Paint mixing tips (to get us started)
1: Mix dark colors into light.
It takes only a little of a dark color to change a light color, but it takes considerably more of a light color to change a dark one. So, for example, always add blue to white to darken it, rather than trying to lighten the blue by adding white.
2: Do not use the bristles of the brush for mixing.
Please help preserve the brushes and use the wooden end, a palette knife or even a coffee stir stick in order to blend colors.
It takes only a little of a dark color to change a light color, but it takes considerably more of a light color to change a dark one. So, for example, always add blue to white to darken it, rather than trying to lighten the blue by adding white.
2: Do not use the bristles of the brush for mixing.
Please help preserve the brushes and use the wooden end, a palette knife or even a coffee stir stick in order to blend colors.
Watercolor Terminology
Back runs: When your fresh brush stroke hits a still damp wash it will force the original wash out in a irregular, often fractal manner. This can totally screw up what you are intending to do, unless you do it intentionally. Practice playing with paint and coping with "happy accidents." (also known as back wash) See our tutorial.
Blotting: using an absorbent material such as tissues or paper towels, or a squeezed out brush, to pick up and lighten a wet or damp wash. Can be used to lighten large areas or pick out fine details.See our tutorial.
Dry Brush: Any textured application of paint where your brush is fairly dry (thin or thick paint) and you rely the hairs of your brush, the angle of attack of your stroke, and the paper's surface texture to create broken areas of paint. Study the range of technique in Andrew Wyeth's drybrush watercolors. Used for rendering a variety of textured surfaces: stone, weathered wood, foliage, lakes and rivers, bark, clouds. • See drybrush tutorial.
Flat Color: Any area of a painting that has an unbroken single hue and value.
Flat Wash: any area of a painting where a wash of single color and value is painted in a series of multiple, overlapping stokes following the flow of the paint. A slightly tilted surface aids the flow of your washes. Paper can be dry or damp. • See our tutorial.
Gestalt: Gestalt theory states that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Creating effective designs depends on creating and balancing gestalt. Originally a therapeutic psychological theory (ink blots) artist's have adopted the concept for creating more balanced and dynamic art. See: Negative Space, Positive Space, Notan
Glazed Wash: Any transparent wash of color laid over a dry, previously painted area. Used to adjust color, value, or intensity of underlying painting. (Glaze) • See our tutorial.
Graded Wash:
A wash that smoothly changes in value from dark to light. Most noted in landscape painting for open sky work, but an essential skill for watercolor painting in general. • See our tutorial.
Negative Space: The areas of an artwork that are NOT the primary subject or object. Negative Space defines the subject by implication. See Positive Space, Notan, Gestalt
Opaque: A paint that is not transparent by nature or intentionally. A dense paint that obscures or totally hides the underpainting in any given artwork. • See Gouache, Acrylics
Positive Space: The areas of an artwork that IS the primary subject or object. Positive Space defines the subjects outline. see: Negative Space, Notan
Resist: Any material, usually wax or grease crayons, that repel paint or dyes. Lithography is a grease (ink)and water (wet stone or plate) resist printing technique.
Rough: Rough watercolor paper has a coarse rough texture. This surface allows for maximum graining of washes and accidental highlights and texture. •See Cold Pressed, Rough
Variegated Wash: A wet wash created by blending a variety of discrete colors so that each color retains it's character while also blending uniquely with the other colors in the wash.
Wash: A transparent layer of diluted color that is brushed on.
Wet-on-wet: The technique of painting wet color into a wet surface
Blotting: using an absorbent material such as tissues or paper towels, or a squeezed out brush, to pick up and lighten a wet or damp wash. Can be used to lighten large areas or pick out fine details.See our tutorial.
Dry Brush: Any textured application of paint where your brush is fairly dry (thin or thick paint) and you rely the hairs of your brush, the angle of attack of your stroke, and the paper's surface texture to create broken areas of paint. Study the range of technique in Andrew Wyeth's drybrush watercolors. Used for rendering a variety of textured surfaces: stone, weathered wood, foliage, lakes and rivers, bark, clouds. • See drybrush tutorial.
Flat Color: Any area of a painting that has an unbroken single hue and value.
Flat Wash: any area of a painting where a wash of single color and value is painted in a series of multiple, overlapping stokes following the flow of the paint. A slightly tilted surface aids the flow of your washes. Paper can be dry or damp. • See our tutorial.
Gestalt: Gestalt theory states that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Creating effective designs depends on creating and balancing gestalt. Originally a therapeutic psychological theory (ink blots) artist's have adopted the concept for creating more balanced and dynamic art. See: Negative Space, Positive Space, Notan
Glazed Wash: Any transparent wash of color laid over a dry, previously painted area. Used to adjust color, value, or intensity of underlying painting. (Glaze) • See our tutorial.
Graded Wash:
A wash that smoothly changes in value from dark to light. Most noted in landscape painting for open sky work, but an essential skill for watercolor painting in general. • See our tutorial.
Negative Space: The areas of an artwork that are NOT the primary subject or object. Negative Space defines the subject by implication. See Positive Space, Notan, Gestalt
Opaque: A paint that is not transparent by nature or intentionally. A dense paint that obscures or totally hides the underpainting in any given artwork. • See Gouache, Acrylics
Positive Space: The areas of an artwork that IS the primary subject or object. Positive Space defines the subjects outline. see: Negative Space, Notan
Resist: Any material, usually wax or grease crayons, that repel paint or dyes. Lithography is a grease (ink)and water (wet stone or plate) resist printing technique.
Rough: Rough watercolor paper has a coarse rough texture. This surface allows for maximum graining of washes and accidental highlights and texture. •See Cold Pressed, Rough
Variegated Wash: A wet wash created by blending a variety of discrete colors so that each color retains it's character while also blending uniquely with the other colors in the wash.
Wash: A transparent layer of diluted color that is brushed on.
Wet-on-wet: The technique of painting wet color into a wet surface