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Since I started my Online Watercolor School I have had less time to create tutorials for YouTube. I have to take care of the members of my school and I try to produce good quality videos, which always takes time. My school is my priority and I make a new tutorial every month for my students. I also must mention that there is a Free Membership Plan in my school which allows you to get access to my free tutorials inside my school.
No. I’m not a YouTube partner anymore. I’ve resigned because earnings were very, very unpredictable. Besides, I didn’t like the fact that I had to insert more and more ads in my videos. It’s just uncomfortable for my viewers. Now there are no ads, but there are also less videos because now I focus mainly on creating tutorials for my Online Watercolor School.
I accept credit and debit card payments (securely processed by Stripe) and PayPal.
Yes, you can. Although in order to avoid copyright infringement, I encourage you to read the Terms and Conditions, especially a section “Avoiding Copyright Infringement”.
Yes, almost all of my tutorials have my voiceover. There are also some old videos in my school which I recorded a long time ago. At that time, I didn’t intend to make tutorials, and these videos didn’t have voiceovers (some of them have subtitles). I thought it would be a loss if I deleted them, so I left them for you. You can treat them as demonstrations to watch and relax.
It depends on the particular tutorial and the difficulty. The length is between 40 minutes to 7 hours. I try to show you every step of the painting, that’s why some of them are very long. You can always speed up the videos. Some parts of the videos are speeded up if I paint something repeatedly.
You are free to cancel your membership at any time. To do this, log in to the website and go to “My Account” where you will find your membership details. You will also find an option to cancel or change your membership on that page. Once you have canceled your subscription, you will be able to access your data and account until the end of your billing cycle. After that date, your subscription will no longer be active, and access to your account be restricted.
As long as the time allows me, I always try to comment and answer all your questions. However, I can’t guarantee that I will always give you feedback and reply quickly. I work independently, so sometimes it can be difficult and just physically impossible, especially with the growing number of new members. You can always email me, use our Facebook Group or Forum to find support in our lovely community, or chat with me on the live chat on my website.
Although I try to explain every step precisely, you should have some basic knowledge about watercolors. I want to push your boundaries a bit and encourage you to try something more challenging. There are hundreds of free watercolor tutorials on YouTube, and usually, they are for beginners, so there’s a lot to choose from. In my school, we will take a step further. This doesn’t mean it’s not a place for beginners! There are tutorials for beginners as well. I must also add that there are beginners in my school who successfully finished complex tutorials, so everything is relative.
You can complete the tutorials at your own pace. There are no deadlines, and you don’t have to hurry. As long as you are a School member, you have access to all tutorials, so take your time and enjoy the process. There is no particular plan. Each tutorial is an independent project.
So long as you are a School member, you can access all School content.
No, the videos are streamed, but so long as you have a high-speed internet connection and are a member of the School, you can watch them as many times as you like.
Once you have an active subscription, simply login to your account with your username or e-mail and password. Go to the main menu and click the green LOG IN button to log in. Note: When you complete the sign-up process, please log out and log in again to ensure you have access to my school. You will find the log in/log out button in the main menu on the right-hand side. After logging in, you will be automatically taken to the main school page.
I welcome any suggestions for future tutorials in my Online Watercolor School and will accommodate them as I work down the list of to do videos. I sell what I have already painted, but sometimes I also accept commissions.
I have been painting in watercolors since June 2012 when I discovered some beautiful watercolor paints.
Nowadays I only paint in my favorite medium, watercolor and also draw using fineliner pens. I have previously painted with oils and I sketched in pencil. Here are some examples of my old works:
Reproduction of Motherhood S. Wyspiański, oil on canvas
Autumn still life, oil on canvas
Venetian mask, oil on canvas
I am a self taught watercolor artist and I have been painting since 2012. I am also very passionate about my art and I love to share my knowledge with other likeminded people. I paint from my home in Poland. I have never taken any art courses and neither have I attended art school. The only art activities I had, were extracurricular ones when I was at Primary School. I have a Master Degree in Social Rehabilitation and I also have a Master Degree in Indonesian-Malaysian Philology (languages and the cultures of Indonesia and Malaysia).
