Continuing Watercolor (March and April 2016)

We are working on this with a limited palette.  Three colors - lemon yellow, prussian, rose (you can substitute the colors for one that you have if you do not have these exact 3).  I started with masking on the front of the bird and it's reflection as well as some dots and squiggles in the foam at the front of the water.  On the reflection keep the white marks horizontal to get a water feel.  After that was dry I mixed a neutralized blue with prussian and an orange mixed with the rose and lemon.  To neutralize or tone down a color use its compliment, or opposite, on the color wheel.  I then wet the paper and painted the color going in a horizontal direction.  I used paper towel to remove color from the foam area. 

I wet the paper, and using 2 of the same 3 colors as I used for the bird I mixed a purple and dropped in color (the rose, purple, and blue) I used light color.  After that was dry I masked some of the flower centers and stems, and petal edges.  

After the masking was dry I used the purple, rose, and blue again and worked on the bottom section making a hard edge.  I worked on dry paper, but if you wish you can wet the area before you paint it.  Next I worked near the top adding some dark and pulling the color out (and adding a bit more light color as well) with a damp brush.