G&B Blog

Personalizing Your Watercolor Supplies

Personalizing Your Watercolor Supplies

Losing a favorite art supply or tool is the worst.  Marking them is an easy solution that can also be a creative customization that makes your art supplies feel more "yours".  I'll share several different methods, and a few tips to help avoid frustration (and sticky residue).
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Understanding Watercolor Handling Characteristics & Behavior

Understanding Color Characteristics: The Language of Pigment

Having the right words to describe your color's handling characteristics will not only help you notice and understand these characteristics, but it will also help you to use them to your advantage (rather than fighting against them or being surprised by them).  

The colors in your palette are really just tools of expression - the better you know how to use them, the more precisely you will be able to express yourself. 

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How To Make Your Own Watercolor Swatches (Free Template Download!)

How To Make Your Own Watercolor Swatches (Free Template Download!)

There are many different ways to swatch out your colors.  In this post, I am going to go over how to combine a few of those swatches into what I call a Combination Swatch.  It contains a lot of information about each color, and is wonderful fun to create.  We will cover supplies, how to paint this type of swatch, and what information it will reveal to you.  A free downloadable template is also included!

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How To Read Watercolors: Understanding Swatches

How To Read Watercolors: Understanding Swatches

Looking at a paint swatch is much like looking up a word in a dictionary.  Just like a definition will suggest if a word is a noun, verb, or adjective, a swatch will tell you if a color granulates, stains, or is opaque.  Both paint swatches and word definitions answer the question: how can it be used?  To understand how to answer that question for watercolors, you must first understand what swatches are and how to read them.  After that, selecting colors you enjoy is a snap.
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Photo By Jillian of The Noisy Plume

Creativity, Screens, & 10 Ways to Reclaim Your Stolen Time

This is the year to take back our time.  No one has enough of it, yet it is being taken from us each time we look at our screens - whether television, monitor, laptop, tablet, or phone.  

I am starting to feel a little like Frodo when he puts on the ring.  When I pick up my phone it is eery how I just disappear, and I see other people do it too.

Our minds and our time are precious, and time is one of the few things that cannot be fabricated or purchased as a commodity.  Are what we are doing with them making us happy?

 

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Breaking In Enamel Palettes & Mixing Areas To Prevent Watercolor Beading

Breaking In Enamel Palettes & Mixing Areas To Prevent Watercolor Beading

Enamel is widely considered one of the very best surfaces on which to mix watercolors, however, when it is brand spanking new it can cause them to bead like crazy.  Enamel breaks in beautifully over time with use.  In this post I explain how to break in or prime new enamel mixing areas in a few easy steps.
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Waterproof Ink In Fountain Pens For Watercolor Painting

Waterproof Ink In Fountain Pens For Watercolor Painting

The world of fountain pens is quite a rabbit hole, and purchasing one can seem overwhelming and intimidating.  There are a lot of options, a huge range of cost and quality, and oh... then there are all of the inks.  In this post I am specifically going to talk about choosing and using fountain pens with waterproof ink for watercolor painting.

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Creating Your Perfect Palette

Creating Your Perfect Palette

In this post, I will speak directly to customizing the colors in your palette, and how to adapt your choices to your practice and preferences, by walking you through they way I assemble my own watercolor travel palettes.
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Basic Guide To Plein Air Painting

Basic Guide To Plein Air Painting

Plein air painting, or painting outdoors, is a wonderful experience that many people are unfortunately too intimidated to try.  There are so many benefits to painting in nature that you just don't get inside a studio - and there are plenty of challenges to keep it exciting too!

In this post I'm going to go over some basic supplies you'll find useful, how to pack them, a few environmental and safety considerations, and a couple tips and techniques to help you get started.

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Seed Packet Project for Sharing & Saving Seeds in Beautifully Decorated Tiny Envelopes

Seed Packet Project for Sharing & Saving Seeds in Beautifully Decorated Tiny Envelopes

One of the things I love even more than talking about different varieties of heirloom vegetables is sharing and exchanging heirloom vegetable seeds with friends and neighbors.  If you have a backyard garden or anything smaller, then you know typically sized seed packets go a long way, and generally contain more than you need in any single season (especially if you are a glutton for different varieties, like me).  So, I plant some and give the rest away in little hand decorated seed packets.  This is a project I always look forward to and take great delight in.  
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Different Sizes & Types of Watercolor Pans

Different Sizes & Types of Watercolor Pans

There are so many different ways to customize your travel watercolor palette.  One of the most important (and fun!) ways to customize is through the different types and styles of watercolor pans that are available to you.  In this post I'll go over the different types and sizes of watercolor pans, what types of travel boxes/tins they are compatible with, and offer tips on how to match the right size with the right color.
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Greenleaf & Blueberry Handmade Sketchbooks Archival Arches Watercolor Paper

Introducing Greenleaf & Blueberry Handmade Sketchbooks

The perfect sketchbook is hard to find, especially if you are a watercolor artist.  If you've read my post on choosing the perfect sketchbook, you know the struggle is real, despite all the options.  At last, we are delighted to share our own line of sketchbooks with you.  Each sketchbook is made by hand in our studios using the highest quality materials and traditional techniques.

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