stop wherever you are and let the painting dry. Alright, so I can still see that my paper is still wet. This is the reason of using an artist grade and 100% cotton watercolor paper. So you can see, I still have some time to work on my painting. So wherever I feel the paint has faded. I'm just going ahead and adding the deeper tones. Alright, so I think I'm going to call it as done, and I'm going to stop here. Now next is a very important step. So I'm going to grab my tissue and dab off the excess amount of paint and water that has got collected at the edges of my masking tape. This step is done to ensure that no paint seeps into the paper, mainly onto your painting. Alright, so now let us allow the painting to get dried and I'll see you soon in the next section. 9. Painting the snow ground: Alright, so now let us paint the snowy ground. So before that, let us peel off the masking tape. Alright. So let us gently take off the masking tape and make sure your background sky has completely dried before you do this, alright? Otherwise the paint is going to bleed. I think I have got some bleeds, but that's fine. We can use our white gouache to correct that. Alright, so yeah, let me just go ahead and quickly peel off the masking tape and then let us begin painting the ground. Alright, so now let us begin by applying an even coat of water onto the bottom region. So be very gentle and be careful when you're applying the water towards the horizon line, alright, so that the water does not seep onto the sky region. Okay. So I'll quickly go ahead and wet the entire bottom area and then we can begin adding the paint. Alright, so now let us start by painting the snowy ground. For painting the snowy ground, I will be picking up my indigo. Okay, So this is just to show the reflection of the sky falling onto the ground. Note that we're not going to add the indigo in a very deeper manner. We're just gonna take a little bit of that indigo and smudge it slightly on the background. You can see I'm having so much of water on my brush and very little of indigo. Okay. So this is the consistency of the paint. You also need to be going with, don't go with bold, dark, indigo tonal value. Just go with a very subtle and soft looking integral. Alright? So I'm just adding paint onto the cabin just to depict the shadow of the cabin is falling on the ground. Similarly, I'm just going to go ahead and just drop some paint over here. And they're just randomly in a very organic way to depict the snowy parts. So as discreetly go ahead and finish this. All right, So this is how our snowy ground is looking. Now there is one more thing that we need to add while the paper is still wet. So we're going to add a teeny-tiny window onto the cabin. So we're going to show the reflection of that light falling onto the snowy ground. Basically, we're going to show the reflection of that teeny-tiny window. And for this purpose, I'm going to be using my Indian yellow and with very little amount of paint. I'm just going to depict the shadow of this window or the reflection of this window falling there. Okay, So I'm just picking up my Indian gold, mixing a little bit of Indian yellow also do it. So basically Indian yellow and Indian gold. Just a very subtle amount of it. Alright, so we have finished painting the bottom region. Now, in the next section we will see how we can paint the cabin. See you then. 10. Painting the cabin: Alright, so let us start painting the cabin. So for painting the cabin, I will be going with my burnt sienna. And along with burnt sienna to create a darker brown, I'm going to mix a little bit of transparent brown. Okay, so note the colors I will be using burnt sienna and the transparent brown mixtures. So we're going to paint the cabin with a slightly brown color. So you can directly go with transparent brown or you can go with any other brown that you have got. But I like mixing colors, not going directly with brown because we want to add some deeper tones to the cabin to depict the shadows. So first I will be going with burnt sienna and a little bit of transparent brown. You can see the shade. I have clearly mixed it in my palette. And yes, Let us start adding this particular shade onto the cable. So slowly, follow the pencil sketch that you have added and paint along. Okay. So you must have painted the snow drops also on the cabin. So accordingly, you can mark that and paint along. So we're gonna show some snow dropping or dripping from those top of the roof. Okay. So we're going to paint this. And yeah, so I'm just going to go quickly and being the Kievan. Alright, so I forgot to mention one thing. We need to add a tiny window for our cable. So I'm going to add that. So you can see I'm painting a teeny tiny window. So don't forget to add that. I actually forgot to mention in the beginning of the pencil sketch. But nobody's. So you can make a small, teeny-tiny window and complete the painting for your cabin. Alright. So, yeah, I'll quickly go ahead and paint the rest of the cabin. Alright, so now that we have painted the Cuban, it is time to add some depth and some shadow onto the Cuban. Otherwise the gibbon is going to look flat. So to give it a nice organic look, we're going to add some deeper tones, okay, for adding the shadow, you can go with dark brown. Or if you have light brown, then you can add a little bit of Payne's gray onto it and you can create your own dark brown. But if you have CPR already with you, then that's a very nice option, or it's a nice color to add deeper tones. So at the edges of the roof, I'm going to paint with sepia to give the deeper shadows. Just a teeny tiny bit. And I'm doing this while the cabin is still wet so that the sepia gets blended with the brown that is already painted before. Alright, so, yeah. So you can see how I'm smudging the paint onto the existing brown and I'm just creating a nice blend. And now you can see the Caribbean is looking so good. Alright, so now it's time to add the snow. And this is my favorite part. Okay, So take some white gouache or you can go with white watercolor. But makes sure the consistency