Sketching on Watercolor Paper

I used to always freehand sketch directly onto my watercolor paper before painting. I have come to realize that this can often lead to a degradation of the watercolor paper and affect how the water/paints interact with the surface. Frequent erasing and re-sketching will erode the paper surface (even with a high quality eraser). See below for a better way:

Items Needed:

your preferred watercolor paper
any basic white paper (computer or sketch paper)-whatever you have available
tracing paper
pencil (4B-6B AND an HB)
window with good sunlight coming through

Step One: Sketch the Image you Want to Paint

Rough sketch your image on sketch paper/computer paper. OR if you don’t want to freehand sketch from your reference photo, you can skip to Step Two.

Step Two: Trace Your Sketch/Reference Image

Place tracing paper on top of your sketch (or directly over reference photo). Trace over your sketch with a soft pencil to get a good dark line. I like to use either a 4B or 6B graphite. Faber-Castell is my preference for use with watercolor.

Step Three: Trace Your Sketch onto the Watercolor Paper

Find a window that has a flat pane which is at least as large as the watercolor paper on which you want to paint.

Place tracing paper on top of your sketch (or directly over reference photo).

Trace over the lines that are backlit with a harder, lighter shade of graphite (an HB).

Final Step: Get to Paintin’

Start painting on your perfect, clean, zero-erased sketch!

Painting over such a clean sketch will make all the difference on your next work.

I hope this tip is helpful and transforms your painting process. Don’t bother buying an expensive lightboard. Just open the shades and let the light in!

-Danielle