Various Ways to Create Wet in Wet Watercolor Washes

[@patriciabailey6923]

Thank you so much for doing this series of demonstrations. I just started drawing and painting with watercolor last July with no previous experience. I am having so much fun (most of the time) and have learned so much from you. I have been working on the poinsettia line and wash and every time I watch one of these videos my painting has improved. I find that I learn faster and better if I "practice techniques" on an actual painting instead of playing around without a subject. This is working so well that I feel like I progressed a full year in just the past week. You are great and I am very lucky! Merry Christmas to you. In so many ways, the birth of Christ is making it possible for me to approach this new learning with joy and confidence. Pretty amazing for my 80th year of life.

[@softpastels768]

This is the most useful demo I've have seen on wet in wet, thanks

[@gorway7]

This is something you really have to play around with and experiment. The biggest thing I struggle to get my head around is trying to remember how the different pigments react with one another (I have the memory of a gnat) so I keep a swatch book of my experiments and jot "notes to self" by them. It amazes me how you can get pairs of colour that behave so differently from others, like one colour infusing into and dominating the other, just blending to make another colour or the real weird, when one colour appears to push back the other colour. Dropping burnt sienna into ultramarine always amazes me, you get this halo where the blue just appears to vanish due to the transparent neutral it creates, you gotta love it.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Great comment, thanks Peter!

[@rockingguitar2050]

Steve , Thanks for your demos! I am an acrylic artist an just begging to learn water colors , it is a different world, I'm back in kindergarten at 67yr! I just found your site and I have a lot to watch & Learn, thanks again Rich

[@meggraham7564]

A really fun exercise to do. I have a Japanese brand Kuretake and it is resin, honey-based. With a bit more research have discovered it doesn't behave quite like western w/c. This exercise is teaching me a lot about the type of w/c I have got. Having fun doing galaxies.

[@jolovesnailart]

Thank you for demonstrating these wet on wet techniques 🙏 I am just starting to learn to paint with watercolor and I am really struggling with this. This helps very much 🙏

[@lindsayjayne2169]

Another amazingly wonderful video, thankyou Steve!!✨

[@galedar1537]

Steve, I learn so much from your videos. You have a wonderful sense of humor and great teaching style. Thank you so much for sharing your gift with us!

[@jentai7536]

You are the greatest, Steve!

[@LearnerChess]

This set of video instruction is a real blessing. Thanks.

[@maryriley6163]

Fascinating! I never realized all these effects. After years of tight colored pencil drawing, this is the breath of fresh air I need. Thank you.

[@Donna_G]

Wet in wet is my favorite technique. I've used nearly all of the applications you demonstrated on my art journey.

[@alyxskyler]

Your little edits like with the shirt are so fun and cute! Thanks for all the content you provide!

[@batya7]

I'm glad you suggest playing with the media, Steve. I love the blooms, edges, and surprises where color meets color. I've heard some teachers saying those results are poor technique while you are saying the contrary. Fun!

[@mvswaaij]

Thank you Steve for all these very valuable lessons. great teacher you are !

[@kathyn3978]

I love these unstructured videos, Steve. Thanks for all the usual great tips. Now I need to go play with some watercolors and make a fun mess. Oh yeah....love your t-shirts too.

[@happymv5350]

Hi Steve - The wet/wet applications is what makes watercolor so magical for me. I so enjoy allowing the paint to react to various water applications and creating a piece from that point. Thank you for this great lesson....

[@rscott7005]

Best video EVER, Steve! Watercolor blossoms are sooo difficult to explain, and you have done the best job I have ever seen. Bravo!

[@alexthe1cat]

Terrific educational video on wet on wet washes. Thank you, per usual, Steve!2

[@lindasmith8625]

Another very informative video. Steve, you never fail to teach worthwhile techniques, approaches, products, etc. Thanks for sharing your expertise!

[@otodidact6134]

The washes techniques were very informative, I especially liked that salt look around 8min and I favored that last one near the end of the video. Learned a bunch, thank you!

[@dorothyminor7581]

I’ve been water coloring for a couple of years now. With some good and some bad results. So I’ve decided to watch ALL of your videos and practice practice practice. Things really make sense now! Thanks so much Steve! I value and respect what you do for all of us.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Great to hear!

[@donnalieblick8478]

Thank you for sharing your talent and gifts.

[@susananncherrysetter3902]

This IS why I Love Watercolor! TFS!

[@karennaturallyartby]

Thanks a bunch! I needed that.

[@ullaireneeriksen7473]

Learned a lot! Great video, as always!

[@Cati.Colours]

I can't thank you enough for everything I've learned with your videos, you're the best!

