Paint snowdrops in watercolour

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Step by step instructions and illustrations to completing a painting of snowdrops

Go on...give it a try!
Take it one step at a time to create a delicate watercolour of snowdrops.
You will need
watercolour paper (Bockingford not surface,140lb or similar)
A no1 rigger
A couple of round brushes with a good points(small and larger)
A 2b pencil
An old toothbrush
Source material:- snowdrops or photos of snowdrops
Watercolours :- light red, ultramarine, payne's grey or indigo, cadmium yellow pale, white gouache

Draw your snowdrops 

Draw the snowdrops slightly larger than life. You could work from life or from a photo.
Make sure you choose where to place the flowers to make a good composition. Don't just copy a photo. When you draw in the stems and leaves give them some thickness. It isn't necessary to draw every leaf you want to include because you can add more afterwards.Sketch in the top of the snow.
This is quite a small picture measuring 21.5w x15h cms

First step in paint 

Frame your composition with masking tape.
Then mix together ultramarine and light red to make a liquid purply grey. Decide where the light is coming from. Use this colour to paint the shadows on the petals of the snowdrops. Let this dry and then mix cadmium yellow pale with a little payne's grey and paint the "bobbles" on the top of the flowers and the pattern on the inner petals.

Now for the background 

Prepare a large amount of liquid payne's grey and use this to paint in the background. Plan your path before you start. I began at the base of the left hand leaf and then worked my way round in a clockwise direction.
You can fill in the small shapes between the stems and leaves afterwards.
Keep your brush (which should have a good point for the awkward corners) really well filled with paint. Don't be afraid that the paint will run over areas where you don't wish it to go. It won't run where the paper is dry. Keeping the paint really wet helps to get a smoother finish.

Leaves and stems 

If necessary replenish the mixture of payne'sgrey and cadmium yellow pale and then make another mix of cadmium yellow pale to produce a blue-green.
With the blue green paint the leaves and then with the payne's grey and cadmium yellow pale paint the stems merging into blue-green for the "leaf" at the top of the stem. Use a fine brush for this (a rigger is ideal).
Darken some of the leaves if necessary by painting over carefully with a dark green. You can suggest a few more in the background by adding them in payne's grey, the same wash as you used for the background.

Let it Snow! 

Now for the fun bit!
Make sure everything is dry and then get an old toothbrush and dampen it a little. Dip it into some white paint (Permanent white gouache is good for this).
Point the toothbrush DOWN towards the paper and draw your finger across the bristles causing the white paint to spatter over the whole painting.
Make sure the bristles face downwards or you will get a faceful of white paint!

Finally 

Your Masterpiece

Carefully remove the masking tape to reveal a crisp edge to the painting.
All it needs now is a frame !!!!!!!

News! 

I just sold a version of this painting on Minigalleryworld.com.
Take a look at other paintings there too.....
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