Watercolor II: Techniques

With washes under control, you can explore the techniques that give watercolor its unique character. Most of them come down to one variable you already know: how wet the paper and the brush are.

The core techniques

• Wet-on-wet: paint onto wet paper (or into wet paint). Colors spread and blend softly with blurry edges. Great for skies, backgrounds, soft shadows, fog and reflections. You control it by the wetness of the paper and the amount of pigment in the brush (thicker paint spreads less).
• Wet-on-dry: paint onto dry paper. Crisp, controlled edges. For details, sharp shapes and anything that needs definition.
• Glazing: once a layer is completely dry, paint a transparent layer on top. The colors mix optically, like stacked colored glass. Glazes deepen shadows, adjust temperature and unify areas.
• Dry brush: very little water in the brush, dragged quickly over textured paper. It catches only the paper's peaks, creating broken, sparkling textures: grass, bark, rocks, glitter on water.
• Lifting: removing paint with a clean, damp brush, a tissue or a sponge. Lift wet paint for soft clouds; scrub dry paint gently to soften edges or recover lights (staining pigments lift less).

Transparent glazing

Each glaze must be fully dry before the next, or the layers will lift and muddy. Use transparent, non-staining pigments for the first layers if you plan to lift later.

More techniques

• Masking fluid: a liquid latex you paint on areas you want to keep white (like sparkles or thin branches). Remove it with an eraser when the painting is dry.
• Salt: sprinkle salt into a wet wash; it absorbs pigment and leaves star-like textures.
• Spattering: flick paint from a brush with your finger for sand, foam or stars.
• Soft and hard edges: soften an edge right after painting it by running a clean, damp brush along it.

A simple workflow

1. Light pencil drawing (don't shade: graphite shows through).
2. Mask the whites if needed.
3. First washes: the lightest colors over large areas.
4. Let it dry completely (a hairdryer helps).
5. Middle values and shapes.
6. Darks, accents and a few details.
7. Remove masking, soften edges, add tiny highlights with white gouache only if necessary.