As they often say, less is more. This pared-down, Scandinavian style watercolor Christmas card of a Robin, and a second quick one of a Christmas tree, are ideal for those who like a neutral, linear and simple decor in their life. I painted the Robin in only four colors, Burnt Sienna, Sepia Brown, Vermillion Red […]
Scandi Xmas Cards to Paint in Watercolor Read More »
On trend at the moment, Bokeh is a fascinating technique for making effective backgrounds for all sorts of subjects. Once you’ve given it a try chances are you’ll be addicted to it, and will find yourself adding Bokeh to just about everything you paint! “Bokeh” is a Japanese word which means “out of focus” or
Bokeh Made Easy – Create Stunning Backgrounds for Birds Read More »
Here’s a a little landscape that will delight you if you are a fan of snowy winter landscapes! I decided to paint a barn owl floating over the snow in the half light, with a log cabin snug and warm among the snow covered fir trees. It would make a nice Christmas card or gift.
Barn Owl and Snowy Winter Scene Read More »
Happy Halloween Jack o’Lantern Painting! Here is a last minute quick and easy painting for halloween using Arches paper and bright watercolor paints. We grew a wonderful crop of bright orange pumpkins this year, from seeds we had saved from last year’s harvest. We had them stacked up outside the studio for a while, but
Happy Halloween Jack o’Lantern Painting! Read More »
When we ask ourselves why butterflies are so loved by everyone, the answer is easy. According to my nature encyclopaedia, butterflies are some of the least destructive and most beautiful of insects. For the artist, they are a limitless source of inspiration and fascination, as we explore their infinite shapes and mixtures of colors. As
Watercolor Butterflies in Loose Style Read More »
Here’s a wonderful idea for a Christmas card or even a little gift for a nature lover – especially those hard to buy for people in our lives, otherwise known as men! – who have absolutely everything they could need. Reminiscent of the mood written by Thoreau in On Walden Pond, this nature image is
How to Paint a Moose in Watercolor in a Fall setting Read More »
Today I’m exploring painting Free-Form Watercolor Autumn Flowers, Seeds and Berries in a loose, semi-abstract way to capture the atmosphere of fall. Autumn is the season which brings not only mists and mellow fruitfulness, but also a lot of mixed feelings for many of us. By October, summer has faded and is turning into winter
Free-Form Watercolor Autumn Flowers, Seeds and Berries Read More »
This beautiful mushroom painting is beginner-friendly, and easy to make bigger or smaller depending on whether you want a painting or a greetings card! It might look a little complicated but I show you how to draw a mushroom and then we will work through the painting step by step to make the whole thing
How to Paint Watercolor Mushrooms in a Woodland Setting Read More »
Capturing the dramatic colors of fall in watercolor is a challenge and often watercolor paintings become cluttered and lose focus because we try to incorporate too much color, too many trees, just too much. So this is a way of depicting a single tree beside a lake, conveying the atmosphere of autumn without too much
Autumn Lakeside Landscape for Fall Read More »
Chickadees and Pumpkins – in the mood for fall! Today we are going to paint birds, leaves, seeds and pumpkins! Let’s choose a subtle palette and get started! If you would like the sketch for this painting you can download it free of charge here: I decided I wanted a slightly more muted palette for
Chickadees and Pumpkins – in the mood for fall Read More »
Watercolor Autumn Leaves, Seedheads and Berries are a popular theme this time of year, and always fun to paint. Sometimes spontaneity takes a bit of forward planning! For this painting, which I wanted to be as free and easy as possible, I created a background beforehand.
Watercolor Autumn Leaves, Seedheads and Berries – paint your own Fall home decor Read More »
A quick walk around the meadow this afternoon brought forth a small haul of mushrooms, nuts and berries, enough to turn my thoughts to squirrelly ones. So as well as squirrelling away blackberries and hazelnuts, we thought a couple of hungry little Squirrel Nutkin characters would be just right for Whimsical Watercolor Wednesday! These little
Paint Whimsical Red Squirrels with me Read More »
Everyone loves a chickadee, so here are six of them to paint! Perched in a row on a branch of autumnal colored oak and acorns, they are a cute family group just thinking about settling down for the night.
Painting Chickadees and Oak Leaves in Watercolor Read More »
Butterflies are one of the most popular subjects for watercolor painters and the reason is clear – they can let you give free rein to your imagination, and allow you to make up whatever patterns and designs you wish! A scroll through Pinterest will reveal literally hundreds of thousands of versions of butterflies! Here today
Painting Easy Loose Blue Butterflies Read More »
I think if we did a poll on the most popular bird to paint, and the best-loved visitor to summer gardens, the hummingbird would be a strong contender. Although we don’t have these cute little people in Europe where I live, I do remember them from time spent in the Caribbean and Florida, so it’s
Painting a Hummingbird and Hibiscus Flowers Read More »
About once a month I get the urge to paint a hummingbird. I’m going to show you how I painted the last five I have done, all of which are very different one from the other. So let’s look at Five Ways to Paint a Hummingbird in Watercolor. In general, a bird is easiest and
Five Ways to Paint a Hummingbird in Watercolor Read More »
by Diane Antone I have been painting trees in watercolor for many years. It has been an almost lifelong passion of mine, but the roots (excuse the pun) go back to around 1987 when I started to pick up my childhood hobby again after a considerable break while I had a young family. At that
Painting Trees in Watercolor Read More »
There are as many ways of rendering a tree as there are trees in a forest. In today’s video I decided to go for a really loose wash to indicate the bronzing foliage of September, and then drew the trunk and branches with a Staedtler Noris Aquarell black pencil. This gives a very realistic impression
How to Paint an Autumn Tree Read More »