I’ve been a professional watercolor artist since January 2019. I’ve chosen this path as my career.
Some example free tutorials as well as line drawings are available in my Free Membership level.
I use a Nikon D5100 to record all my videos.
Here are some tips.
- Artist grade paints are more vibrant and pure because of the higher pigment content. Whereas student grade paints contain fillers like kaolin and have less pigment.
- Try to use single pigmented colors to avoid mud.
One pigment = one color
Two pigments = two colors
When you mix two colors and both of them have 2 pigments, then you are actually mixing four colors, which may end up looking like mud. - Try to mix only 3 single pigmented colors. The more colors you mix, the muddier and duller the final color will become.
- If possible try to use good quality paints that are either transparent and semi-transparent and try to avoid the opaque ones, which will also dull your paintings.
- Clean your brush always in clear water whenever you change colors. Also keep two clear containers of water next to your painting. One container to rinse off your brushes, and the other container to apply clean water to your paint.
If you add a little light color like yellow for example to dark violet, you will barely notice the change, because the violet is a much darker pigment than yellow. To see a vast difference in the color change, you will have to add a lot of yellow (lighter pigment) to the violet (darker pigment), and also waste a lot of unnecessary paint. On the other hand if you add only a little bit of violet to the yellow you will notice the difference immediately. The other reason is that you can achieve greater transparency in your washes, if you add little bits of dark color to a lighter color, rather than adding lots of dark color to a light color and ending up with muddy colors.
Please test your masking fluid on a small piece of your paper before using it as some papers are softer than others.
The problem may be one of the following reasons:
- The masking fluid is too old.
- Too much water was added to the masking fluid.
- The masking fluid was left too long on the paper.
- Rubbing it off too vigorously with either your finger or an eraser.
If your paper has a fuzzy texture after removing the masking fluid, try rubbing the paper gently with the back of the spoon to smooth out the paper.
I have also found this pictoral explanation to show you exactly how remove the masking fluid. Here is the link with photos. Try it if you want to, and please let me know if this works for you: http://myfrencheasel.blogspot.com.au/2009/05/best-way-to-remove-masking-fluid.html
Unfortunately, I don’t have any personal experience in cleaning off the masking fluid residue. However, I googled the question and found an answer for you from the Wetcanvas site. Here is the transcript and the link is also included below.
“I glopped Vaseline on the brush, massaged it and let it set. Came back 30 minutes later. Not sure if you ‘have’ to wait, but I did. Mushed the bristles around and the latex started coming out. Kept at it until most all the dried masking fluid came out. Then I washed the brush two or three times with dishwashing liquid. And, then I gave it a couple washes with window cleaner to make sure I had removed all the greasiness. My brush is clean and as good as new! YAY!!”
Here is the link: http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=320164
Please let me know if this works or not.
To prevent the masking fluid sticking to your brush in the future, always dip your brush first into some clean water and rub it gently onto a bar of soap and then only dip it in masking fluid. Apply the masking fluid to the paper and then clean your brush again in water, before applying another soapy wash. Also don’t use your best brushes, buy a cheaper one for applying the masking fluid. Good luck.
It’s hard to judge without knowing what brand of masking fluid you use. On average I would use a ratio of 20% water and 80% masking fluid. If you add too much water to the masking fluid, it will soak into the paper and will tear the paper when you try to remove it. When you dilute the masking fluid, add it to a second bottle, and then only add the water. Also do not pour water into the original masking fluid as it will become runny and unusable.
There could be several reasons why the masking fluid ripped the paper. Here are some of my observations and suggestions that you may consider to help you perfect this technique.
- Masking fluid ideally needs to be removed as soon as the painted section surrounding the masked area has dried completely. In my own experience, I have kept the masking fluid on the paper for two days only. If you leave it on for longer you run the risk of damaging the paper.
- Masking fluid, unfortunately does not have a very long life span. If the masking fluid is too old, it looses its ability to be peel off easily.
