Watercolour boat

1. Drawing an outline

-   Use the provided outline from our website to draw the image

-   Shade the backside of the outline and flip it shaded side down on your paper

-   Retrace the linework with a 2H pencil to transfer the key elements

-   Outline the boat with the 0.2 pen, adding more detail as desired

-   Tape the drawn image onto your drawing board with clear packing tape

2. Ocean sky painting

-   Squeeze out Cerulean blue and Phthalo Blue onto your palette

-   Add water to these colours to create a thin mix

-   Dip the 50mm Taklon Brush into water and apply it around the boat on the paper

-   Use your mop brush to carefully paint blue mix around the boat, then leave to dry

3. Colouring boat

-   Mix Phthalo Green with a touch of Phthalo Blue for the green on the hull of the boat

-   Apply a light coat, then blend stronger tones into the boat’s rear and beneath the wheelhouse

-   Create orange by mixing Cadmium Orange with a touch of Cadmium Red Deep

-   Paint it onto the roof of the boat

-   Create a mix of Lamp Black and Burnt Umber

-   Add a light wash to the front of the wheelhouse

-   Paint the top of the hull with straight Burnt Umber, leaving a small area unpainted for a highlight

-   Paint the side of the wheelhouse with a slightly darker version of the wash used for the front

4. Watercolour realism

-   Colour the boat’s details to bring them to life

-   Paint the buoys with Cadmium Red Deep, lightening toward the left side/front of the boat

-    Add a darkened wash beneath each buoy to suggest a shadow

5. Painting reflections

-   Apply clean water to the reflection area where the boat meets the water

-   While the paper is still damp, create horizontal blue dashes to suggest surface detail on the water

-   Lay in a wash of Phthalo Blue to complete the reflection

Tip: Keep in mind the angle of the bow while painting to keep your perspective in check!