Winsor & Newton Cerulean Blue (PB35) is a granulating, green-leaning blue with noticeable opacity and a moderate value range. I especially like it for charging into dark washes, creating atmospheric fog, adding granulation, and placing cool accents over darker passages. Purchase this paint ONLINE Winsor & Newton Cerulean Blue (PB35) is a color that took…
Watercolor Essentials: Finding the Best Green Watercolor Paint Green has traditionally been the color I struggle with the most. I don’t particularly enjoy painting greens, and for years I avoided using many tube greens in my mixtures. Why? Well, I don’t like most tube greens. Then one of my students called me out on my…
Visiting Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria Neuschwanstein Castle—the “Disney Castle”—is probably Germany’s most famous castle. Maybe Europe’s. Rising above the Bavarian countryside, it sits high on a hill surrounded by the foothills of the Alps. It is absolutely beautiful and completely deserving of the hype. Purchase the original painting & fine art prints I first visited…
Purchase this paint ONLINE Holbein Davy’s Grey is a semi-opaque gray-green watercolor made from Raw Sienna, Lamp Black, and Titanium White. It excels at painting fog, mist, weathered stone, and atmospheric landscapes, producing subtle granulation rather than dramatic blossoms. The first time you squeeze Holbein Davy’s Grey onto your palette, one thing immediately stands out….
One of the greatest challenges in watercolor is creating the illusion of depth. After all, we’re working on a completely flat piece of paper. Somehow we have to convince the viewer that one tree is ten feet away, another is fifty feet away, and sunlight is streaming through an entire forest beyond. That sounds intimidating,…
UNC Old Well Watercolor Tutorial: Combining Multiple Watercolor Techniques What Watercolor Techniques Were Used? The University of North Carolina’s Old Well is one of the most recognizable landmarks in North Carolina. If you’ve ever visited Chapel Hill, you’ve probably seen it—or at least fought your way through a crowd of students taking graduation photos around…
How to Paint Atmospheric Fog in Watercolor Best Subjects for This Technique Fog effects work especially well for: Watercolor is traditionally known as a transparent medium. Most instructors teach students to preserve the white of the paper and build color through transparent layers. Even though white watercolor paints exist, the brightest highlights are usually created…
Colorful grays are created by mixing complementary colors rather than relying on premixed gray paints. These mixtures create more luminous shadows, stronger color harmony, and paintings that feel more alive. Purchase original painting or fine art prints HERE Why Your Gray Paintings Look Dull (And How to Fix Them) One of the most common mistakes…
Daniel Smith Perinone Orange (PO43) is a transparent, highly staining red-orange watercolor pigment known for glowing washes, strong color impact, and excellent blossoming effects. It works especially well for sunsets, autumn landscapes, warm florals, glowing architectural light, and mixing rich dark neutrals with Ultramarine Blue or Cobalt Blue. Purchase this paint ONLINE Daniel Smith Perinone…
Purchase Payne’s Gray ONLINE Painting a Moonlit Winter Treescape in Watercolor Using Only Payne’s Gray Sometimes the best watercolor lessons come from using less. A moonlit winter landscape painted with only Payne’s Gray is a perfect exercise in simplicity, mood, and watercolor harmony. By limiting yourself to a single pigment, the painting immediately feels unified—every…
