How to paint a flat and a graded watercolour wash

A wash is a single, smooth area of watercolour with no visible brush marks. A flat wash is one even colour all over; a graded wash fades from strong to pale, which is how skies and soft backgrounds are usually started. The Royal Watercolour Society's beginners' workshop starts with simple and graded wash exercises, and the method is the same for both: a tilted board, a big pool of paint, and strokes that each pick up the wet edge of the last.

How to paint the wash

1. Tape the paper to the board and prop up the top edge.

   

   Tape all four edges, then raise the top of the board so it slopes gently towards you (Daniel Smith). The slope lets gravity pull the paint down into a line along the bottom of each stroke.

   You should see: paper held flat on a gentle slope, not steep enough for paint to run.

2. Mix far more paint than you think you need.

   

   Daniel Smith's advice is a puddle much larger than you think you'll need. If you run out halfway, a fresh mix rarely matches the first exactly (our note). Stir until no specks of pigment are left (Daniel Smith).

   You should see: a pool of evenly coloured liquid, enough to fill your brush many times.

3. Paint one full stroke across the top.

   

   Load the brush fully and pull it across the top edge in one movement. Daniel Smith says to start each stroke from the same edge. If you want to work on damp paper, first wet it evenly with clean water, but not until it's soaking (Daniel Smith).

   You should see: a band of colour with a thin, shiny line of wet paint gathered along its lower edge. That line is the bead.

4. Reload and paint the next stroke so it just touches the bead.

   

   Reload the brush before every stroke (Daniel Smith) and paint the next band just below, touching the bead so it flows down into the new stroke. Keep going to the bottom without stopping. Don't go back over parts that have started to dry.

   You should see: the bead moving down the page with each stroke, and no gaps or hard lines between bands.

5. For a graded wash, add water to the mix as you go down.

   

   Daniel Smith's method: about a quarter of the way down, add a little clean water to the puddle on every other stroke, so the colour gets weaker as you go. Finish the last strokes with clean water only. Skip this step for a flat wash.

   You should see: an even fade from strong colour to pale, without stripes.

6. Lift the last bead with a squeezed-out brush.

   

   Rinse the brush, squeeze it nearly dry and touch it along the bead at the bottom to soak it up. Pick up any excess paint or water at the edges too, with the brush or a paper towel (Daniel Smith). A bead left behind can creep back into the drying wash and leave a pale, frilly mark (our explanation).

   You should see: an evenly wet wash with no pool along the bottom edge or against the tape.

7. Lay the board flat to dry and don't touch it.

   

   Once the shine has gone from the paper, lay it flat, keeping moisture off the edges and tape (Daniel Smith). Leave the tape on until the wash is completely dry.

   You should see: a matt, even area of colour with no shine left.

If something goes wrong

Once your washes are even, mixing your own colours from three primaries is the next useful skill, and our brush-cleaning guide covers looking after the brushes.