should be thick and not watery if you're using white watercolor. But if you're going to use gouache, then it's already opaque. So you can directly use that and painted. So we're just going to define the snow. Just carefully go along and paint the snowy roof. I have some bleed from the sky onto my roof so that can be easily fixed with the help of white gouache, white goulash, you know, it works like magic. It's like a magic character. So you can add those teeny tiny drops of snow falling from the roof. Okay, so let me go ahead and quickly paint the snow. Alright, so now that we have added the white snow onto our roof, we need to add a little bit of reflection of the sky or the northern lights falling on the roof. Otherwise, it's again going to look flat. So as much as possible, try to make your painting look more alive and more realistic. These tiny, teeny tiny details like adding the deeper tones are painting the shadows really bring a lot of character to your painting. Alright, so I'm just going to mix a little bit of that blue that we used for the northern lights with a little bit of white gouache. And now you can see it's looking so stunning and so gorgeous, isn't it? Alright, so now that the cabin is complete, we're going to paint the window that we added. For the window, I will be using my favorite color that is Indian yellow. It gives a nice warm to look. It shows us do there is some light in the cabin and there is someone present inside the cabin. Okay. So I'm going to add Indian yellow, but you can go with any other yellow like cadmium yellow, lemon yellow. There are so many options. So I'm just going to add a teeny tiny bit of Indian yellow. And then to bring a little bit of more warm, I'm going to add my cadmium orange or golden deep. You can go with whatever orange you have got. Basically it's a mixture of Indian yellow and golden deep. The color names are different, but when we swatch out, it's normally golden deepest equal to whatever orange you have got. So yeah, that's how the teeny-tiny window is looking. Now. It's time to add the window bar. So I think I'm going to use my brown to create that. So you can grab your, you can go with sepia or the same brown mixture that you use for your cabin. With the help of a detailing brush for this particular thing, I'm using my size number two brush, but you can go with size zero or one if you have. Okay. So yeah, that's how the cabin is looking. And yes, I'll see you soon in the next section. 11. Adding snow and details: Alright, so now that we have added the cabin, It's time to add some details onto the cabin. So we're just going to take our sepia and size number two brush. And I'm just going to add some horizontal lines onto the front part of the key. Go with very thin and delicate lines. Don't draw very thick and bold lines. Otherwise you're going to do in the shape and structure of the gibbon. Alright, so always keep in mind the rule of perspective since you are given is small. Those lines also should be thin and delicate. Alright? So, yeah, so paint thin and delicate lines. So now that we have added those lines, it's time to add a teeny tiny chimney onto the cabin. So I'm just adding this as I felt like the K1 is looking a little bit flat. So I thought, why not add a small chimney? But if you would like to live your Caribbean as this, then you could do that. Or if you want to add chimney, then you can follow along and paint with me. So it's very simple. I'm just going to draw a teeny-tiny chimney. Just a rectangular shape onto the top side of the Cuban. Again, the chimney should not be very bold. It should not be very thick and tall. It should be very small and decent. Alright. Let me go ahead and quickly paying that chimney. Alright, so now it's time to add some dry snow onto the front part of the cabin. So I'm just going to use my white gouache and I'm going to use my size number two brush. You can go with smallest size brush. And I'm picking up a very dry paint. That means lot of paint and less amount of water or no water at all. So you can see how I'm picking up the paint and I'm not directly adding it onto the cabin. I'm just dabbing off the excess amount of water that has got collected in the brush onto the masking tape. You can use either your cloth to dab off the excess amount of paint. And then you can add these dry snow onto the lines that you have added previously. Okay. So, yeah. Alright. So now it's time to add some snow onto the chimney as well. Don't add a lot and cover up the entire chimney just on the top part of the chimney. So you can wait for me to complete and then follow along with me. Okay. Yeah. So I'll quickly go ahead and add some snow on to the chimney now. Alright, so I think everything is looking gorgeous. Now I can see some bleeds from the sky onto my snowy region. So I'm just going to quickly go ahead and correct it with the help of my magic character. That's nothing but the white gouache. You can always correct your mistakes. Okay. So that's the reason I always say apply the masking tape neatly and press it several times so that there are no bleeds. Nevertheless. Happy accidents. So yeah, I'll see you soon in the next section. 12. Thank You: Alright, so we are towards the end of the class and I'm so happy that you all join me till the end. Now that our painting has completely dried, let us gently and very carefully take off the masking tape. So please take your own sweet time to gently peel off the masking tape in order not to rip off your paper. I really can't wait to show you guys the final painting. I completely enjoyed painting this northern lights and the snowy cabin. And I hope you enjoyed along with me as well. So do post your class projects in the class project section, and I'll be happy to review them. I will also be personally giving you the feedback which will help you in your future projects. Alright, so let us take a closer look at our painting. Just look at that magical sky. Just look at the snowy cabin. Everything is looking so gorgeous and so beautiful. Thanks a lot for joining me again. And I'll see you soon in my upcoming class.