Mixing Watercolors

Cheap Joe's Test Studio: Mixing Watercolors

Joe Miller demonstrates how to properly mix watercolor paints. Here is a transcription for those that can't turn their speakers up:

Well, it's me again, ol' Joe from Cheap Joe's. Today I'd like to show you how to mix color and allow the color to mix on the paper rather than mixing it on the palette and creating mud. Because I hear so many people say "how can I mix it and keep it clean and pretty without it becoming mud?"

I've already activated three colors here the Aureolin, Red Rose or Rambling Rose, this may be any of those colors. This is Sap Green and now I'm going to activate some ultra marine blue the same way to show you how I did that. I always like to mix up a little more than I think I'm going to need. After I've done that I take the brush, to keep from wasting that color, I take my finger and thumb and hold it like that and squeeze it out on the palette and clean my brush. Clean the brush and then I simply come in here and pick up some of this yellow color on one side of the brush, the red on the other and just touch it in the blue and then come to the paper just like, and wow look at that. Turn the brush over and right in here again. Come over here and pick up some more of that color, pick up a little of that sap green and some yellow and see what happens. Oh, isn't that pretty. Come back and pick up some more red. Don't mix it on that palette now. Just let it mix right here on the paper. I'm picking up all these colors with this one brush and just allowing them to mix in there. This is a part of foliage in this painting right in here. I've got that ol' evergreen tree in here, if I want to start adding it in I can just come in here like that and just start putting that little sucker in there. Oh, look at that, how fun. I love this because I love seeing these colors mix on the paper rather than in my palette. Now this paper is dry. If I would have started with stretched paper it would be a little easier and I wouldn't have to work quite as quick. But you can see all of these wonderful mixes of color that are in here. I'm going to get some edges that are kind of interesting too.

That's how I allow color to mix on the paper. Use your brush, pick up some color with your brush and pick up some color on the other side of your brush. Do three or four or five, just play with it, try, have fun. That's what makes watercolor so much fun anyhow. Painting and art, it is fun. Thanks so much for being with me. Tune in again, we'll have more tips for you.