Easy Beginner Landscape Watercolor

Easy Beginner Landscape Watercolor Tutorial
Sweeping Colorful Skies & Simple Silhouettes 🌅

This beginner landscape painting is all about letting the sky steal the show! With just a few colors and simple wet-on-wet blending, you'll create stunning sweeping skies while keeping the land beautifully simple with dark silhouettes. Perfect for your first landscape adventure!

🎨 What You'll Need

Essential Materials:

• Watercolor paints: Warm colors (yellows, oranges, pinks) + cool colors (blues, purples)
• Dark color for silhouettes: Payne's Gray, Burnt Umber, or mix your own dark
• Watercolor paper: 140lb minimum, cold-pressed recommended

Brushes You'll Need:

• Large wash brush (size 12-16) for sweeping skies
• Medium round brush (size 6-8) for land details
• Small detail brush (size 2-4) for trees and plants

Learn more about choosing the right brushes in my watercolor brushes guide.

🌈 Key Techniques

1. Sweeping Sky Blending

Work on wet paper with horizontal brush strokes, blending warm and cool colors for dramatic sky effects. The key is working quickly while the paper stays wet!

2. Simple Silhouette Technique

Once your sky is completely dry, paint simple dark shapes for land, trees, and plants. No details needed - just bold, confident silhouettes! Master these blending techniques for seamless color transitions.

Step-by-Step Landscape Painting

1.

Wet your paper -partially or completely.

2.

Start with warm colors near the horizon line - yellows and oranges. Work with horizontal sweeping motions.

3.

Blend upward with cool/blue colors - add pinks, then blues as you move toward the top of your sky.

4.

Let everything dry completely - this is crucial! Any dampness will cause your silhouettes to bleed.

5.

Paint your silhouettes with confident, simple shapes. Think rolling hills, tree clusters, and plant forms - no details needed!

💡 Pro Tips for Stunning Skies

• Work fast on wet paper - you have about 5-10 minutes before it starts to dry
• Use horizontal brush strokes - they mimic natural cloud formations
• Don't overthink the silhouettes - simple shapes are more powerful than detailed ones
• Leave some white paper in your sky for natural highlights and clouds
• Tilt your paper slightly to help colors flow and blend naturally

🎯 Color Combinations That Work

Sunset vibes: Yellow → Orange → Pink → Purple → Deep Blue

Sunrise vibes: Pale Yellow → Peach → Rose → Soft Blue

Storm approaching: Gray-Blue → Purple → Warm Gray → Yellow highlight

Master these color blending techniques for even smoother transitions!

🌿 Simple Silhouette Ideas

• Rolling hills - just gentle curved lines
• Tree clusters - think cotton ball shapes on sticks
• Tall grasses - quick vertical brush strokes
• Distant mountains - simple triangular shapes
• Fence posts - thin vertical lines for interest

Followed live Kolbie Blume’s demonstration/tutorial from The Pigeon Letters' free Summer Creative Retreat—such an inspiring technique to learn!

Question: What's your favorite time of day to paint in watercolor skies?

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