DIY Watercolor Christmas: Easy painting ideas and techniques for cards, gifts and décor

by Ingrid Sanchez

Overview

Make this Christmas a watercolor wonderland with this creative guide to painting through the festive season.


Learn the materials and equipment you need for watercolor painting and how to create both traditional and contemporary color palettes for Christmas, and then learn a range of watercolor techniques including washes, blending and gradation, plus experimental ideas to try such as using salt, bleach and masking fluid in your work.


Twelve creative projects follow, with step-by-step tutorials so that even beginners to watercolor can jump right in.  Learn how to paint your own Christmas cards, gift tags and gift boxes, create seasonal table settings, hand painted Christmas crackers and garlands. 


Using innovative but accessible watercolor primers, you can now prepare a wide variety of surfaces for watercolor. This inspirational book will also show you how to use these new products to paint baubles, 3D cardboard letters and more.


Artist Ingrid Sanchez, aka @creativeingrid, shares her beautiful artwork and expert guidance in this unique book that will turn Christmas into the most artistic time of the year!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781446308448
Publisher:	David & Charles
Publication date:	07/13/2021
Series:	DIY Watercolor , #3
Pages:	128
Sales rank:	456,644
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Ingrid Sanchez is a Mexican artist and designer based in West London. She illustrates and paints every day using watercolors and mixed media, gaining inspiration from nature. She runs workshops from her home studio as well as around the world including Amsterdam and New York. She has over 70,000 followers on Instagram. This is her first book.

Table of Contents

Introduction 6

Materials and Equipment 8

Understanding Color 12

Basics and Beyond 18

Washes and Textures 20

Lines and Shapes 30

Experimental Watercolor 40

Project Preparation 54

Projects on Paper 56

Creative Christmas Cards 58

Winter Landscape 66

Traditional Wreath 72

Evergreen Reindeer 78

Robin Red-Breast 82

Supercool Snowflakes 86

DIY Projects 90

Little Stockings 92

Festive Letters 96

Party Crackers 102

Keepsake Boxes 106

Patterned Garlands 110

Galaxy Ornaments 114

Kirigami Decorations 118

Motif Gallery 122

About the Author 126

Acknowledgements 126

Index 127

Preface

Christmas is a wonderful time of year to use watercolors for décor, ornaments and gifts. We tend to think of watercolor for more summery themes and I’m perhaps best known for my floral paintings that epitomize the heady delights of the garden, but there is so much fun to be had with Christmas-themed designs in watercolor and that’s what I’m excited to explore with you in this book. Ever since I was a child I have loved painting in celebration of everyday joys and achievements, creating little notes to say thank you, congratulations or good luck. If you were sat at our table, it was not unusual to find one of my artistic gifts on your dinner plate, and my dad often found one of my painted surprises in his luggage when he was away on a work trip. As an adult I still enjoy creating cards and little paintings to surprise friends and family, and Christmas is the perfect time to make the most of that impulse to share and connect with others with our painting. Even though I am a full-time artist, I still paint and draw in my free time. You can say that painting is both my job and my hobby, and I would love to share a little bit of this passion with you. We’ll explore the basics of watercolors with a glimpse beyond to some of my favorite techniques, all done with the final purpose in mind, to create cards, wall art and decorations for one of the most magical seasons of the year – Christmas! I believe there is nothing more rewarding than creating something with our hands, but it becomes pure joy when we do it as a gift for others. I’ve also discovered that by painting festive decorations, such as tree ornaments, table decorations and hanging garlands, we can be sure that our homes reflect our own personal style. The way you approach your watercolor painting will be as unique as you are, so I encourage you to explore the different options I have offered for you to try. There are simple exercises to play and practice with to find out what works best for you. Be patient and enjoy the process. Happy Christmas painting!