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Beginner Tips: Paint consistency & working on wet paper (Patreon)

Published:
2022-04-01 21:47:10
Imported:
2026-10
Tags:

Content

Paint and water ratios are something a lot of beginners struggle with when they first start painting in watercolour. In this video I simplify the paint consistencies I use into three main levels.  I also demonstrate a few problems that may occur when you work on wet paper.

I made this video for my YouTube channel. I've posted it here without annoying ads so you can refer to it if you need it. I'll add it to the indexes as well.

Have a lovely weekend!

Louise

💙

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Tutorial Index Links to bookmark:

Website index with linked images: http://www.louisedemasi.com/new-index

Clickable Word index: https://www.patreon.com/posts/34865676

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Files

Paint and Water Consistency in Watercolor; Beginner Watercolor Tips

For Patreon.

Comments

Cheryle Virtue-Richards

I am sooooo grateful I found this tutorial because I had no idea about the consistency of the paint to water ratio, I was always using the watery mix. My paper looked like the juicy orange. (tick)This was great lesson thank you Louise. I had a good laugh at the end of the clip too where you let us see your bleeps and bloops.

Melissa Brundrett

Wonderful video!!! Very helpful. Love the bloopers!

Pam

The bloopers are indeed priceless =) and the tips very helpful. Thank you, Louise.

Jean

As a relative beginner, this was just what I needed to get a better grip on. Thanks for the super clear explanations and well thought-out presentation of info. Now I'm off to practice, practice, practice...

Rebecca Swingle

Thank you for sharing your talent and wealth of knowledge. My confidence has grown by leaps and bounds, enabling me (and us who follow you) to brave this wonderful world of watercolor I (we) love so much.

Janice

Thanks Louise for another great tutorial. I’m looking forward to the rose bud. Have a great day.

Katherine Laise

Thank you so much for this Louise :) Your explainations are very clear and the demostrations of each consistency makes it very easy to follow. This is very helpful and I appreciate your teaching methods!

jenny pardini

Thank you Louise Great help for me as a beginner Love your tutorials Louise

Linda O'Reilly

Thanks Louise. Clear, practical advise as always. Just one question about the paint separating - do you think it's because the Q.Red is transparent and the Turquoise Light is semi-opaque and granulating? It would be lovely to be able to predict it a bit so I'm just wondering if these things make any difference.

Michelle Wainer

That was great, thank you! And thank you as usual for the outtakes. They always make me giggle.

Louise De Masi

My pleasure Katherine and thank you. I'm glad it was useful to you.

Louise De Masi

Hi Linda, I'm no expert on paint characteristics but I think that's a possibility. Some pigments are heavier than others and I'm sure they push the lighter pigments out of the way. It would be good to do tests on paper and see if there is less separation with pigments with the same/similar characteristics.

Elaine

Thank you Louise 💕

Rosalind

Thank you for this helpful video. It addresses one of my biggest troubles! I especially like the way you show a low close up of the shining water on the paper so we can really see how it sits or flows.

Kris Youngsteadt

Louise, your bloopers are the best. You're so funny.

Wendy Kelly

Your expertise is very appreciated! I'm enjoying watching your videos - and the bloopers! I've had to make videos for my students, and understand the editing involved - Just love your professional, yet down-to-earth tutorials. I want to become better at watercolor, and was so happy to come across you on Youtube, and now on Patreon. Thank you! Looking forward to the rosebud!

Sharon Silvester

Louise, what a gifted teacher you are. I am a beginner and am quite pleased with a couple of your tutorials I have attempted. My issue is that I didn't buy tube paint, I bought a set of Daniel Smith pan paints when I first attended a class near my home. I have difficulty getting the consistency of the paint right because I have to use quite a bit of water to get the paint out of the pan and onto the palette. Do you have any suggestions please? Otherwise, I will have to go ahead and purchase tube paints. Thank you for sharing your incredible gift with all of us.

