Some Watercolor Techniques You Want to Know

When starting out with watercolor painting it is always good to know about the different watercolor painting techniques you can apply. Especially when you just get started you want to give it your best shot, now don't be disappointed if the first watercolor painting you make is not the master piece you wanted it to be.

Just keep on painting and your paintings will get better and better as you progress. Now in order to make the right start you have to start with the proper watercolor painting technique. The information here will give you a good idea on how to get your passion going. I will tell you about the wet in wet technique, the wet on dry technique and the dry brush technique. Hopefully after you have read this you know what technique suits you and your painting the best.

One of the most frequently applied watercolor techniques is the wet in wet (wet-in-wet, wet-into-wet) technique. Now the wet in wet watercolor technique is simply applying wet pigment (paint) to wet paper. The results of this technique vary, all depending on the wetness of your paper. You can even apply this technique on existing washes as long the previous washes are completely dry. Wet in wet is done by wetting your paper, with a large brush, evenly (no puddles) and apply your paint to it. Now the soft undefined shapes created with this method are great for a subtle background in your watercolor painting.

Like I said, water is hard to control, so in order to have more control over the different areas of your painting you need the wet on dry technique. Wet on dry means nothing else than that you work with a wet brush on dry paper. Another nice advantage of the wet on dry technique is that you get more saturated colors. But as for all watercolor painting techniques goes practice practice practice.

To get really interesting textures, hard edges or really saturated colors I would recommend blotting your brush dry and applying it to dry paper. You guessed it this is what is called the dry brush technique. This watercolor painting technique is most effective on cold pressed or rough paper since it than only touches the tips and not the valleys of the paper. And that is what makes those nice textures really stand out.

As you can see there are some different watercolor painting techniques around. I think the best advice I can give here is practice the entire different watercolor painting techniques and you will discover what makes your painting stand out and appreciated. Don't give up when your first painting isn't that master piece you intended to paint. Keep on practicing and you will create the most fabulous watercolor paintings.