I was drawn to paint Harmoni's portrait for her first birthday, using watercolour and White.
Paper used was Canson 300 gsm paper; a lovely surface for detail and a good weight to prevent buckling. No.12 and 4 sable brush was my choice.
Step 1: Sketch the features with a light red watercolour pencil.
Step 2: Wash Burnt Sienna to establish the shadows.
Step 3: Red Gold is washed into the hair. Hold the brush in a relaxed manner as in sample 2.
Step 4: Flesh is painted into the face tones and Vermilion for the cheek colour.
Step 5: A No.4 brush and Brown is used for the eyes and eyelashes,(do not paint individual lashes).
Step 6: Vermilion is used for the mouth. Brown plus Burnt Sienna for deeper tones of the hair.
Step7: Flesh plus White for the lighter areas of the face; also the reflected light on the side of the face, highlights on the cheeks, chin, nose and lower lip. (highlights on the tongue and the eyes are painted with the tip of the brush) Step 8: Golden Yellow plus White is used for hair highlights. Use Brown to indicate darker tones and tendrils. Brown plus Blue is used for pupils of the eyes, nostrils and eyebrows. Step 9: A wash of Permanent Green for the back-ground. Hint; when dry the tendrils of the hair are placed. This painting has been a spontaneous experience and I hope you enjoy using this technique.
2. Hibiscus Glory
The Hibiscus is one of my favourite flowers. They have a certain elegance about them and lend themselves to watercolours very well. Daler/Rowney 150gsm acid-free Cambridge paper was used; this has a slightly cream hue and the surface is a delight to paint on, especially if you want to include detail. Sketch the subject with a watercolour pencil, then wash Vermilion over the petals, deepen the shadows and allow to dry. Hooker's Green was used for the leaves. Burnt Umber painted in for stems. Paint White over the petals, avoiding the shadows. 1: Paint in the middle tones with Vermilion 2: Paint shadows into the leaves with Green and deepen some of the stems. 3: Paint White into highlight of the details. 4: With a watercolour pen detail some of the shadows and veins, while retaining the filigree look of the petals. 5: Crimson Lake is used for the stamen and Violet for the pods. Yellow is painted in for some pods. A Yellow watercolour pen is used for the veins of the leaves. Even though we have introduced White for the subject it still appears delicate. This technique can be applied to many flowers where you need to have body in the paint to obtain an effect where delicate detail is obvious.
Lessons on DVD
Tennis players in caricature
Featuring three easy to follow studies in gouache. Approximate running time; 20 min. each study.
Step by step instructions in painting a child's portrait in Pastel, Gouache and Acrylic. Approximate running time 28 mins each study Price from Mcleodart $19.95 plus P&P.
View 3.46 min. sample of this DVD below.
Please Note: This short video does not include the narration that is included on the DVD.