Janet Ross

That was so helpful. Thank you.

Louise De Masi

Thanks very much Sharon. That's why I like using tube paints. When I want to mix really dark colours I find it easier to squirt out some fresh pigment than try to take it from the pigment that has hardened on my palette. I think if I was using pans I'd spray the pans with water about half an hour or so before I wanted to start painting to refresh them all. That's all I can think of to help.

Sharon Silvester

Thank you for your advice. I think I'll buy some tube paints. Hope you are not water logged in Coffs.

Carol

This is gold Louise! It has made such a difference to understand why certain techniques are such stumbling blocks! I have gone from discouraged to empowered. Thank you 🎉

Louise De Masi

That's wonderful Carol. I'm so pleased. Thank you! 💕

Linda Callahan

Thank you, Louise. This is perfect time for me to have this tutorial. I have been painting with you everyday for a month just trying to copy everything you say and do. I have experienced each of the issues regarding paper, mixture and brush. It is so helpful to know that these are separate events caused by the lack of experience with water. I find it amusing that I have painted each project at least 3 times, sometimes more - probably one for paper, one for mixture, and one for brush- who knew. Thank you again and I love the outtakes at the end!

Louise De Masi

Thanks very much Linda. Knowing what you are doing wrong is so important and I hope it helps you as you continue on.

Libby Padovan

Awesome!!! Explained all so well. I'm a beginner, and have found that I'm " Consistently Inconsistent" I watched this tutorial then spent a couple of hours just mixing paint and water, applying to wet and dry paper. I took my time and have found your clear advice very helpful. I'm so glad I found you "YOU"RE THE BEST"

aleli

Hello from California ! Thank you so much for this very informative video. I consider myself a beginner again. I used to paint and draw but didn’t learn much about watercolor. You addressed the issues i deal with like water on the paper. I hope i can paint from one of your awesome tutorials soon.

Aurora Junier

Lovely video. I am very interested in trying that rose you shown on it. Is it available anywhere to watch the tutorial? That would be really great

Louise De Masi

Thank you Aurora. It's coming to Patreon this month.

Monika Kellermann

I tried it and it turned out very well. I am not a beginner, but now I understand what is important for painting roses. I did not understand it befor. I made the drawing freehand and follow your coloring page step by step. You are a very talented painter and teacher. Thank you so much, Louise! ♥

ShinyMorgana Flutter.art

Wow i watched this video thinking: oh i already know this :) Then i painted the rose shortly after and i had so much more control over how much the paint bled when putting it on the paper. Really much easier to have different puddles for the same color too. I never did this before. This was really helpful thanks!!

Louise De Masi

That's wonderful! I'm glad. Thanks very much Jacky.

Melissa Turner

Some pigments (colbalts, oxides) will not explode across your wet surface like other pigment (quinacridones, phthalycyanines). Mix a colbalt teal with a red oxide, and the new hue is pretty stable. Same for mixing phthalo blue with quin magenta. However, mix colbalt blue with quin gold deep, and you’ll get that beautiful separation. Making swatches with each watercolor in the same consistency onto wet paper and seeing how far they travel will help you predict which colors when combined will probably separate. Two colors that travel differently are more likely to separate. Usually, I adore the blooms and color separations, but there are times that I want to control it. It has more to do with the weight of the pigments used than the opacity.

Louise De Masi

Thanks very much for the information Melissa. It's really interesting.

Brandyinthesky .

This was fantastic! Thank you for the reminders. I hadn't painted in a few months, so this was a great way for me to begin again!

Shelly Solle

Love you Louise, I do appreciate every video.

Lily Anne Baldwin

Sorry, I didn’t realize my iPad would post every time I hit enter. I’ve been following you for a couple years now and you have transitioned from working with dry paint on a pallet to the fresh, wet, juicy paint on the pallet. I’m afraid I’ve lost track when this transition happened. Can you point me to the video that explains your thinking behind the transition? Thank you!

