MATERIALS
• Arches 300gsm smooth hot-press watercolour paper
• 4H graphite pencil
• Windsor & Newton Masking fluid
• Hunt Globe 513H calligrapher nib
Watercolour Pigments
• Windsor & Newton
• Perylene Green
• Quinacridone Red
• Perylene Maroon
• Perylene Violet
• Ultramarine Blue (green shade)
Schmike
• Vanadium Yellow
• Cerulean Blue Tone
• May Green
• Brilliant Blue Violet
Daniel Smith • Quinacridone Gold
Brushes
• A series of good sable watercolour brushes Sizes 6, 5 and 4
• ¼ Taklon Neef comb
• 4,6,8 Smooshing brush
• Da Vinci Short handled Nova Synthetic Retouch Brush 5575 sizes 00, 000
of the specimen. Ensure to keep light areas free of pigment.
Step 4
Once dry, re-wet and apply a weak wash of Schminke Vanadium Yellow to indicate the warmest tones. These washes will give us variation of tone in the local colour.
Step 5
Once this wash has dried, apply a light wash of W&N
Quinacridone Red. This will start to give us our local colour.
Step 6
Review preliminary washes, wet the watercolour paper and apply a light wash of Daniel Smith Quinacridone Gold and allow to completely dry.
Step 7
Mix together equal parts Quinacridone Gold and W& N
Perylene Maroon to create a strong chestnut colour and apply gently to the leaf areas which shows signs of damage. Allow to completely dry.
Step 8
Once this wash has dried, apply a heavier wash of Quinacridone Red. This will start to intensify the local colour.
Step 9
Remove the masking fluid using your finger. Ensure your hands are clean and the paper is dry.
Step 10
Reapply masking fluid to blemish areas to conserve the white of the paper. Soften the other masking fluid lines with clean water and a soft brush by gently pushing pigment into the conserved white areas outlined by the masking fluid.
Step 11
Apply washes of Quinacridone Gold followed by Quinacridone Red. Allow to dry.
Step 12
With the ¼ NEEF comb, gently comb in Quinacridone Red using a blushing action and the few tips of the comb. This dry brush technique will give a lovely gradual intensity to the leaf colour.
Step 13
Repeat the combing application with a mix of Quinacridone Red and Perylene Maroon.
Step 14
Using a Da Vinci Short handled Nova Synthetic Retouch Brush size 00, define veins with a mix of Perylene Violet and Brilliant Blue Violet.
Step 15
Define the leave stem (petiole) using a Da Vinci Short handled Nova Synthetic Retouch Brush size 000 and applications of Perylene Maroon, Perylene Violet and Brilliant Blue Violet.
Step 16
A final edit of leaf edges using Brilliant Blue Violet.
Final Step
Remove any remaining masking fluid.
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