Improve your landscapes with 10 simple watercolor evergreen trees

[@Jewel0195]

I have been learning watercolor for 3 years. Trees are my struggle. I have learned so much from you as far as dry brushing and angle of the brush.You also have such a calming voice I enjoy your channel so much!

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you, Ruth. These trees are inspired by the ones in my local forests.

[@miravdb6680]

In all the tutorials they make it sound so easy but I tried for hours and just don't manage and just want to cry at this point because I suck so hard at something that looks so easy.

[@JackiePeacock]

I’m so sorry you’re feeling frustrated. All I can say is to keep practicing and experimenting with paint to water ratios. I know, that’s probably not what you want to hear, but it’s what’s helped me when I started painting them.

[@I.M.SofaKingdom]

It takes a while. It took me 2 months to get my trees consistent. Hang in there and just practice. Try not to get frustrated. Remember, this is supposed to be fun! Don't put too much pressure on yourself, just take your mistakes as learning practice. Take heart in your victories no matter how small. Practice is important, as it develops control and muscle memory. I got to the point where I was painting trees on everything, random pieces of paper, the electric bill, etc. When you finally get it, you'll be so proud of yourself! Good luck, friend.

[@I.M.SofaKingdom]

@@miravdb6680 remember, it only looks easy because a good artist makes it look easy. That's what all the best artists do. They usually don't tell you about the hundreds of hours of practice they've invested in their work.

[@amph4474]

I can totally relate.

[@bitteralmonds5717]

Bit late, but are you using the right paper? You can have the best technique in the world but if you're trying to do this on like printer paper it will always look horrific at the end. Invest in some watercolour paper that ideally has a percentage of cotton, if not 100%, and try on that. Here in the UK Bockingford does an affordable set of watercolour paper in blocks, also Seawhite of Brighton do good affordable non-cotton watercolour paper (make sure it specifies watercolour in the name though and don't expect it to handle like total paper size washes very well, these trees should hold up fine though if you hold the paper with a bulldog clip). But also Fabriano artistico is good and Hanemule (spelt something like that, they have a chicken logo) has a few good watercolour papers. You can start off with pretty small blocks if you feel bad about the cost (I use smaller than A5 size for my pure cotton stuff atm as I'm still learning). But yeah, try actual watercolour paper in case you haven't and not just watercolour paper from like Poundland. It really does make a big difference.

[@ciwalker520]

Very helpful, Jackie. Thank you. And "Swoops" is a good word!

[@glaucoguaitoli]

Love your trees. Excellent tutorial. I really like that you go in "real time" and that we can see at the end the consistency of your paint. I'm a beginner and this is truly important. Thank you.

[@coreyduboislinda9]

Love your trees and instructions

[@daniellyprestes5609]

I am a very beginner who never paint anything before and I just started a few months ago but I see a big improvement since I found your videos. Your paintings are beautiful and so the scenario. Thank you!

[@JackiePeacock]

That’s amazing! Wow. Thank you so much, Danielly! I hope you continue to progress and fall even more in love with watercolor.

[@ingegerdlundgren2457]

Do you use water or only paint when you draw the trees? It is enough with the little spray of water before you begin?

[@amph4474]

I appreciate the real-time videos.

[@kaystoecklin4343]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!

[@consueloyoung4484]

I can’t count how many times I have watched this particular video of yours. I find it so valuable, the way you explain how you go about making each tree, the way you prepare the paper, and how much water to use. Thank you once more ♥️

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you, Consuelo! How are your trees coming along? It's a tricky subject, but one that can be mastered :)

[@consueloyoung4484]

@@JackiePeacock You are so sweet for asking, I believe I am doing quite well, thanks to you!!. I could watch you forever and not get tired!!. ♥️

[@SHANGRILAAA333]

I love how beautiful you stage your work space for us viewers. BRAVA!!!

[@consueloyoung4484]

So beautiful!!!. I can watch you all day long!.❤

[@JackiePeacock]

lol thank you, Consuelo.

[@sharonlane5647]

My favorite is # 5 but I like all of them. Thank you so much for this video. I am going to start obsessing on my tree painting now! 😂

[@JackiePeacock]

Haha woohoo go trees! 🌲🤍 thank you!

[@BottlegardenUK]

Love this video, I will be referring to it often. I noticed the trees look like the branches spiral around the trunk. So there is always a longer side that alternates. That really helps!

[@l.e.phillips]

You deserve WAY more followers! Looking forward to watching your channel grow! ☺️🙌🩷

[@JackiePeacock]

Haha thank you, Lori! I appreciate each one who’s commented, subscribed, and liked my content!

[@joycewickman1148]

Great lesson! I love painting trees,mountains ansd rocks. Thank you for sharing!

