The Wonder of Watercolor | Simply Bloom Co.

Dear watercolor paint.

I’m all in. Hook, line and sinker, baby, you’ve got me.

You have my artsy heart…all 27 crimson shades of it.

I don’t know what took me so long to realize it, but you and I, we’re a good fit.

You’re fluid and forgiving, vibrant and subtle all in one sweep.

You move and blend, but stay put when I ask you too.

And you’re totally good about hydration. Go you.

You’re awesome and I think I’d like to play with you forever.

Sincerely,

A creatively-schizophrenic fan, Joy.

Pinterest was my creative crack for years, but over the past few months Instagram has taken its place. IG is my jam, folks. And thanks to a few beautiful souls I follow who consistently leak love through their brushes onto watercolor paper, I got the itch to try my hand at it.

Being the Amazon Prime addict that I am (just doing my part to keep those UPS & FedEx guys in business), I filled my cart with goodies…and then I got cold feet.

“Do I really need one more thing to get all jazzed about, buy all the supplies for, and then move onto the next thing that peaks my curiosity? I’m so creatively flaky”

So I moved everything over to my wishlist and tried to forget about it. But the coolest man in the entire world, who also happens to be my husband, snuck in and ordered it all for me. Paint, brushes, paper and palette, the whole kit and caboodle.

Dude, I know. So spoiled, I am.

I’m two weeks into playing with watercolor paint and I love it!

I’ve also discovered, more recently, that I’m not actually creatively flaky as previously predicted. I’m simply what Emilie Wapnick calls a “Multipotentialite“. Yeah!

I’ve tried a few different brands and sizes of paper since starting out, along with some new paints I love. I’ve also been playing with different tools for lettering, like the aquash waterbrush (below), and the versamark pen and embossing powder I just got this week and haven’t had a chance to play with yet.

A few people have asked me what paint and brushes I’m using, so while I’m still incredibly new to the craft, I thought I’d share which supplies I have discovered and like.

If you’ve got the itch to experiment with watercolor – whether you’re already a creative of some sort, or wouldn’t consider yourself artsy at all – I’d say “go for it!”. It’s fun, therapeutic, and relatively easy to learn. I’d suggest you watch some ‘watercolor basics’ videos on YouTube; there are some beautifully inspirational ones, along with some practical tutorials there (and it’s how I’ve learned everything I know, technique wise).

MATERIALS

• Canson Watercolor Paper

(I use the smaller square & the larger rectangular pads)

• Strathmore Watercolor Paper

• Grace Art Watercolor Brush Set

• Professional Paint Palette Tray | Strong & Light

• Reeves 24-Pack Watercolor Tube Set

• Yasutomo Pearlescent 21 Watercolor Set

• Liquid Leaf (Gold Paint)

• Pentel Arts Aquash Waterbrush Set

And for some inspiration, here are my favorite watercoloring folk to follow on Instagram:

• Cara Rosalie | @molluskgrl