How to Paint Flowers & Herbs

A beginner set of watercolors and small round-tip brush

Whether you have chosen to paint flowers on a child's bedroom wall or herbs on the door of the kitchen, painting an original design makes a room stand out. The techniques for painting a mural or painting a watercolor scene of herbs and flowers on watercolor paper are similar. Painting and framing a picture is a work of art to keep always. The possibilities are endless after learning the basics of painting with watercolors. Learn to layer color and use different brush strokes to make every flower or herb beautiful.

Things You'll Need

• 1 8-inch by 10-inch watercolor pad of paper
• 1 watercolor sample kit of colors
• 1 watercolor easel
• 4 small brushes with different tips
• 1 glass of water
• 1 damp washcloth
• 1 flat table surface
• 1 pencil

Instructions

1. 

   A simple tulip can come alive with lots of color.

   Cover a table or flat surface with plastic or newspaper. Arrange the watercolor brushes, pencil, a glass half filled with tap water and the starter paint kit on the table. Open the watercolor pad and take out one sheet and put it on the work surface.

2. Choose between landscape, that's a wide picture, or portrait, a tall picture. Draw the three petals of the tulip with a pencil where the flower should be on the paper. Use a light touch and erase when necessary until the spacing and picture look right. Draw the stem, but not too straight and make the width vary from top to bottom. Outline the leaves and add the natural crease line in the center of the leaf.

3. Use a wet brush and choose a vibrant pink to fill in the tulip petals. Rinse your brush when the watercolor is still damp and add either yellow or white to the pink base and smooth over the top of the petals only as if they were getting a bit of sun. Rinse your brush and mix a bit of blue with pink for a darker shade and apply to the bottom of the petals as if there are shadows. Rinse your brush and allow to dry for several moments.

4. Wet a brush and use medium green to fill in the stem and leaves. While the medium green is damp, not wet, use a narrow brush with dark green and follow the line down the center of each leaf. Use the dark green to outline the edges of your leaves and add shadow where the leaves touch. Let the painting set for a few moments or use a clean damp washcloth to dab away any unwanted color and repaint.

5. Add a bit of yellow-medium green as though the leaves were catching the sun's rays. Use a bit of blue with the dark green to place a deep shadow on the stem or leaf. Allow to dry overnight on a flat dry surface. Choose a frame and hang on the wall.

6. 

   The chamomile flower is an easy herb to paint.

   Choose an herb that has flowers and your picture will look vivid and bright in a kitchen or dining area. Use yellow, green, brown, medium blue and white watercolors to create the chamomile flower herb in the picture. Similar to a daisy, yet the centers have a hint of green or brown. Draw flowers, stems and leaves with a pencil without concern for keeping the lines straight. Make the blooms whimsical and unevenly spaced to capture this herb.

7. Use a small round brush with yellow watercolor paint to fill in the center of the flowers first. Rinse the brush and add either green or a bit of brown dots to create uneven color that looks more realistic on each center of the bloom. Rinse the brush and use a leaf green color to fill in the stems, then add a bit of brown on one side of some of the stems to add depth. Rinse the brush and fill in the green leaves, then add a bit of yellow on the left side of some of the leaves as if the sun had hit them.

8. Use a small rounded brush with white paint to fill in the petals of the flowers. To add depth, use a bit of blue in some of the white paint. Add a bit of yellow to the white paint to show where the sun is coming from on the petals. Allow the painting to dry overnight, then add final touches from your palette of watercolors. Frame and hang.

Tips & Warnings

• Herbs and flowers may be painted in the same manner, using yellow to add lightness and blue or black for shadows. Many herbs have flowers and leaves, and many are dense with an abundance of foliage such as peppermint and sweetgrass.

References

• Watercolor Painting: Beginners Guide To Watercolor

Resources

• Amazon: Basic Flower Painting Techniques in Watercolor