Cozy Fall Cottage: Relaxing Watercolor Tutorial, by Nianiani on YouTube. 25 min 56 s.
- Video length
- 25 min 56 s
- Time to do it
- 1 hour
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 7
What you need
Steps
Sketch a small cottage with a pitched roof and two or three trees on your cotton paper. Keep the pencil lines light so they stay hidden under the paint.
Mix Sap Green, Quinacridone Red, Permanent Yellow Deep, Cobalt Blue Hue and Sepia on your palette. Test each colour on scrap paper before you commit to the painting.
Wet the sky area with clean water, then drop in Cobalt Blue Hue. Let it dry flat so the wash stays even.
Paint the tree shapes with Permanent Yellow Deep and Quinacridone Red, letting the edges touch while wet so they blend into orange.
Drop Sap Green into the shaded side of the foliage and along the ground for autumn grass.
Paint the cottage walls with a pale Sepia wash and the roof with a stronger Sepia. Leave the windows dry or lift the paint with a clean damp brush.
Let the painting dry completely, then draw over the outlines with the 0.1 black pen. Add small details such as window frames and bare branches.
Tips and common mistakes
Keep the size 5 round brush for the whole painting, since it handles both small details and larger washes.
Wait until a wash is fully dry before adding a darker layer, or the colours will turn muddy.
Test reds and greens on scrap paper first, because watercolor always dries lighter than it looks when wet.
Questions
Do I need all five colours?
No. A green, a red, a yellow and a blue will get you close. Sepia is mainly for the cottage walls, roof and tree trunks.
What paper works best?
Cold pressed 100% cotton paper around 300 gsm holds the washes without buckling. Thin sketch paper will cockle and dry unevenly.
Can I fix a mistake?
Yes, while the paint is still wet lift it with a clean damp brush or press a paper towel on it. Once dry, a little clean water can soften a hard edge.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