[@brianparnell2256]

Great lesson Steve. Some very interesting effects there.

[@vilvile]

Very helpful tutorials. Thank you.

[@belindahall5220]

Love this!! So very helpful!! Thank you so much! I look forward to seeing the scripture at the end as well!

[@annemorgan2928]

Excellent video. I learned a lot. Thank you.

[@annemorgan2928]

Thanks. Steve. Great videos.

[@paulapost8004]

Another great video! Thank you! Keep reminding myself how important these basics are if I want to keep improving my painting.

[@joycesnodgrass7068]

Thank you! Great "warm-up" idea.

[@annewright8184]

I've learned so much from your very informative videos and have been passing along tips to my grandchildren as they enjoy painting with watercolors! Many thanks to you, Steve!!!

[@yvonnewhitehouse]

Brill! So helpful thank you.

[@heather173]

What a great video for a beginner to stumble upon. Thank you so much.

[@isisyanqi]

Your lessons are everything I need for learning watercolors!!!

[@lulugregory3246]

I love wet on wet.. excited.. want to go paint now lol

[@michaelannfitzgerald8742]

Thank you so much for sharing this one. I think I kinda like the blooming, they remind me of trees and clouds. Great t shirts! I especially love the Bob Ross one😍 lol. Thank you! 😊👍

[@karenjohnson6487]

Thanks for the video. I liked the pulling technique to create lost and found edges. Painting color into water made the technique an ah ha moment. Looking forward to next Friday. 👍🏻

[@kimlivengood5916]

Thanks for sharing the great tips. Love the t-shirts. Have a great evening.

[@sheilarae51]

❤You are such a great teacher!

[@JamesPliny]

Interesting comment by Bitemefox. I know people say WC is a difficult medium, but I tell them that if you learn just a few easy- to- learn techniques it can be mastered. Even 5th grade children I have taught learn how to use watercolors in an hour or two. As always, what I like about Steve's presentation is that he never assumes we know what he knows when he does various techniques and procedures to get where he is going with a piece.

[@kathrynsloan4694]

Love the shirts. Loved your video

[@pamelathompson9890]

I have watched alot of your videos, don't always comment because I watch it on TV. But anyways, I just love your style of painting, have learned alot from you but still needing to learn. I find watercolor is hard too, but I am not going to give up trying. Thanks for sharing!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Definitely keep at it. Watercolor is one of those mediums that is mysterious at first but with perseverance, will click eventually.

[@pamelathompson9890]

Thank you, your comment means alot.

[@else-britjarl9721]

Love your demo 's. 👌💕

[@kendradavey6080]

It was actually really helpful when the water wasn't completely clean and clear on the clear washes. Made it easier to see on camera and judge just how much water you're putting on there. Great tutorial.

[@amjPeace]

I had been binge watching your awesome videos when you mentioned your beginner playlist, so here I am to gratefully learn the basics. It's humbling to learn that I've been way too wet and overworking. (Not that I ever had any complaints mwahaha!)

[@peterkimberley4311]

You have given me hours of pleasure and I have learnt a tremendous amount .Thank you . I have been trying to loosen up and I am having great fun trying you techniques but not very successful .

[@appleknocker56]

Thank you on wet on wet! As did a first wet on wet but need to darken areas by going over it with water again & going to have to practice which way as usually rewet the whole paper again (carefully) not to remove what already put down.

[@nancyrolfe3033]

Thank you once again! I'm excited to experiment..I've fallen in love with how paint moves with the water. i.e. charges. I wasn't aware different pigments spread at different amounts..THAT information helped me! I can "swatch" colors doing this and have a guide...Nancy

[@ashlyrz252]

Water in a fineliner bottle...... Even when I didn't think I was going to learn anything and was just watching bc, well, STEVE! 😂 You go and blow my mind! I can't thank you enough for what you do! ♥️ You brought me through my beginner watercolor journey! If I had a question, I could always find the answer here. 😊

[@reginacasto3179]

Great idea 💡

[@CouzCat]

Fascinating. I don't recall how I found your channel but I'm very glad I did. I started in paper crafting then stumbled upon mixed media which drew me into water colour. The use of water mists & droplets in crafts tends to be more extreme than I like. The effects you showed here with sprays especially are far more subtle. Less expensive papers like Canson XL & smooth papers are more prevalent in the craft world since cards are ephemeral & it's far easier to stamp. But yes, I love Arches, it does amazing things. Very much a newbie but it is fun to play!

[@RinasAMaker]

This was a great video! I didn't know that some colors actually move differently (slower/faster) because of their pigment. I do have some colors that irritate me for not wanting to really bloom out. That would be a good video too, discussing how some pigments may be slower or faster to move. The look and dimension you get with washes are always so fun because you never know how it will turn out and no two are ever the same. Thanks for sharing the info! Very much appreciated! :)

[@renateschmidt1204]

Thank you for this informativ and inspiring Video!

