5 Biggest Mistakes by Beginner Watercolor Painters
Ever wonder why you can't get to square one with watercolor painting? As an online creative teacher since 2016, I've seen beginners make the same mistakes over and over again. After helping so many new watercolor painters get past the same hurdles, I thought I might save you some time, energy, and money by sharing some of them with you here and now. Oh and read the way to the end, because I have bonus tips for you that you won't want to miss! What’s the first one?
1. Choosing the cheapest watercolor paints.
The cheapest paints are loaded with fillers, making them look chalky and diluting the colors so your paintings won't look as good as you want them to. This is often discouraging for new students because it won't actually showcase any actual talent that you might have.
2. Not buying the right paper.
Use watercolor paper that is at least 140 pounds (300 grams) and that's made with cotton. It will give you the best absorbency and perform the best. It'll help you move your paints around the paper more easily, and just look more beautiful.
3. Using super cheap brushes.
I get it. You may notbe all in with this hobby yet, but using those cheap brush sets that are made for kids acrylic projects is not going to give you a fair look at what you can do with watercolors. Use actual watercolor brushes at about a medium price and look for brushes with a springy quality to ensure that your brush strokes will go where you want them to go.
4. Not rinsing or cleaning your brushes after each use.
It's super important that you rinse your brushes properly until there's no color that you can brush off of on a paper towel or light colored rag. Nothing ruins a brush more because the paint will dry between the bristles and it Will get progressively harder to use.
5. Overthinking.
Creative minds will overthink everything and there's a good chance you're a perfectionist. That means you want everything to be just so. My advice? Let it go. Even if this is the only tip you take from this post, please pay serious attention to this one. Use what you have right now, and just start painting. You will learn and improve as you go. Have fun and don't judge yourself. Kids don't worry about what their art looks like, right? They just relax and enjoy the play and the process. And so should you! Take the pressure off and just give yourself the grace to learn. Don't worry about what your artwork looks like right now. Honestly, you should be proud of yourself for doing the work!
Bonus tip 1
Don't assume you're not any good at watercolor painting! We've been taught socially that the only ones who should be called artists are the great art masters or people with gallery representation. But that's not the truth. If you paint, according to Webster's Dictionary,you are an artist. How good you are, depends on how much you practice. If you're a beginner, how can you know if you're good or not anyway? I've seen so many people with real talent just quit because they assumed they weren't any good.
Bonus tip 2
Please don't ask a technical person for their opinion about your artwork. Someone like a lawyer, scientist, or accountant may not even know what to look for, but you can believe they will have an opinion. Technical people get paid to have opinions and come up with facts, and we need them desperately. But art is an emotional product, not a factual entity. The technically-minded may not have the tools to tell you what you need to know about your style, your visual story, or your creative potential. Find someone who's creative, and can tell you what they think about your work from an artist’s perspective.
I hope you enjoyed these tips. If you’re in the beginning stages of watercolor painting they will save you loads of time, money, and thrust you forward in your journey. And it makes me feel better that you’re not having to figure all of this out for yourself like I had to. You're welcome! ;-)
I'd love to hear about your challenges and triumphs in your watercolor painting journey. Comment below and share with us!