Louise De Masi

Hi Lily Anne, That's a good question. I'm not sure I made a tutorial where I specifically talked about moving from dry paint to fresh paint. It's hard to remember now that I've made so many. I need someone to catalogue them for me so I know what's in them 😅. I think I started using fresh paint more around the time I read the Stephen Quiller book 'Color Choices.' That book really opened my eyes about colour and the importance of mixing semi neutrals rather than using colours unmixed all the time. That was early last year I think. I still use dry paint when I paint but since I've been mixing more I now use both wet and dry. I find it easier to mix the intensity of the colour I need with fresh paint - particularly if I want the colour to be quite dark. That's really the main reason I might use freshly squeezed paint now when I paint - if I'm mixing a dark colour. If I mix a lighter toned colour like a light grey for example, I can do that by wiping my wet brush over the dried paint.

Delores Pumphrey

This was another great tutorial. Very informatiive. Usually when watching someone paint, they do not show the mixture they made with water and paint to get the consistency. You just see brush disappear and when they come back, they have paint on the brush. Was that cold press paper you painted on? Did you use it just to demonstrate or because you wanted that look of what you get with cold press? Thank you.

Louise De Masi

Thanks Delores. It was cold press that I did the examples on. I used it because I prefer to use cold press over hot press and most beginners use cold press as well. I find hot press is more difficult to paint on.

Sharon Buchanan

I am enjoying these beginner tutorials and learning so much!!!!!!!!!

Karen Herndon

When you are totally finished with you picture, do you seal it with anything

Louise De Masi

No I don't seal the paintings I do on paper with anything. They will be framed with glass so the glass protects them. If I do a painting where I have glued a piece of watercolour paper to a cradled board I will seal it because it won't be going behind glass and it will need to be protected. On those paintings I use an archival spray varnish to protect it.

Derina O'Connor

Hi Louise, love this. Complete beginner. When you paint wet on wet on rose/ truck for example do you wet the area all the way to the pencil lines, or do you leave a dry gap near the edge like you do in another tutorial on blending I think... (you were painting pink spheres and a lemon etc ) also I just purchased a da vinci oval wash brush shaped like a tongue. Will this do washes for skies the same as a flat wash brush or do I need to buy one of the flat ones as well. Many thanks D

Louise De Masi

Hi Derina, If it's the first layer of paint and you are working wet on wet you don't need to wet all the way to the edges if you are putting paint all over the area. If it's a second layer of paint you probably do need to go all the way to the edges unless the first layer is very pale. Wetting the paper on top of a layer of paint can leave unwanted water lines where you don't want them. I think I should make a video tutorial explaining this more clearly. I'll get one done for next year. You can use that brush for skies - it's sometimes called a filbert brush or a 'cat's tongue' brush. Flat brushes are always useful but don't go out and buy another just yet. You can manage with the brush you have for a while.

catherine morgan

Hi Louise, I am brand new to watercolor and so glad that I have found you! Before joining you on Patreon, I purchased a W&N travel tin. I'm not able to produce your beautiful puddles of color with their varying pigment concentrations using my solid watercolors. Any tips or should I start over with tubes?

Louise De Masi

Hi Catherine, Thank you! I think pan paints are fabulous if you are working outdoors because of their portability. If I try to mix with them, however, I find the same thing happens to me which is why I like to often use freshly squeezed paint out of the tube when I mix. I can get pure pigment on my slightly damp brush when the paint is freshly squeezed. The only suggestion I have is to wet your pan paints before you use them- spray them to awaken them and then use a stiffer flat brush to scoop the pigment out onto the mixing palette. Pan paints can be hard on your good brushes so use an old flat brush if you have one to mix with. Moving forward, when you are ready to buy more, you might find tube paints easier to use.

catherine morgan

Thank you for your words of wisdom Louise! To avoid further frustration, I'll pick up the tube paint colors that you recommend in the color theory video : )