[@essietangle9931]

Way to go Steve start off with a laugh or some new t/shirts. I have to admit to getting out my Inktober shirt but it was just too hot. Thanks for the Friday review, this is what makes watercolor so much fun.

[@lucillefemine2339]

So many great ideas. Thanks :)

[@SteveAtkinsonFineArt]

Hi Steve, I am always amazed at how much I learn from every one of your videos. You da man!!!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks Steve. Glad to hear it! Thanks for stopping by!

[@popeyedodson]

great video for a beginner!

[@jendeleonart]

This is probably the best and most informative video on wet/wet I’ve seen! Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Just subscribed and looking forward to learning more from you.

[@Megzamani]

Thank you for doing these. I am just beginning to paint again. I survived the sticker price shock but I am needing to get a basic set of colors. I have decided to get the 5ml tubes as that's plenty of paint for now.

[@KarenElaine]

Love your channel, clear tutorials and sense of humor! You’ve inspired me to improve my channel, thank you. 😀

[@IwtptFG2D]

Loved that content all in one place. Watching your tip on soft edges applying paint next to water made me see how I could do the top of a misty mountain or the sun shining on a high branch of a tree where some of it is missing etc. So yeh gave me lots of inspiration. Thank-you so much Steve. Great party trick with your t-shirts 😀

[@didierleprince6106]

Very interesting tips. Merci beaucoup. 😊

[@camille6346]

Thanks for this really great teaching video. A great demonstration of what I did not understand, and was not taught, in all the many previous classes I have attended. Looking forward to getting back again to my "kitchen-table painting! You are the best!

[@joangagne1903]

Great video! I’m a beginner and I love your videos, I learn so much!

[@denaheck1506]

Think your shirt trick is fantastic use of video, would never know how to do that magic. Fun fun

[@mariegamber]

Thank you for a wonderful tutorial.

[@SwizZLe333]

This is a great find, considering my largest brush that I have right now is a 16 round...kinda tricky getting a consistent flat wash with it or gradient wash...so until I get a bigger brush or mop..I'll be experimenting doing some backgrounds or even lights via these methods

[@sharonmcmann-morelli4896]

do you think the mop brush is as good as the 2” flat or should i have both?

[@azzuparis]

I love your intro!! Thanks for this very interesting video, Steve 😊

[@TTomJohn]

Thanks again. 🖒🖒 Trying to meld my mind with the water's mind. A little thing I like to call, Steve's Carolina Mind Meld. 😁 Merry Christmas!

[@teretrigo24]

very useful! thank you,

[@renmuffett]

Steve, I would love to see you do a demo of this exact same subject ( wet into wet washes) with some of your other brands, say, M Graham watercolor? It would be great to see. You always put a little joy in my day and thanks. You are very appreciated.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks Renee!

[@jilliancrawford7577]

I actually appreciate you not using clean water in these demonstrations because it's just muddy enough to see in the video but light enough for your to get a good enough result for these examples and convey the information appropriately.

[@pjlewisful]

very cool!!!!

[@wanttolearnreidy4469]

Thanks for this Steve, as usual, so many very interesting ideas and tips with heaps of helpful and inspiring info. I hope that I can incorporate some on my next painting. I have so much trouble trying to create interesting backgrounds. Cheers form Down Under.

[@joegriffin5851]

Excellent and very helpful. Thanks. You mentioned that some pigments move faster than others. Something I've also been struggling with. Do you have a 'speed' table of pigments showing the relative speed of movement of each? I've never found one over the past year of looking.

[@mindofwatercolor]

No, its too inexact a thing. Brands, pigment loads, binders can all affect it. In my opinion the differences don't matter enough to the results of my painting and I suppose thats true for most watercolorists or you would even see some extensive homemade tests.

[@joegriffin5851]

Thanks anyway. Experience is what counts.

[@Jana2WorldsArt]

This was super helpful thanks!

[@DrawingWithFire]

Great video Steve! 😁 Love the t-shirts. How dare Reese complain... just because he isn't showing any skin. Lol 😆 A lot of great info in this video. Last week, I did the spontaneous painting. Let just say I got great colors for mud! 😂 Well going to try it again. I hope you are staying cool & doing well. Take care my friend! 🤗

[@mindofwatercolor]

LOL! oh well, Reese is a whiner. What can I say. Glad you tried the spontaneous painting. Don't worry, we've all created a little mud. Part of the learning process. Keep after it! Thanks Val!