[@JackiePeacock]

Love it! These subjects are so much fun.

[@stevenwmclean]

They all look great. Thanks for sharing your technique.

[@JackiePeacock]

Absolutely! Thank you for watching.

[@susancomstock933]

I'm so happy that you popped up when I searched " how to paint watercolor trees. The evergreens are my focus as I'm painting a downeast Maine lighthouse. It's tricky to create a lighthouse, but I'm more focused on making the trees look great. So, thank you. I will continue watching.

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you for watching and finding value in my content! I’m SO pleased my video popped up. That’s exciting! Ooh I’ve never painted a lighthouse! What a great idea. Makes me think of New England. Beautiful.

[@AnnaTang-qj1xy]

I really appreciate this tutorial。 Thank you

[@Tia-vj9ox]

This is the second of your tree vids I’ve watched. I next need to watch while I have a brush in my hand. Pine trees are my nemesis,lol

[@JackiePeacock]

Trees are pretty tricky for most people I know they certainly were for me when I started to paint them. It’s been a couple weeks since you’ve left this comment, so I hope that you have been able to create a few beautiful trees to your liking. 🤍🌲

[@dianemccabe9907]

I so want to paint trees like the ones you make and the mist!!! Love it!!! Tried painting trees tonight!! I'm going to keep practicing this first!!! Thanks so much for this video!! It helps a lot!! Your work is beautiful!!

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you, Diane! I’m glad you’ve been enjoying the art I create and share. I wish you many happy tree paintings! 🌲🤍

[@roselucht4583]

Thank you! I’m practicing and even in the last 0 minutes mine look much better!

[@JackiePeacock]

That's great! And thank YOU for spending time with me here 🌲🤍

[@cindihinnendael6197]

I just found you and love the way you paint.. I’ve been painting a few years already and like your technics better than any I’ve learned so far. ❤

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you, Cindi for your comments and for spending time on my channel. It's always wonderful when you can find a channel you connect with. 🌲

[@laurindabowling5968]

Thank you so much for posting this. After a bit of practice, I already see improvement in my trees. Still need practice, but video has helped tremendously. Happy Painting!

[@JackiePeacock]

That's amazing! So glad I can be here to help.

[@glenda7921]

Great technique, thanks for sharing.

[@JackiePeacock]

My pleasure! Thank you for sharing :)

[@sbeth82sc]

perfect trees!! 🌳 🌲

[@JackiePeacock]

🤍🌲 appreciate the comment, thank you.

[@arcangeladavis9661]

I’ve just found you and I love the way you paint … I’m a beginner and wondering how do I keep my wet paper from buckling?

[@carolstefan7662]

I was hoping you would do a blue spruce!

[@I.M.SofaKingdom]

I like the 4th tree.

[@cristinacuenca4176]

I love them all. 😂 Thank you.

[@JackiePeacock]

Woohoo! haha Glad you like them! Thank you! :)

[@rebeccaaustin2458]

Jackie, I love all of those trees! Thank you for slowing it down a bit and for your advice to keep practising! That's what i tell myself, too, even when so disappointed that my attempts look like a first-grader's😂

[@JackiePeacock]

You are so welcome! And that’s totally relatable. I feel this way more often than I’d care to admit haha. 😂 I wish you many happy little tree paintings 🌲🤍

[@foxification1]

I like the fourth tree the best

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you! That’s a good one for sure.

[@user-bk8qn9rh5k]

This is a fantastic tutorial! I have difficulty painting trees. The hardest part for me is to get the tree proportional and to leave white spaces. I am looking forward to watching this video again (and probably again and again) to practice. Thank you!

[@JackiePeacock]

You're welcome! And I completely understand. I used to have a hard time with spacing as well. You'll get there. :)

[@pietrovitali6788]

Great observer

[@donnastrohmeier8739]

Thanks for sharing this technique. I just found your channel. Will definitely subscribe.👍🪶

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you for subscribing 🤍

[@TradIrishHarper]

Do you tend to work straight from the tube versus putting the paint in a portable palette and letting it dry before using it?

[@JackiePeacock]

I rarely work straight from the tube, as I usually find myself wasting too much. If I ever use fresh paint from a tube in a video, I will always let it dry after and use it later.

[@UnusualElan]

you asked for an alternative for "swooping", i think it's a good word to use when going down, like a bird swooping down to get its prey, however, i think it's more of a "pendulum" when you swoop up, like an uneven pendulum? what do you think?

[@JackiePeacock]

I think you might be right because I do swoop from left to right in an upward motion for sure.

