Experiments with watercolor texture (soothing)

In today’s video, I show you how to make watercolor texture cards and I demonstrate how they can be used to jump start your creativity into a new and exciting direction. In the past several weeks, I have been painting scenes of Old Portland Houses with a very limited palette in order to keep my creative practice alive. This is a season of heavy caregiving for me, so I need to be strategic. The Old Portland Houses series led to this exploration of texture in watercolor.
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There are amazon affiliate links sprinkled around in here. These are items that I have found to bring joy to my life and I hope they do the same for you. If you click on the link and actually buy something (anything!) from amazon, I will receive a small commission at no extra cost to you - and that helps to support this channel.
All music is from the youtube audio library.
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What I used in this video:
Arches watercolor paper, 156 lb, cold press: not available on amazon right now; I bought my roll from Blick Art
Winsor & Newton Texture Medium: amzn.to/3Pvtshp
Conte a Paris sketching crayons: amzn.to/3Rg9Dfp
Prussian Blue, M. Graham PB27: amzn.to/3ExNdyt
Cerulean Blue, M. Graham PB36: amzn.to/44LwylB
Quinacridone Gold, Winsor & Newton PR208, PV19, PY150: amzn.to/45JH8Lv
New Gamboge, Winsor & Newton PY150, PR209: amzn.to/44GRmuN
Zinc White Gouache, M. Graham PW4: amzn.to/3sNZso0
Jean Haines, Paint Yourself Calm: amzn.to/46oz0A3
Shirley Trevena DVD, Breaking the Rules of Watercolor: amzn.to/3LilKVl
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Favorite supplies that usually appear in my videos:
1. A porcelain plate or tray from the goodwill makes a great palette. So does a plastic lid from a yogurt container.
2. A used talenti ice cream cup is perfect for swish water; also a great way to buy art supplies when you “have to” eat the contents first.
3. A cheap Robert Simmons Expressions brush is perfect. The one I’m using here is an E85 Round, size 12. You can buy one at Blick Art.
4. I use a glass bottle that used to contain facial toner for my spray bottle. The toner was expensive, but it has a very pretty label. The spray is a fine mist and the bottle is the perfect size for using at home and also for taking out on location.
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What I use to film and edit my videos:
Small, flexible tripod with screw-on grippy attachment that holds my GoPro: amzn.to/3mEEGUU
Desk mount device that I use with the screw-on grippy attachment that came with my tripod - the desk mount (in combination with the grippy attachment) holds my GoPro 18-inches above my table: amzn.to/3L81XbK
Blue yeti microphone: amzn.to/3Fw1IE7
Lightning to USB Camera Adaptor - this is what I use to connect the blue yeti microphone to my ipad for voice over editing: amzn.to/3ZNxuUE
GoPro Hero10: amzn.to/3TFnvyU
It takes some getting used to, but for filming on hikes it is much better than using my iPhone.
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Instagram: kendra.lwebuga?...

[@ranjanachand9306]

Lovely experiments

[@larrymisiak915]

I think asking yourself if it’s good enough for you is an okay question. I always know if I have done something I like, and that is good enough for me. Your persistent rubbing, scrubbing, scraping, blotting, adding and taking away, created four related pieces that look good together, intuitively yours, and satisfying to you. And then there is the waiting for it all to dry which sometimes is the final product, like taking the bread out of the oven, the cake, the cookies, or whatever. Sometimes it takes even a day or two to convince yourself that it’s good, good enough for you. It’s like you have to taste it to decide you like it. Larry M.

[@klwebuga]

Such an interesting thought… to compare the process to baking! The thing that really rings true for me is that you certainly don’t know how (for instance) a loaf of bread will be until it’s done. I like that concept of delaying the judgement for as long as possible. :-)

[@mendyhand3895]

I’ve been a caregiver for a lot of people in my days on this earth. It’s got it’s ups and downs for sure. God, and art have had such a calming effect on me. Bless your heart Kendra for taking care of a loved one. Cherish the good moments. Prayers for you and your situation. Your channel is fabulous. I’ve learned a lot already. Letting go of realism is hard for me too. I keep thinking I need to start painting with my non-dominating hand. (Left) Lol… ❤️🙏🏻👍🖌

[@klwebuga]

Thank you for your kind words. I continue to work on finding the magic in letting go of realism (and reality!). I like the idea of working with the non-dominant hand. :-)

[@peggy011]

I like your abstraction and color palette very much; such exercises are always worthwhile. If the texture medium is meant to provide a three dimensional affect when dry, either I can't see it or the camera doesn't pick it up. Your applying and scrubbing back is most affective.

[@klwebuga]

Hi Peggy! Thank you for your kind comment (as always!) … My experience with texture medium (thus far) is that it produces a grainy finish, most especially if I am patient enough to let it dry before going over with watercolor. In this experiment, it helped to “direct” my poured paints a little - a very different experience from the times I’ve poured paint down a fresh sheet of watercolor paper. Have a wonderful day; I always appreciate your words. :-)

[@lightwavz]

Clove or clove bud essential oil works great as a mold inhibitor. I just love the way it smells as a bonus!

[@klwebuga]

Ooooh, this is a terrific idea and I have the clove bud essential oil on hand so I’m going to try it. Thank you for your helpful comment! :-)

[@jasperthesniper]

Wow that's awesome,, beautiful collection of your painting,,i saw the beauty of your works when you zoom in,,thanks for this tutorial..

[@klwebuga]

Thank you! :-)

[@DeAzul7902]

Kendra, your work is absolutely breat-taking to me! Thank you for sharing yourself with us. So glad I found you. Click! Subscribed....❤

[@klwebuga]

Thank you for your kind words and WELCOME aboard! :-) It’s been such a delight to share, especially with the gift of kind comments like yours.

[@Ginger_McElfresh_Art]

You have such a soothing voice and this is so relaxing! Btw, are those real poppy pods in your jar??? Those are fabulous! I would love to have some myself, but I tend to kill them before they mature, lol.And supplies are waaayy cheaper than therapy, lol! ❤

[@klwebuga]

Thank you for your kind words! Why YES, those are real poppy pods and I LOVE THEM! We have so many awesome gardeners in our neighborhood and these poppy pods are from the planter strip from one of my neighbor’s houses. I love the gentle rattle that they have before the seeds are poured out. We poured the seeds into our own yard and planter strip, so hopefully we will grow some poppies of our own next year.

[@Ginger_McElfresh_Art]

@@klwebuga That is so awesome!

[@rosasadler1084]

An art teacher near Seattle keeps some of her pallets in the fridge to prevent mold. I don’t know how that would work for gauche.

[@klwebuga]

I bet it would, but my fridge is too full of food to start adding art supplies! ;-) Actually, another sweet commenter suggested using clove bud essential oil. So, I first spritzed the lid with rubbing alcohol and wiped it out as best I could and then I dropped some clove bud essential oil in and rubbed it around. Two months have gone by now and my white gouache is mold-free! Clove bud essential oil for the win! :-)