- If you add too much water to your masking fluid (yes, you can dilute it a bit), it may cause the fluid to soak too deeply into your paper and when you try to remove the masking, it may rip the paper.
- Some watercolor papers are too soft and can’t tolerate the strong adhesive masking fluid, which also causes the paper to rip when you remove the masking.
- Please always test your brand of masking fluid on a small scrap of paper before you apply it to the bigger sheet of watercolor paper. Some brands of masking fluid work well on some watercolor papers but can be disasterous on other brands.
I also have to mention here about one misconception. It is believed that masking fluid cannot be applied on wet paper. That’s a myth. You can apply masking fluid on wet paper. The wetter the paper, the more diffused edges masking fluid will create. In my school I have a free tutorial on using masking fluid where I also show what effect you can expect when you apply masking fluid on wet paper. Of course you have to remember about points 4 and 5 – some papers just don’t want to cooperate with specific masking fluids. You always have to test your masking with the paper you’re using to make sure they work well together.
The painting time differs for each subject. It also depends on the complexity of the subject as well as available time in a single day. Some paintings can take several hours and others several days. To give you an idea of how many hours I invest in each painting, see the paintings below with the time it took to paint each one of them. Painting is my passion and I rarely think about the time I spend painting, because time becomes meaningless when you love painting.
3 h
6 h
10 h
20 h
30 h
40 h
I prefer to have my paper at angle. In the past when I painted with the paper flat on the table, I had to lean forward all time, which caused unbearable back ache. Now that I paint at an angle, I have no pain.
When it comes to painting, I think nothing “should be done this way or the other”. We all have the freedom to paint exactly how we want to. If someone had told the great historical artists, that they could only paint a certain way, we would not have so many beautiful painting styles today. If you like to paint from photos, and if you feel it will help you become a better artist, please give yourself permission to do exatly that. I always take lots of photos of flower for future reference and also from different angles, so that I have several photos to choose from before the flower wilts and dies. In the end it’s not about whether you painted from life or from a photo, it’s also about whether you enjoyed what you painted. The more time you spend being happy when you paint, the more enjoyable your painting will be and of course the better you will become too, so be easy on yourself and make your own rules.
I paint from photos because otherwise I would not be able to paint some subjects I would love to paint. When I go for a walk and I see a beautiful flower (or whatever) I just take a photo and I’m not thinking “Oh, maybe I shouldn’t, they say it’s not true art to paint from photos…”. Come on! If you take your photo with the thought of painting it in the future then your art process has started. Even if you paint from others’ photos that’s fine (of course if you have permission). If I want to paint cactuses in Arizona, I’m sorry, but I prefer painting from a photo than saving money for my whole life just to go and paint a cactus in Arizona. Let’s be rational. Try to paint a whale from life.
Another reason why I like to paint from photos is that I can capture the light. I’m a slow painter, I like details, sometimes I paint one painting for several weeks so photos are indispensable. It’s just a tool.
When I stretch my paper before painting, the finished painting doesn’t need to be flattened because it’s always flat. But if I didn’t stretch my paper beforehand then I would follow these steps. When the painting is finished and the paint is completely dry, I lay my painting, face down and dampen it gently with a little water using either a big brush or sponge. I then put another piece of paper (usually several sheets of copy paper or often a foamboard) on top of the back of the painting and place something heavy on top like books for example, and leave it to dry overnight. In the morning the painting is completely dry and also flat.
I didn’t use to stretch my paper but since I tried it once, I’ve been doing it with every painting. I wet the back of my paper, then front and depending on the size of my painting I use staples around the edges or a brown gummed craft paper tape. If I work on a half imperial sheet I choose staples, because I don’t have space for masking tape (my gatorboard is almost the same size). I use a gatorboard to stretch my paper.
There are three main reason why I do this:
- It helps to keep the paper flat while painting.
- A white border around looks nice and neat when a painting is finished.
- The white border can be used to attach the painting to the back of a passe-partout (mat board, with the center cut out) and that will finish it off nicely before framing.
