The 4-Step Method to Realistic Watercolor: Paint a Cosmos Flower

If you've ever tried to paint watercolors and found the results turned out flat, dull or wishy-washy, you might be thinking it's not the medium for you. But watercolor is an amazingly versatile (and economical) paint, and once you've learned how to stay in control, you're sure to fall in love with it.

Join me in this class and I'll teach you my proven 4-step watercolor method which you'll then be able to use to paint other subjects. You'll learn how to paint bright, 3D subjects that are bursting with realism, whilst staying firmly in control of the paint. Once you've learned this method, you'll have a strategy you can use for painting whatever takes your fancy.

Step by step, we’ll paint a pretty Cosmos flower together. As well as showing you EVERYTHING, I’ll also give you the WHY for all the steps we take so you build a clear understanding of how to use this watercolor method to create paintings you want to frame and hang on your wall.

Not only will this class be excellent practice for your painting skills, you’ll also tune your artist's eye for observing tone, colour and detail. By the end, you'll have painted a Cosmos to be proud of and learned a repeatable watercolor method that'll give you confidence with your next painting.


We’ll cover:

• What supplies you’ll need and why (everything covered in this video is also linked to in the Project and Resources tab)
• How to make the drawing - and I provide you with a drawing in a PDF that you can easily trace. Absolutely NO drawing skills are required.
• How to build up colour in layers with NO muddying - keeping you in control
• How to judge values to ensure you get a 3D result and your flower really POPS
• How to mix a breadth of colours from just 6 paints
• How to add finishing touches that will give your paintings the WOW factor.

Who this class is for:

This class is suitable for beginners as I’ll show you everything. But it’s also perfect for more experienced artists looking to take their skills to the next level. You don’t need to be able to draw to take the class - I provide a traceable line drawing. All you need is a willingness to slow down, take your time, and be kind to yourself as you try something new. If you ARE brand new to painting and/or watercolor this can be a great start. Research shows that around 20 hours of structured practice like this can allow you to get good at a new skill. So you’ll be on your way by taking this class.

How long will it take:

To produce a painting this detailed it's probably going to take you about 3-4 hours. This is about slowing down and enjoying the process. But you don't need to do this all at once, working with watercolors means you can break off whenever you need to and simply re-wet your paints when you're ready to come back to your painting. This style of artwork might take time, but once you're confident in it it can be deeply relaxing and restorative.