[@PattisArtInnaVan]

That purple blue color is called Mission Gold? That's a gorgeous color! Thought it would be more like Aussie Red Gold!

[@mindofwatercolor]

No, Mission Gold is the brand.

[@PattisArtInnaVan]

@@mindofwatercolor got it! Still loving the color!

[@susinok]

I want that DaVinci Vader shirt!

[@richardlumpkin4607]

Great primer on wet on wet and watching watercolor’s mind come alive. I just love the spontaneity and creativity of how pigment swims around in water. You can predict what it might do based on what you know but it still has this wonderful way of surprising you. If you let it or in my case if it’s your only choice. I haven’t mastered the taming part yet.😏 You’ve inspired me yet again. It’s a rainy Saturday morning. Im finally back home. I’m going to watch your last video again and dust off my paints and paper and spend the afternoon watching paint move. Should be fun. Were you using paint straight out of the tube for your demo? Have a great weekend!

[@mindofwatercolor]

Thanks Richard. Well put about the "mind" aspect. This paint came off my Mission Gold palette.

[@richardlumpkin4607]

The Mind of Watercolor I guess my question is do you let the paint on your pallet dry or is it still sticky? Sorry for so many questions. The consistency of the paint seems to make a difference. Or better put, the amount of pigment in the water seems to make a difference.

[@annekirstennrholm1377]

Thanks a lot! 🤗

[@abby-fichtner]

Beautiful! What was that first mission gold color you put down? It looked like both blue and violet together?

[@jaspermartin7444]

Neato, thank you!

[@brentboyer79]

Another great Star Wars shirt!! (I have the Bob Ross tee.)

[@VHogg5432]

Hiya, have you tried small amounts of brushing on top of an existing colour to create a speckled affect?.....thanks

[@mindofwatercolor]

Sure. Its all just variation on the same ideas. Experiment to your hearts content.

[@poulkonrad5310]

Hi Steve. Please show us how to paint reflections and transparency in glass

[@michelfloquet8129]

C.EST DOMMAGE JE COMPENDS RIEN MAIS VOS COURS CA ME PLAIS BIEN

[@cassiescreations9828]

O wow, the famous Leonardo da Vinci Darth Vader - I hear it's worth millions. Just kidding, of course. I love the video. I just love that effect with the water splatter "making" the foliage (a most perfect example of the mind of watercolor) and I love those "tendrils" when you used the oiler tip. They look like human or animal nerves. Fun stuff. Like someone else stated, "We are just big kids".

[@chrissie4452]

I love your intro 😊

[@cheryl7476]

Thanks for another terrific lesson. Is there a brand of cotton paper you recommend, good for practicing as a beginner?

[@mindofwatercolor]

Bee 100% cotton is a good inexpensive practice paper. amzn.to/2vZWlt0

[@TheDottiDot]

Is the extreme backrun the same as a bloom?

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yes, back run, bloom, cauliflower, all names for the same thing.

[@catherinelevison3310]

Very good. My new problem is via layerings of light to dark for landscapes I have become consistently too dark and then I struggle with not being effective when detailing. One possible reason is I’m experimenting with various papers and paint. I’ve recently started using DANIEL SMITH watercolor and perhaps they are more pigmented than all the others I tried along the way? Any input? I have to get lighter.

[@mindofwatercolor]

Just practice. Sounds boring I know but learning to vary value is a key skill. Paint value scales as practice, going from lightest to darkest and back again. It really has nothing to do with Daniel Smith. Several brands are just as pigmented. Usually highly pigmented paint gives you more control not less because you have a greater range. Learning control is what its all about.

[@catherinelevison3310]

The Mind of Watercolor hi, okay, thank you.

[@Chloe-zr9lk]

Hey I was just wondering where you got Reese the skull from? Thankyou :)

[@mindofwatercolor]

I bought him at a craft store a long time ago. Probably 30 years ago. He's a plastic model, but he thinks he's a real skull. 😉

[@Cbooks100]

How do you do this without creating blooms ?

[@mindofwatercolor]

A bloom is adding too much water after a wash has started to dry. Squeeze out your brush to make it drier and pick up any excess water. Don’t let water pool on top of a partially dry wash.

[@Cbooks100]

@@mindofwatercolorthanks it's challenging !

[@EFD620G]

Great video, how about one on glazes

[@mindofwatercolor]

I've actually done two videos on glazes and demonstrated it in many others. Just search glazes on my main channel page. 😀

[@embracethemystery]

Steve, do you always let layers dry naturally, or do you use a hair dryer sometimes? Are there pros and cons to each drying method?

[@mindofwatercolor]

Yes, sometimes I use a dryer. No pros or cons that I know of. Dryers save you time.