Studio · Foundations · lesson 4
The flat wash
An even layer of one colour, with no streaks. It's the fix for the 'fingers' in your pale swatches: keep a wet bead along the bottom edge and pull it down.
Watch: How to Paint Flat Washes ♦ Beginner's Watercolor Tutorial ♦ Two Lotus
Do
Tape off three postcard-sized rectangles. Paint a flat wash in each with your big MEEDEN mop, tilting the board slightly. Use Ultramarine, then Burnt Sienna, then a mix.
What you'll need
| Colours | Ultramarine Blue Deep → Ultramarine |
| Colours | Payne's Gray → Payne's Gray |
| Colours | Sap Green → Sap Green |
| Colours | Hansa Yellow Deep → Cadmium Yellow Hue |
| Colours | Nickel Quinacridone Gold → Raw Sienna |
| Colours | Quinacridone Red → Alizarin Crimson Hue |
| Colours | Quinacridone Rose → Pébéo Permanent Pink (07) |
| Colours | Cobalt Violet → Purple Lake, diluted |
| Colours | Neutral Tint → Payne's Gray |
| Brushes | Robert Simmons filbert 8 → Your medium quill/mop |
| Brushes | Cotman round 1 → Tiny round (0 or 1) from the synthetic set |