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This is the third in our series for beginners - focusing on painting the same subject multiple times to build confidence.

Hi everyone,

Welcome to this beginner watercolour tutorial, which is the third in our series focusing on painting the same subject multiple times. Repeating the same subject enhances our understanding, helps refine our techniques, and builds confidence through gradual improvement.

This is the cactus repetition tutorial: https://www.patreon.com/posts/87763039

This is the goldfish repetition tutorial: https://www.patreon.com/posts/84879542

In this class, we'll explore using just three colours, mixing all the shades we need from them. We'll develop our skills with the wet-on-wet technique, experiment with glazing to subtly change the colour of the apple, practice preserving highlights, and deepen our understanding of shadows to add depth.

I've painted the apple on cold press watercolour paper, but feel free to follow along in your watercolour journal if you prefer.

For those who prefer to jump straight to the final painting, you can skip to the 25:24 mark.

All of the files you need to complete the apple are attached below my message here. You can download them individually or all at once by clicking on the "Download all" button.

Enjoy the process and have fun with it! I hope you find this tutorial helpful.

Louise

🍏🍏🍏

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If you are looking for other tutorials - you will find them all on the indexes below:

https://www.louisedemasi.com/patreon-index

https://www.patreon.com/posts/34865676

Files

Apple For Beginners

Comments

Jana Cervinka

"Turning challenges into achievements." That is exactly what your tutorials do so brilliantly! I learn so much while achieving a painting at the finish.

Kate

Ooooh, I love this series! Everyday objects done differently. Thank you Louise!

Louise De Masi

Awesome - that makes me happy to know! Thank you so much Jana. 🥰

Dawn Howell

Because of illness and extensive travel, I had to set aside painting for 4 months. As I return to painting, I find myself too intimidated by the success of my own former projects! So, back to basics to help me regain confidence. This apple tutorial helps. Louise, you are a master educator. Your tutorials are wonderfully detailed. You break down every step with an excellent commentary. You have a unique ability to anticipate student queries by drawing attention to the reasoning behind each step. I have not found any other instructor as effective as you are. So grateful, Louise, for the extensive time you give to each of your project postings.

Louise De Masi

I'm sorry to hear about your illness and travel that kept you from painting for 4 months. I'm glad you're finding this tutorial helpful in regaining your confidence. Your kind words are heartwarming and really appreciated - thank you so much Dawn.

Sheryl Hill

I really enjoyed this exercise. It helped me learn shading and some basis things. Good reminders.

Mleong

I enjoyed this tutorial with progressively more details added to achieve the final result. Please create more like this.

Cherilee

This was a wonderful tutorial. I used the final apple to compare to the first painting I did -an apple. So good to see my growth in many areas. Thank you Louise.

Alita Phelps

I am having trouble applying the paint. I paint the color on, then when I lift the brush there is a release of pigment that back flows onto the color. The color that is released at the end is the color that I want to be painting all along.

Fadila Sides

Magnifique j'adore vraiment très intéressant bravo et merci beaucoup ❤️❤️❤️❤️👍🙏🎨

Greet

This is another very useful tutorial. I have a question about the edge of the shadow. The outer edge of the apple is a hard edge. The outer edge of the shadow is painted with a hard edge, but I think that it should be a soft edge. So I wet the paper a bit further and let it bleed with a soft edge. The result is not as good as I hoped. What do you think about this?

Louise De Masi

It sounds like you might have too much water on your brush, causing the pigment to pool when you lift it. Try using less water and mixing your paint to the desired colour before applying it. Also, make sure to load your brush evenly, and practice lifting it gently to avoid that backflow of pigment. You can roll your brush in the pigment- loading it fully and reforming the point as you load.

Louise De Masi

Try waiting until the paper is damp- rather than wet and glossy when you paint the shadow. The paint won't spread as far on damp paper.

Deanna

Just joined, watching this tutorial first. At the 12:18 mark where you wipe the brush to clean/soften the edge, how do you wipe your brush so that you know it’s not too dry and going to lift too much paint off & get a weird looking area?

Louise De Masi

Hi Deanna, welcome. There is footage of me wiping the brush. The paint and paper is still quite wet at that stage so there's little risk of doing any damage.

Tiffany

This was so interesting. Thank you for all of the different steps it really shows a clear progression.

Susanne Simons

Dear Louise, I just love love love the way you teach! It’s exactly what I need! everything you do, each step, I need to know how and why and need to see it! Otherwise I have still so many questions. And your teaching.. It has it all and for me and im sure for so many beginners, THIS is what I need! Thank you so so much, you make it possible for me to be confident in starting and working on a painting 🙏🏻❤️

Louise De Masi

Hi Susanne your message made my day. 🥰 I’m so glad the step by step and the ‘why’ behind what I do is helping. Knowing it’s building your confidence is everything. Thank you!

Nad

I just finished this one today and also practiced a few random spheres using the same technique. I compared my paintings to my early attempts before discovering your tutorials—what a difference! So much progress after just one lesson. Thank you for your outstanding teaching!

F829

It's a wonderful tutorial! Very well explained. Plus, thanks to the repetition process, it's easier to understand what is wrong and how to correct it. thank you so much Louise!

Jessica Newman

Hello Louise-I've just started your classes with this apple repetition. I'm already learning a lot. One thing I wanted to ask about is getting hard water lines when I'm applying the shadow on the apple painting wet on wet. I don't know if this means the paper is already drying and I've not wet my paper enough or if I've got too much water on my brush. Can you advise what might be happening and how to fix it? Many thanks!!

Louise De Masi

Hi Jessica, It’s difficult to know exactly what’s happening without seeing your painting, but it sounds as though the paper may be starting to dry before you apply the shadow. When I paint this apple, I wet the entire apple evenly with water first, right up to the edges, and then add the colour while the surface is still damp and has a slight sheen. This allows the shadow colour to bleed across the paper. Try to make sure the whole apple is evenly wet before you begin, without having puddles of water sitting on the surface. Also watch how much water is in your brush when you add the paint. If the paper has started to dry and you introduce a very wet brush, that extra water can push the pigment around and create a bloom or hard water line. If you notice the apple starting to dry before you’ve finished, it’s usually better to stop, let it dry completely and then re-wet it before continuing rather than adding more water to an area that is partly dry. If you’d like to post a photo of what’s happening, I’ll be able to give you a better idea of what’s causing it. There's a thread in the 'chat' section here on Patreon - 'Painting difficulties'. You could post a photo of the apple in there.