Once again, there is no a particular method to paint a uniform background.
The method that works for me is to first cover my main subject with masking fluid and then paint the background. This allows me to paint freely without having to worry about accidently painting the wrong shapes. This method also works well if you want a simple, but evenly painted look.
No, I don’t draw out tonal values on a separate sheet of paper before I start a painting. I do, however, check the tonal values of my own painting, by taking a color photo and then changing the color manually to grayscale mode on my computer. If the tonal values need adjusting, I increase the contrast between white and black, so that the photo/painting looks less flat and more three dimensional.
Basically there are 4 ways to darken a color (or create a shadow color), which work for all colors, not only Sap Green. Each of the four methods will give you different results and it’s a good idea to test them and see which one you like the most. Here’s a quick overview:
- Use a darker tone of the same color (thicker consistency) (in this case a thicker consistency of Sap Green);
- Use an analogous color which has a wider tonal value range and the hue is generally darker (in this case I would use Perylene Green Pbk31);
- Use a complementary color (a color wheel may come in handy) (in this case I would use Quinacridone Purple PV55);
- Use a neutral color like Neutral Tint, Payne’s Gray or Black – I think this is the easiest and the quickest way to darken and mute down the color at the same time. A neutral color is a mix of two complementary colors. One of those great mixes is a combination of Ultramarine Blue PB29 with Burnt Sienna PR101 (or any other blue with brown), which makes a neutral grey (or black if more concentrated). If you have a color you’d like to darken (or create a shadow of it), let’s say it’s Permanent Rose PV19, you can first add Ultramarine Blue to it and then Burnt Sienna to balance the blue. It’s like if you added a neutral grey to Permanent Rose. I hope this makes sense. If the resulting color is still not dark enough then replace Ultramarine Blue with Payne’s Gray. Payne’s Gray has a much wider tonal value range than Ultramarine and you can take any color with it really dark (and balance with Burnt Sienna if needed).
In my school I have a very comprehensive and in-depth lesson on color theory.
The difference between a botanical style and a floral style is that the botanical style emphasizes accuracy whereas the floral style emphasizes an overal pleasing artistic style. Furthermore, painting in a botanical style is very precise and very detailed, on hot pressed (smooth) paper, with no background except the white of the paper. On the other hand, painting in a floral style has a painted background and my paper preference is to use cold press paper, which is slightly textured, or hot press if I want to add more details.
Botanical style
Floral style
Yes, I use white gouache. However, I only use it to paint the tiny white plant hairs or furry anatomy bits of the butterfly or bee. White is an opaque pigment, and I never use it when mixing my other colors. I also prefer to preserve the whiteness of the paper for any highlights in the painting. However, if it’s a very detailed piece, I will use masking fluid if I need to keep certain areas white, rather than painting over them with white paint, which will look very opaque and lose the beautiful glowing look of transparency.
I never buy black paint as I find the actual pigment too dull. Black is unnecessary because it’s very easy to mix it on your own. I prefer to mix a lively black using the combination of two complementary colors or three primary colors. My favorite combination is, of course (very common), a mix of Ultramarine Blue PB29 with Burnt Sienna PR101. Another great option is a mix of Perylene Green PBk31 with Winsor Red Deep PR264. A wide range of gorgeous blacks can be mixed with three primary colors, for example, Winsor Blue GS PB15:3, Permanent Rose PV19, and Transparent Yellow PY150. When we use primary colors, we can very quickly shift the black more towards red, blue, yellow, green, or brown, depending on what we need at the moment. Try them and see what works for you.
Cold press paper is slightly textured and I use it for most of my paintings (I use Arches CP). Whereas hot press paper is very smooth and is more suited to very fine detailed work. I use it rarely only when I paint something in a botanical style.
I use Winsor&Newton’s masking fluid. It has a yellow tinge and it’s clearly visible on the paper. Look for the masking fluid which is not colorless. There are gray, blue and yellow ones on the market. It’s better to use them because when you are painting it’s good to see where the masking fluid is applied.