[@seths450]

do you ever use non synthetic brushes for this? im having trouble with them not using synthetic brushes

[@JackiePeacock]

I usually dont. I have a couple that I didn’t realize were animal hair and use those occasionally, but I prefer to use synthetic. I’ve found that each brush series paints differently. I love the Princeton Neptune series and the Princeton velvatouch series

[@theartistlhaz111]

Hey Jackie just wanted to say thank you so much for this tutorial! I wish you could see how ugly my evergreens were before stumbling across your video. Thank you so much.

[@JackiePeacock]

Thank you so much! I’m glad to hear you’re happier with your evergreens. I know they can be tricky.

[@Tincanart_25]

Miss Jackie, when you say you spray your paper first, what do you mean? I’m watching this and it looks like you’re painting wet on dry. I would assume spraying the paper first would then cause wet in dry and make the edges soft and diffused. Will you please explain what you do with the water spray?

[@JackiePeacock]

So I'm definitely going to make a video on this subject because I think I'm not very clear, and I'm sorry! lol But, yes this is what my intention is when I lightly mist/spray the paper before I apply a tree. The paint will hit those tiny droplets and gently spread out, creating what I think looks like tiny abstract branches. And yes, I prefer to do this on dry paper. You can add your trees using a more wet onto damp (not wet onto wet) paper and create a beautiful feathered effect where you won't lose too much detail (like you would if you did wet onto wet). Hopefully I'm making sense. But stay tuned for that video because it's a question I get often, and the last thing I want is to confuse lol

[@dianemccabe9907]

Did you mist the paper for each tree? Or did you mist just once for all 10? I'm not sure...

[@JackiePeacock]

I don’t believe I did that for every tree in this video, but I typically do most my paper before adding most of the trees in a landscape painting. But not for every single tree because then it might be too much water on the paper causing them to soften. But if you like that effect then go for it. 🤍🌲

[@Szynszula]

I think you have to have this specific brush, otherwise this is not working at all for me :< are there any alternatives? I don't see this brush in my country. I did trees with other techniques yesterday and it worked out better than expected, but yours are amazing :)

[@JackiePeacock]

I’ve used other brushes that I own to get similar shapes and effects, so I’ve found that it always depends on the amount of water and paint you have on your brush. But, I’ll admit that it’s easier if the brush has a very fine tip. You definitely don’t need these specific brushes. And the brushes I have a hard time with to get this style are any brushes that soak up a lot of water. Hmm what brushes do you have or prefer? Do you have any with a fine point? Even detail brushes like the Grabie set I have work. Thank you for leaving a comment and watching. And thank you for liking my trees. 🤍🌲 it’s literally all I paint haha I hope you get the perfect tree you’re after!

[@Szynszula]

@@JackiePeacock thanks for response! I have Renesans 4098 brush which is synthetic ale quite stiff, it hops back to pointy tip each time so it is hard to get single "branches" with it

[@JackiePeacock]

@Szynszula hmm I tried looking for it, but couldn’t find it. I found a brand by the same name in Poland (I believe), but not the 4098. The brushes I use are on the stiffer side, too. Do you have any Princeton brushes? I’d keep experimenting with paint to water ratio. And the finer or thinner the point, the easier it may be to get those smaller branch details. You can also always go back and add those, too.

[@Szynszula]

@@JackiePeacock yes, it's Poland :) and of course I totally messed up its number which should be 1097R instead. I am total begginer so from some more known brands I have da Vinci casaneo series 498 size 2 (this one is expensive but it's absolutely amazing, I love it, although it is too big for those techniques). I have also small flat brush and some also stiff pointy brush for details. I will experiment little bit more with water to paint ratio then.

[@JackiePeacock]

@@Szynszula ahh yes now I see it. Lol looks like a good brush! But I’m wondering since it looks thicker (from photos) if it’s holding too much water? Same with the Da Vinci. Now, I still believe you can create a beautiful tree with similar strokes, you’ll just have to experiment with the water and paint ratios. I’ve had to adjust each stroke with different brushes I use.

[@pawealbrzykowski9251]

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@pietrovitali6788]

You are gratis observer.where are the shadow of the foliage ?

[@JackiePeacock]

Hmm I’m not sure about shadows. What do you mean?

[@Atelier.A]

Hookers Green? 😮

[@JackiePeacock]

Yep! lol

[@SuzanneRanger]

My tree is not as beautiful as yours

[@JackiePeacock]

I hope that you keep at it, Suzanne. Your trees will eventually get to a place where you are happy with them. I promise you.

[@yiwenyoga9617]

Wow, thank you!

[@JackiePeacock]

You’re welcome, Yiwen!

[@farukhhasan11]

Very helpful video. Jackie can you please share your skype or hangout id?

[@JackiePeacock]

Thanks Farukh! I don’t use those apps, unfortunately.