Easy Watercolor Palm Trees to Celebrate the 4th of July!

Grab the reference pic here: Jubjang Image from rawpixel.com

If you are also starting out with watercolor, or you just want to make a fun, kick ass Fourth of July postcard like the one i posted to Instagram.

Happy Fourth of July Watercolor Postcard

Grab yourself a seat and follow along

Step 1: Figuring out the supplies are needed:

Watercolour paints

(I am using a super cheap set that i bought on wish.com)

1. blue paint (I am using sky blue, also referred to as ceruluean blue)

2. green paint (I am using Emerald Green)

3. brown paint (I am using Dark brown, but any ochre or burnt umber shade should work. seriously if you have purple paint then purple tree trunks would be perfect)

4. optional (yellow and white for highlights)

Watercolour paper

I am using Arches Cold pressed

Preferrably 140lb/300gsm but don’t let that stop you. If you only have cardstock then use that. Just paint with very little water to prevent pooling on your paper.

Watercolour paint brush

1. Fan Brush
2. Rigger Brush
3. Round brush size 6

Although honestly use what you have, you might be able to get away with using your finger or a twig if you don’t have any brushes lying around.

Other tools

painter’s tape

2 clean cups of water (cup of water for dipping clean water and the other for cleaning your brush)

a palette for mixing paint, or just a glass plate from the kitchen (watercolor is easy to clean off kitchen plates)

pencil for making light sketch marks of the palm trees

and a sponge (use a kitchen sponge, this is perfect for creating flat and gradient washes)

Grab your board and Lets Start!

Use painter’s tape or washi tape to attach your watercolor paper to a firm surface.

By attaching your watercolor paper to your desk or a drawing board, you are preventing it from buckling.

Using your sponge to evenly wet your watercolor paper.

If You are using normal card stock then please use very very light washes as card stock will automatically buckle when using water media.

Note: use enough water to wet the surface, this allows for an even wash without any hard line edges.

Although do not use too much water so that it looks like you’re building a swimming pool (keep the swimming pool for the barbecue later)

How to create a smooth and even watercolor background for a blue sky

Add a liberal sized drop of watercolor paint to your palette (a plate with a lip is great for mixing waterolor washes) add a little water from your clean water cup.

Make sure that the paint is mixed into the water. As bits of paint undissolved paint will hamper a smooth wash.

I use a hairdryer in between layers. As do most watercolor artists

Keep adding layers until you are happy with the background colour.

If you are impatient -like i am - then a good tip is to keep a hairdryer nearby.

Use it to speed up the dry time.

Use a pencil to draw faint lines for the palm trees

Use a pencil and your reference photograph to decide where you want to place you palm trees.

You could just wing it if you like,no rules!

Use a rigger brush to add the palm tree shapes

A rigger brush is a great tool for drawing long, thin lines, if you do not own one then just use any brush you have that is able to draw fine lines.

And it really does not matter if your prefer chunky tree trunks. This is your piece of art, so you make the rules.

The great thing about artistic license is that you are free to make your own rules

From now on you make your own rules.

If you feel happy with pink leaves or purple clouds then go ahead and add them.

I used the wet on wet technique to create loose, unpredictable tree tops.

All you do is take a clean brush, load it up with clean water and wet the area you plan to place your leaves. (make sure you do not use too much water, as this will create pesky pools in your painting. A way to fix this is to keep a paper towel handy for mopping up excess water)

Once you are happy with where you have placed your water. Add saturated bits of paint at random and watch them BLOOM!!

This is definitely my favourite technique and it is unique to watercolor

This is definitely my favourite technique and it is unique to watercolor!

Use lighter and brighter colors in your foreground area.

By using lighter and brighter colors in your foreground, you allow this area to pop and it will be your focus area where your viewer’s eyes are drawn to.

Use darker and cooler colours in the background. This prevents your painting from looking too “busy”

By using darker and cooler colors in your background, you allow this area to recede into the distance. This adds a feeling of distance and dimension to your finished paintng and will prevent the composition from looking to busy.

I have used the tiniest brush for creating details.

If you have a decent quality round brush, then you should be able to create all the details with just the pointed tip.

This is wow a good quality round brush is a must for a watercolor artist.

I have a few pricey brushes on my wish list. Those will definitely be an investment as they last for years.

Using a fan brush to create fun palm leaves with just one stroke.

And Voila! we’re almost done.

Carefully remove the tape to reveal your masterpiece

Makes a great card or an invitation for your fourth of July party

Ps. i forgot to add a picture of how i added white paint to create highlights. Guess that means i will need to devote another blog post to this technique. Its really the most fun bit as you see the painting come alive.

I would love it if you shared your creations with me. Tag me on instagram #watercolourcapetown

Much love and Happy Fourth of July!

Nabeelah