There’s something especially beautiful about autumn subjects in watercolor. The warm oranges, earthy browns, glowing yellows, and muted greens work so naturally with the transparent quality of the medium. For my newest watercolor tutorial, I wanted to capture that warm autumn atmosphere in a painting of a little red squirrel surrounded by fallen leaves and hazelnuts. Although the finished painting has plenty of detail, the process is much more approachable when we build it gradually—from a soft, colorful background and textured tree bark to the squirrel itself and those final touches of light.
In this post, I’d like to take you behind the scenes and show you how the painting developed, along with a few of the techniques that helped bring it to life.
Starting with the atmosphere
Before painting the squirrel, I began with the background. I used the wet-on-wet technique to create a soft mixture of warm yellows, oranges, greens, and touches of blue, allowing the colors to flow and mingle directly on the paper.
Rather than trying to paint a detailed background, the goal was simply to establish the light and the autumn atmosphere. Keeping this area soft also creates a lovely contrast with the sharper textures and details that appear later in the painting.
Building the autumn textures
Once the background was dry, I gradually built up the tree bark, moss, and autumn leaves. Instead of trying to copy every crack or tiny detail from the reference photo, I focused on creating the impression of natural texture with irregular brushstrokes, dry brushing, and changes in color and value.
For the leaves, I used warm yellows, oranges, browns, and reds, allowing some of the colors to mingle directly on the paper. I also preserved small areas of white paper where the strongest sunlight hits the leaves—these highlights would become important later when creating that glowing autumn light.
Bringing the squirrel to life
With the surroundings in place, it was finally time to paint the squirrel. I started with a soft wet-on-wet layer, establishing the main warm and cool colors while preserving the brightest areas of white paper where the sunlight hits the fur. At this stage, I wasn’t thinking about individual hairs at all—the goal was simply to establish the larger shapes, colors, and values.
Once that first layer was dry, I gradually introduced the fur with elongated brushstrokes. Rather than trying to paint every single hair, I focused on the direction of the fur and changes in tonal value. If those two things feel convincing, our eyes do much of the remaining work for us.
This is also a good reminder not to judge a watercolor painting too early! There’s often an awkward stage where individual layers can look a little harsh or disconnected. Sometimes you simply have to trust the process and keep building.
Softening the fur and bringing everything together
To soften all those individual brushstrokes, I applied a thin, transparent glaze over much of the squirrel. Because watercolor is transparent, the texture underneath remains visible, but the additional layer connects the colors and makes the fur feel softer and more cohesive.
This is one of the things I love about working in layers. A mark that looks too strong on its own can become exactly what the painting needs once another transparent wash is placed over it.
Creating glowing autumn light
In the final stages, I used lifting to bring some of the light back into the painting and soften selected edges. With a damp scrubber brush, I gently lifted paint around the squirrel, leaves, hazelnuts, and bark. Softening the transition between a bright highlight and the surrounding color can make the white of the paper feel less like an unpainted shape and more like glowing sunlight.
Finally, I added the smallest details—the eye, delicate hairs, and whiskers. These little touches help bring the squirrel to life, but I try to save them until the larger shapes, values, and textures are already working together.
Paint the Autumn Squirrel Watercolor Tutorial With Me
This painting may look quite detailed at first, but the process becomes much more approachable when we build it gradually in layers. We begin with a soft wet-on-wet background, then work through the bark, autumn leaves, and hazelnuts before turning our attention to the squirrel and its fur.
If you’d like to see the painting come together, you can watch the short preview below for a few glimpses of the process.
The complete step-by-step Autumn Squirrel tutorial is available in my Online Watercolor School. In the full lesson, I guide you through the entire painting from beginning to end, including the color mixes, techniques, brushwork, textures, and final details. Members also receive the reference photo, line drawing, and work-in-progress images to help them follow each stage of the painting.
Want to Paint the Complete Tutorial?
The complete step-by-step version of this painting is available to members of my Online Watercolor School. In the full tutorial, I’ll guide you through the entire painting process from beginning to end, with the reference photo, line drawing, work-in-progress images, and everything you need to paint along at your own pace.
