ScrawlrTips

ScrawlrBox Custom Viviva Watercolour Pan, 8 Colours

Featured In  #095 ScrawlrBox

We realise you may have never seen or used products like this before so we have put together a few hints, tips and techniques to test out and get the best from these supplies.

Eight specially selected colours hand picked by us for you! Featuring our favourite brights and muted colours. As you would expect from Viviva, they create super vivid colours with a single sweep of a wet brush, they blend and mix beautifully. The paints are held in a compact, lightweight and biodegradable palette made from recycled wine corks which also includes a swatch card and wipe-down, reusable palette – perfect for on the go! Paints are 100% vegan

Watch The Tips & Tricks Video Here

Things To Try...

Activate. Use the paintbrush to drip on water to activate the paint before you start. You can also use a spray bottle for more even misting of water

Keep your colours vibrant. Use two jars of water – one to clean your paint brush and one to dip into to fresh paint or water to your page. It’s also handy to have a spare cloth or tissue paper to swipe your brush clean too.

Use a lot of water in the beginning stages, working in light washes of colour. Gradually reduce the water as you start to add more details and definition. Wait for each layer to dry before adding a new layer.

If you find a white page daunting, you can add a tonal wash to the whole page as a background.

Angle It. The angled paint rbush is one of the most versatile paint brushes, its’ great for mark making! Switch up how you hold it for a variety of brush strokes. You can make some really cool effects too. Something to try:Double colour. Load your paint brush with two colours, one on the top of the brush, and another on the bottom. Sweep across the page in different angles to get both the colours coming through. (example)

Stencils! Use some scrap paper, or your ScrawlrBox, to cut out stencils. Good for when you want to get a precise shape or when painting something that requires symmetry. You can also use the bits you’ve cut out as a stamp.

Advanced Tip: Negative painting. Instead of painting the subject first, flip the process by painting a strong background colour around the object. The subject becomes defined by the background. Instead of filling in the silhouette of the shape first, you concentrate on the darker area around the subject. Increasing the value of the negative space around your subject has the visual effect of bringing it forward in the painting.

Ratios and values. The beauty of watercolour is the vast amount of values you can create by diluting your pigment with water to create a scale from light to dark. Practice your water to paint ratio value. Using a palette, start by watching your paint in its purest form, and gradually add more water.

Artist Advice 

Stephanie Pardoe

"‘Whiskers, we’ve got a mission’ she said ruffling the long suffering ginger tom’s fur.The house stood, its chicken feather carved wooden doors opened back and front like a setof wings, the fine china clattered in its secure racks somewhere inside and then two chickenlegs stood. Gertrude proceeded to climb to the roof of the house from the bathroom window. The house waited a moment for the witch to get herself settled. Whiskers by her side. ‘It’sQuesting time!’ she hollered and the house cantered away through the dark forest."

Behind The Artwork  

Using a Limited Colour Palette

This palette doesn’t come with a yellow, which can make having differences in shade and tone difficult - try mixing colours with a small amount of orange.

No black? Did you know that mixing together Purple + Dark Brown + Blue will give you a Paynes Grey like colour perfect for adding shading to your picture.

No White? The pinky colour with this palette has a lovely pigment to it and can be used to lighten colours. Try it with the Purple to create an amazing lavender.