I Keep Wanting to Blend Watercolors

[Evelyn]

…just a little watercolor question here from yours truly.

I started off painting with acrylics and I like to blend my backgrounds a lot right as the paint is starting to dry a little and getting sticky so that it gets a dynamically shaded canvas. In fact I often just use that technique for much of my shading and working colors into foreground items as well. However, watercolor is a different medium (obviously haha) and needs different techniques. I’ve been working on switching out of my acrylic habits for other things (like the obvious painting front to back for watercolor since it is a transparent medium), but I still have trouble with the background of larger surface areas and with extremely contrasted dark to light things as I keep wanting to blend the edges of colors on the paper, but it becomes a muddled, patchy mess.

Is there something I’m missing? Is it just a change of mindset that I need? Advice for lil me anyone? Is it a just something I’ll have to give up entering the watercolor world? Help? 😆 @lin @the-fledgling-artist

 

• This topic was modified 3 years ago by Evelyn.

[Livi Ryddle]

@evelyn *doesn’t know the answer and stalks this thread to see what other people say because I have the same problem*

“Enough! Be quiet! I can’t hear myself think! I can’t hear my teeth chatter!"

[Evelyn]

@anne_the_noob14 hey hey no problem, come hang out in the watercolor-artist-wanna-be corner. now I know I’m not alone. ;)*high-fives*

[Sarah Inkdragon]

So, first question – do you use the watercolor blocks or liquid? Liquid watercolor can often be easily blended in that manner, while the blocks are a little harder.

"A hard heart is no infallible protection against a soft head."

- C. S. Lewis

[Evelyn]

@sarah-inkdragon Blocks.

[Sarah Inkdragon]

@evelyn

This is a pretty good short tutorial on the very basics of blending with block watercolors: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kznN5UZmlng

I prefer the tubes to be honest and I usually use them, but I do have a nice block travel set I use for when I’m out and about. What really matters when blending watercolours is the pigement-to-water ratio, depending on what you’re doing – and with watercolours, remember: less is more. If it’s too light, you can always add another coat, but if it’s too dark there’s not a whole lot you can do to fix that easily. I nearly always go over some of my more in-depth and vibrant paintings 2-5 times to get the right colors and depth, but it’s so much easier than trying to lighten something that went down too dark or stained. 😉

"A hard heart is no infallible protection against a soft head."

- C. S. Lewis

[Evelyn]

@sarah-inkdragon

Thank you! That is helpful. I’ll keep working on that and incorporate it into my paintings. Ahh, that makes sense. I love vibrant watercolor pieces, so I’ll have to go back and see what I can do.(:

I’ve never gotten the chance to try out tubes, just blocks, but I’ll have to try it sometime.

Thank you for your help!

[The Fledgling Artist]

Looks like Sink got you covered 😀 If you still have any questions feel free to ask though

"Though I'm not yet who I will be, I'm no longer who I was."

[Evelyn]

@the-fledgling-artist Thank you! I appreciate that.

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