One thing I discovered while doing these exercises is that when left to its own devices, my brain wants to paint tiny shapes and lots of detail. My first attempt at a practice sheet was some leaf-like shapes that started turning into a bigger project than I intended.

 

I decided to try another shape, and started with green rivulets, but ended up with a sort of close-up tree thing. ;)

 

Then I switched colors and buckled down to do something simpler, a pattern that reminds me of dragon scales. While painting this one I discovered that it was easier to paint the corners on the larger shapes than on the smaller shapes, and that I like the gradient effect that comes from slowly running out of pigment and having to add more water to my palette.

 

And here are my practice sheets from the beginning of the class:

 

 

For reference, I used Reeves tube watercolors (the green is viridian hue, and the purple is a mixture of ultramarine and crimson), paper from a Strathmore Kids’ Series paint pad, and a size 5 round brush.