Kerrie Woodhouse's Blog, page 10

Portable Watercolour Sheets - What are They and How Do You Use Them?

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you buy something we may possibly get a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Of all the types of watercolour that are available portable watercolour sheets are the most compact and easy to carry. If you haven’t come across portable watercolour sheets before and love the idea of taking a set of juicy paints everywhere you go, keep reading!

We are about to dive into what portable watercolour sheets are and figure out how best...

How to Paint Dogs in Watercolour

Dogs are a delightful painting subject - especially for loose watercolour.

If you are a little afraid of all that fur and getting the anatomy right - take heart. I used to feel exactly the same way.

Let me show you my approach, and how I am learning to put those fears aside and jump into some joyful dog painting.

First of all, a loose approach is very forgiving.

And those drawing fears? Like many things they are much worse in our heads than in reality. Dogs break down...

When is a Painting Finished?

There are at least two tricky aspects to any painting. The first is is getting started, and the second is knowing when to stop.

A question pretty much every artist ever, has had to contend with is

Is my painting finished?

7 tips to help you figure out if your painting is finished

Knowing whether your painting is finished is subjective and personal. As true as that may be, it is not particularly helpful if you are in the midst of trying to figure out whether to stop painting or keep going.

Here...

Loose Watercolour Poppies - Youtube Demos and Tips for Beginners

Watercolour poppies are a wonderful painting subject for beginners (and the more experienced!) There are so many ways to go about painting them.

Here are three youtube demos of watercolour poppy paintings and tips for beginners, which are sure to inspire the loose watercolour artist in you.

You will be painting beautiful watercolour poppies in no time!

Watercolour Poppy Demo 1: Loose or Illustrative?

Poppies are a rather forgiving subject for an artist because they have such organic shaped...

Is Watercolour the Best Medium for Beginners?

For a beginner, a painting medium needs to be attractive, approachable and a relatively low investment, both of time and money. Watercolour is a good medium for beginners for all those reasons.

When it comes to looking for an attractive medium, I mean the sort of painting that appeals to you. There is no point learning watercolour painting if you don't enjoy the look and feel of watercolour artwork.

Approachability is important because a beginner faces quite a few hurdles, so a medium that...

Process Art - 5 Reasons to Create a Mandala

Process art is art that is made with an intention to focus on the creative process rather than the finished product. With process art, the joy is in the journey rather than the destination.

Creating a mandala is one of my favourite ways to surrender to the notion of process art.

The Benefit of Process Art vs Product Art

I like to think of all the art I make as process art - ie I paint because I love to make art, not because I want another painting. But every so often it is easy to get caught...

Easy Watercolor Ideas for Beginners (7 good things to paint)

When I was a beginner painter, I discovered that coming up with easy watercolor ideas can be tricky. So I have made a list of 7 good things to paint - just for you.

These are all easy painting ideas that are sure to put a spring in your brush and get you inspired, but I am saving the best (my personal favourite) for last.

Ah yes, there are so many things that we can use to trip ourselves up when we are getting started with painting. Overthinking is a terrific procrastination tool. But let’s...

Overcome Creative Burnout - 3 tips to get you back to joyful creating

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you buy something we may possibly get a small commission at no extra cost to you.

It would be nice to think that a creative person can create effortlessly and perpetually, but it is really not the case.

Creative Burnout is a completely normal part of the creative process.

Ifyou have ever found yourself completely out of juice you are not alone. I have 3 tips to help you overcome your inevitable bouts of creative burnout and get...

How to improve your paintings with a little complementary color theory

Most painters I know are constantly looking for ways to improve their paintings. Painting is a joyful experience most of the time. But sometimes a painting turns out a little disappointing. Take heart - it’s not you, its just part of the process, and there is always a way to improve.

If you have a painting that is a little ‘meh’, and are looking for a suggestion on how to improve it, read on… a pop of complementary color theory might just be worth a try. I also have a video with an example o...

Procrastination and creativity - Can creative people have too many ideas?

Procrastination seems to be a natural part of the creative process. There are so many places to get stuck in the creative process including the very beginning.

Yes, in the idea phase. It does beg the question…

Can creative people have too many ideas ?   

In my experience procrastination is at its height in the very early stages of the creative process. Stephen Pressfield so ably explains this as resistance. We have fears and doubts that stop us in our tracks. Obviously one of the first qu...