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How to Paint a Tree in 3 Easy Steps!
Do you struggle with painting trees? It looks easy, but then why do our trees end up looking like blobs? There’s nothing more frustrating than creating a beautiful project and then have your focal image, the beautiful trees, not work out. If this happens to you, you’re not alone. Painting trees can be easy if you understand a few fundamental things to help you get the best results. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Learn more. Taking Inspiration from Nature Before we start painting, let’s talk about what we’re trying to draw. When we…
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Paint Your Season’s Greetings with Simple Watercolor Christmas Cards
Looking for ideas for simple watercolor Christmas cards? With the Christmas season approaching, we may want to make homemade Christmas cards. But it can feel really overwhelming if you don’t know where to start. How do you come up with a simple design that’s effective and easy to make? And most importantly, a design that you can easily replicate so that you can give all your favorite people a hand-made card. Today I’m sharing with you beginner-friendly and simple watercolor Christmas cards. This is a great way to practice your basic watercolor skills and make a bunch of beautiful cards quickly and easily. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy…
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How to Create a Colorful Mandala Using the Color Wheel
New to mandalas and color theory? Learn how to create a colorful mandala by combining these two techniques. If you were following along last week, we were talking about how to use the color wheel to create unique color combinations in the art journal. Today we will paint a color wheel and then turn it into a beautiful, colorful mandala. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Learn more. How to Create a Color Wheel The mandala and color wheel have a similar structure. By creating the shape of a color wheel, this takes…
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How to Get Comfortable with Your Watercolors
Are you new to watercolor paints or have recently purchased a new set of watercolors? Watercolors are a wonderful medium but every new color or set of colors can take time to get used to. The colors may act differently than what you’re accustomed to, which can cause frustration. So how do you get comfortable with a new set of watercolors? I recently purchased a new set of Russian watercolor paints called White Nights at my local art store. I wanted to share with you my process and the exercises I use to get familiar with the paints and color combinations. We’ll be creating a simple watercolor painting in our…
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Easy Wet-on-Wet Watercolor Techniques for Beginners
If you are new to watercolor and learning wet-on-wet watercolor techniques, watercolor can sometimes feel challenging. You may feel like you have no control over your brush or your watercolor paint. Today we’ll cover the basics of wet-on-wet watercolor techniques for beginners to help you get great results every time! Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Learn more. The Problem The problem with wet-on-wet watercolor is how do we control the water? When I was new to watercolor painting, a lot of my projects ended up looking like colored blobs instead of landscapes, clouds,…
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How to use Watercolors with Stencils
Using watercolors with stencils may seem like two things that don’t go together in your art journal. The loose nature of watercolor appears incompatible with stencils. But with a bit of experimentation and imagination, you can get some amazing and unexpected results using watercolors with stencils. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission at no cost to you. Learn more. Adding Watercolors to Stencils When adding watercolors to stencils, you may need to change your expectation for the final result. When using acrylic paints, gel or paste mediums with stencils, the medium can be applied, and the stencil removed immediately.…
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Unique Collage Techniques with Tissue Paper Gel Prints
Looking for unique collage textures for your art journal? Try using collage techniques with tissue paper gel prints. This is an easy and beautiful way to add layers and textures to your projects. If you’ve been following along for the last few weeks, I’ve shared some of my favorite gel print techniques. Today we will discuss how to incorporate these beautiful papers in your projects in practical ways. In this tutorial I’ll be sharing collage techniques with tissue paper gel prints. More specifically, how to create multiple layers that work together to create beautiful mixed media pages. Hop-A-Long Studio is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site,…
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Choosing the Best Watercolor Marker
Choosing the best watercolor marker for your creative practice may seem daunting. There are many brands, styles, and colors of pens and markers available. How do we figure out which brand would be the best for us? Today I will share with you my experiences using watercolor markers and what to look for when purchasing a watercolor marker. Choosing the Best Watercolor Marker There are several things to consider when choosing the best watercolor marker to use for your creative practice. What are You Using Your Markers For? The first consideration is what are you using your markers for? Do you want a thick or thin marker, a brush tip,…
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5 Creative Techniques with Watercolor Markers
Watercolor markers are a fun and easy way to add beautiful blends of color to your creative projects. Watercolor markers and pens are easy to use and work well on a variety of surfaces. Today I am sharing 5 easy techniques for using watercolor markers in your creative projects. Watercolor Markers Watercolor markers come in many brands and styles. These range from fine tip pens to dual brush markers in a variety of thicknesses and nib styles. If you are new to watercolor and watercolor painting, watercolor markers are a great option for experimenting with watercolor without a huge investment in materials. Watercolor markers are so inspiring because of…
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Intimidated by Watercolor Mixing? An Easy Watercolor Tutorial
If you are new to watercolor painting, watercolor mixing may seem intimidating. Watercolor mixing is a great way of learning the palette, but where to start? What colors do you use? How do you mix colors without creating mud? When I was first learning how to use watercolor and acrylic paints, color mixing seemed impossible to learn. But I was determined to move past only using the color from the tube. I experimented, learned from others and I continue to grow in my skills. The effort to learn color mixing is worth it. Not only does it improve your paintings, but it also provides so much freedom in your creative…
The Art of Self-Care