I keep my brushes in a brush easle case.
The floral handled brushes are my Raphael brushes, which I have decorated with floral washi tape. I wanted to differentiate the Raphael brushes from the Winsor & Newton ones, because they look very similar and they both have black handles. Now I can easily identify my favourite brushes.
For my regular paintings I use Silver Black Velvet brushes. For wetting the background I use a flat 1.5″ inch wash brush (Renesans). For details I use spotter brushes (Rosemary&Co series 307). For shorter thin lines I use designers brushes (Spectre Gold size 2 and 4). For longer thin lines I use riggers by Cotman. Finally, I also have scrubber brushes for lifting out (various brands, I most often use a Galeria brush, size 4 by Winsor&Newton).
- One of the solutions would be to use “Blending Medium” by Winsor&Newton. This medium “Slows the drying of water colours, allowing more time for blending. Extends working time even in hot climates.”. Add a few drops to your water jar and if you don’t see the different add more until you notice the difference in the drying time.
- Another way, if you don’t have access to the blending medium, is to add a few drops of honey to your painting water.
- Glycerine is a humectant just like honey. You can use glycerine in the same way as honey.
- You can also extend the paint and water drying time by adding several drops of ox gall to your painting water. Ox gall primarily enhances the paint mixing and blending capabilities to achieve beautiful smooth washes, but it also helps to keep the paint wet a bit longer.
- Alternatively, you can adjust your way of painting to the conditions. You can make use of the fact that the layers dry quickly to paint in glazes. But I can imagine it would be hard to do with every painting and it can be frustrating, so treat it just as fun exercise.
It is advisable to keep your paints covered when not in use. Otherwise unwanted dust particles settle on the paint and eventually end up on your paper. Having darker dust particles on your paper is very, very annoying.
Yes, some of the colors do crack after they have dried, but this is normal. Cobalt Green Turquoise PG50 is one of them. Dominic, one of my YouTube followers suggested that I add 2-3 drops of vegetable glycerin to the paint before it dries in the wells. You can also use honey in the same quantity, but unfortunately honey might attract ants. Using cracked paint will not streak your paintings either, as you will be mixing the color evenly before you apply it to the paper.
In my opinion it is better to carefully choose particular colors that you like, than accept a fixed set of colors, some of which you will rarely ever use. The other disadvantage of buying a set of paints is that you will also have to pay for all the colors, regardless if you use them or not. When you take the time to choose the colors you want and need, you will be putting something of yourself into your paintings, and in the long run it will make you a more confident painter as well as saving you money.
You can learn more about choosing colors and setting up a paltter from my free e-book: CLICK.
Watercolor paints can be used straight from the tube, so there is no need to dry them out before using them. The only difference is that freshly squeezed out paint is softer to use, whereas dried out paint needs more water to activate the pigment. I personally don’t like freshly squeezed paint, because it’s gooey and I always pick up too much. I like when the paint is dry. I spray it with clear water and they are ready to go.
It is normal practice to squeeze out watercolor paint from a tube to a palette, as all dried out watercolor pigments are re-usable. Oil paints, on the other hand, are completely non usable, when dried out. Watercolor paints are very easy to activate when either left out to dry overnight or even several years later. All that is needed is just a drop of water and they are instantly ready to use again. That’s the beauty of watercolors.
I prefer tubes. My favorite palette is Mijello with 33 wells. I squeeze my tube paints to those wells. This palette allows me to pick up more paint with bigger brushes, which is important when I paint something bigger. This palette is also lighweight, so I can take it with me anywhere. I also have a metal box with pans (24), but I used it earlier when I was more interested in botanical painting. Pans are good for botanical painting, because you only need small drops of color. For my regular painting, however, pans are too small.
I don’t have a favourite brand of paint because all artist quality paints are made from strong pigments. My personal preference, however, is single pigmented paints. On my palette I have mostly Winsor&Newton and Daniel Smith paints.
Here you can see my Conversion Chart with all my colors: CLICK.