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Tips when Painting Skies
Sky Painting Tip: Stop
Blue and Yellow Making Green
When using yellows (e.g. raw sienna) and blues in painting skies, you can avoid getting greens by using a tiny amount of red (eg permanent rose) added to either of the two colours.
Tip from: Brian O'Donovan
When painting skies in
watercolour, let the water do the work. Try this experiment:
1. Use a
sheet of good quality paper to prevent buckling. Saturate the whole sky area
with clear water.
2. Now take some cerulean blue (making sure it has been
thinned down with lots of water) onto your brush and "dab" it onto the sky part
of your painting in a fairly arbitrary manner.
3. Tip the sheet of paper
upwards so that the colour runs down towards the horizon in your composition.
You will find you can control amazing cloud/sky effects as the blue "fuses" into
the wet water-only areas of your paper.
4. You can also use other blues
to "leach" into the cerulean blue to produce wonderful atmospheric effects.
Tips on the use of Masking
Fluid:
To keep your masking fluid from drying out, store your less-than-full bottles upside down. The unused portion is not exposed to the air and air cannot get into the bottom of the container.
Tip from: Linda Minkowski
Don't shake a jar of masking fluid before you use it as this will create bubbles. If you paint with bubbly masking fluid, when the bubbles pop there'll be little spots where the masking fluid won't cover the paper and the paint will get in. Rather store you jar of masking fluid upside down so that you don't get a film at the top of it.
Tip from: J.B.
As your jar of masking fluid is used up there is more room for air in the jar. It's contact with this air that creates a film on top of the masking fluid. So as it is used up, find a smaller jar to replace the bigger one and the film will not gather as thickly on the top while not in use.
Tip from: John Williams
With masking fluid, I have found that sometimes a little heavier coverage makes it come off the paper more easily, with less damage. Too light a coating simply soaks in, instead of sitting on the surface.
Having something to grasp the mask makes it easier to take it off gently.
Tip from Susan Tschantz
Lightly rubbing your brush over a bar of soap before using it for masking fluid makes it easier to clean. It gives it a bit of a coating, although it doesn't last all that long.
Tip from: Sarah James
When you're using masking fluid, use a cheap, fine brush. Before you dip it into the masking fluid, dip the brush in water and then rub it across a cake of soap. This makes the masking fluid flow easier and longer. Continue working in this way, and the brush cleans right up and you can easily use it again. Tip from: Ruth Sullivan
Wet your brush and apply hand soap before dipping it into masking fluid. It prevents the brush being damaged, and makes the masking fluid wash out easily.
Tip from: Anne Nel
I use an old nail-polish brush to apply masking fluid to my watercolour paper. It goes on easily, washes quickly from the brush, and never dries too rapidly.
Tip from: Agnes Burns
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