Let’s Paint! You will be creating a little garden of five abstract flowers, but let’s start with one at a time!
Hi everyone! It’s Julie Malizia (@harp_and_crow on Instagram) and today I wanted to share a Watercolor Abstract Floral Tutorial that I absolutely love. These florals are quick, bright, and fun! Perfect for a rainy day or a few moments of peace.
Supplies
- Watercolor paper
- Watercolor brush - size 6
- Gold metallic gel pen
- Burnt Sienna & Indigo watercolors
- A clean cup of water
Step 1: Paint a two-inch circle
First, using your watercolor brush and clean water, paint a 2” circle about two-thirds of the way up on your paper. This will be your flower, so leave room for friends! Next, saturate your brush in the Burnt Sienna hue.
Drop your brush into the center of the “water circle” on your paper and let the paint bleed away from the center.
Step 2: Paint a stem
Using the indigo hue, you’ll paint the stem next while the circle is still wet. Gently touch the bottom of the circle and paint your stem down to the button of the paper. The blue will bleed beautifully into the flower.
Step 3: Paint the leaves
Paint two to three leaves on either side of your stem using the Indigo.
Step 4: Rinse your brush and drop water in the center of the flower
Rinse your brush again and use a small drop of clean water in the very center of the orange flower. This will create a fun bleed that will give your floral some interest!
Repeat these 4 steps four more times, staggering the heights of your florals.
Let the florals dry completely before moving on to the next step. Grab a cup of tea or check your emails (or social media-- who are we kidding!) before moving on.
Step 5: The finishing touches
Using the gold, metallic gel pen, add embellishments to the dried flowers. I like to vary my abstract designs using circles and lines. This step does not need to be perfect! On two flowers, draw two, overlapping circles around the perimeter of the flower.
On the other three flowers, use lines to create a starburst effect coming out of the center.
Last, add some small dots of gold around your flowers for a little added magic.
And that’s it! You’re done!
If you try this tutorial, please message me or tag me on Instagram (@harp_and_crow) so that I can see your beautiful abstract florals! Thanks for painting with me today!
Julie Malizia is a lettering and abstract artist living in California with her husband and three young daughters, whom she lovingly refers to as her “Dragons.” You can find her sharing paintings, lettering, and bad puns on Instagram at @harp_and_crow.
Hey, pin this for later! Go on.
