I tend to use watercolours the most for backgrounds on cards and gift tags and am always trying to find new techniques to pretty them up. While I could just put some paint on the paper, blend it together and call it a day, sometimes it’s fun to get a little more creative with it.
I thought I would share 6, simple but fun, watercolour techniques you can use to pretty up your watercolour paintings (or in my case the backgrounds for my cards)…
1.Saran Wrap – I probably use this the most out of all these techniques because I love the effect it creates. Once you have finished painting all you have to do is place a piece of saran wrap over top while it is still wet. Let it bunch up in spots to create darker and lighter areas and then leave it be till the paint dries.
2. Candle – grab a candle or a white crayon or pretty much anything else that is wax like and use it create an image or pattern. Once you’ve finished drawing with the candle you can paint over top with the watercolours like normal and your amazing design will show up like magic.
3. Salt – This is another simple yet fun one. Paint your picture and while it is still wet sprinkle some salt on top then let it dry. The salt will soak up some of the paint leaving a cool speckled effect behind.
4. Splatter – This once can be a little messy (I may have had paint all over my face after just doing this one little square) but I love the effect. Get your paintbrush wet nearly to the point of the paint dripping off and then gently tap it over the page, repeat as many times as you like with as many colours you like until you are satisfied with the outcome.
5. Alcohol – All you need for this one is some alcohol and a q-tip. Once you have finished painting dab a little of the alcohol all over before it dries to create a fun effect.
6. Paper Towel – Grab whatever is closest, kleenex, paper towel, or toilet paper for this one. This is probably the simplest/least messy one to do out of this list. Paint your image and then while it is still wet dab away at it with the paper towel. Just don’t dab too much or you’ll risk soaking up all the paint, which makes for a lighter coloured painting (unless that is the look you are going for of course).
Who else has some fun things you can mix with watercolours to create fun effects in your paintings?
