Using a Limited Palette to Make Beautiful Art!

When I started in watercolor, I bought every color that appealed to me in other artists’ palettes. Too quickly, I had a lot of colors that I didn’t know how to use, and those small purchases, a tube at a time, started to add up. One day, I stumbled on a YouTube video that changed the way I look at my color palette. 

Spoiler Alert!—less is more. 

Color mixing and color theory can become second nature with curiosity, play . . . and SCIENCE.

My go to is a split primary palette.  With a Cyan-Magenta-Yellow (CMY) and Red-Yellow-Blue (RYB) in a single palette, it’s easy to make all the colors of the rainbow! 

Note: Black and white are used in novel ways in watercolor. I’ll talk more about those in future post. In watercolor, white areas are created by not painting that part of the paper or using an opaque white like a Posca pen at the end. Shadows and dark areas are created by mixing browns and grays (limited palette is all you need). Black paint can be used to "neutralize" colors or for certain styles of painting. If you want really black blacks, use fine liners or other opaque blacks found in an acrylic marker or inks.

Here are some suggested supplies if you are new to watercolor. I suggest buying local or from a small business online. The materials listed below use Amazon Affiliate Links, which help fund supply purchases for future free workshops I teach.

One of my favorite split primary sets:

Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolor - Set of 6, Essentials, 5 ml Tube

• Hansa Yellow Light (cool yellow)

• New Gamboge (warm yellow)

• Quinacridone Rose (cool red)

• Pyrrol Scarlet (warm red)

• Phthalo Blue (GS) (cool blue)

• French Ultramarine (warm blue)

 Paper choices:

·       100% cotton watercolor paper (higher cost but nice to work with)

• Arches Watercolor Pad - 9" x 12", 140 lb, Cold Press, Fold-over, 12 Sheets

• 30 Sheets Watercolor Paper Pad, A5 (8.3 x 5.8) Cold Press Watercolor Paper, 140 lb/300 GSM Tearable Water Color Pad for Art Painting, Drawing, Mixed Media, (very affordable cotton paper)

• Cellulose Paper and economy papers

• Canson XL Watercolor sketchbook or paper

• tumuarta Square Watercolor Journal, 5.5x5.5”, 140 LB, 300 GSM, Cotton Paper, Cold Press, 24 Sheets, 48 Pages, Watercolor Paper SketchBooks for Use As Mix Media Pad On The Go

• Thin papers like copy paper will give different results than papers designed to hold more wet media. They are perfectly fine for mindful watercolor play.

Additional materials

• White mixing palette (plastic, ceramic, or paper)

• Two jars for water (I use old salas and peanut butter jars)

• Rag or paper towel for blotting

• Ruler or straight edge (optional)

• Tape to make a boarder (masking, artist, or washi)

 During our Mindful Watercolor Session, we will use the following materials:

• Kid watercolor set (generic brand)

• Colors from Holbein 12 watercolor set and other professional watercolors

• 30 Sheets Watercolor Paper Pad, A5 (8.3 x 5.8) Cold Press Watercolor Paper, 140 lb/300 GSM Tearable Water Color Pad for Art Painting, Drawing, Mixed Media,

• Strathmore 300 Series Watercolor Paper Pad, 9x12 inches, 24 Sheets (140lb/300g) - Artist Paper for Adults and Students - Watercolors, Mixed Media, Markers and Art Journaling

• All purpose painting brushes

• The Color Meditation Deck by Lisa Solomon