Kasatik, cockerel, royal lily - it's all about him, about the gentle and mysterious iris. Learning to draw the favorite flower of the gods and kings.
Before you start drawing, take a good look at your flower model. Pay attention to the position of the petals. Three stretch upward, forming a kind of tube around the core. These petals are called standards. The three lower, rather large, petals with a limb descend down. These petals are called fouls. Each foul has a peculiar beard of thick villi at the base. The presence of dark thin veins is also characteristic of the lower petals of irises.
The leaves are sword-shaped, flat and long. Stems are straight and tall.
Determine for yourself what basic geometric shapes (circle, oval, rectangle, triangle) you guess in the outline of a flower.
Option 1
Let's try to draw a single flower.
Draw two ovals, positioning them as shown in the photo below. Be sure to draw a vertical axis of symmetry. The lines should be thin and light, easily erased if necessary. These lines will form the borders of the future drawing.
Draw three standards in the top oval. Start drawing by drawing the central petal.
Draw two elements that create the effect of beards.
Focusing on the auxiliary lines, draw two side petals.
Draw the bottom center petal, stem and narrow leaf. Erase the guide lines. Color the drawing as you wish.
Option #2
If you have well analyzed the previous drawing technique, then you can completely master the technique proposed below. Thanks to carefully traced petals, the iris looks more natural.
How to draw a bouquet of irises with a pencil?
Using the tips below and the technique described at the beginning of the article, you can easily draw several irises, making a delicate bouquet of them.
Option 1
Think over the future composition. Using light lines, sketch out the drawing. When working on drawing flower petals, do not forget that the iris is far from perfect symmetry, and this is precisely its beauty.
Be careful when working on the details of the drawing. Do not forget about the beards and veins characteristic of the iris. Don't neglect shadows. The presence of shaded areas will add depth and contrast to the picture, make it more lively and voluminous.
Option #2
Below is another, fairly simple, way to draw beautiful irises. Pay attention to the color scheme of the picture, because irises are characterized by a constant movement of color.
How to draw an iris flower in watercolor step by step?
Irises and watercolors are made for each other. Professional artists say that working with watercolors is quite difficult, however, like painting irises. However, this article is intended for those who are taking their first steps in the visual arts, which means that the techniques that are offered to the reader do not require a high professional level.
Important: Use the appropriate paper for watercolors. Ordinary landscape sheets are not suitable, because watercolor paper has a rough surface and holds paint better.
Watercolor "Irises" Consider your composition. If necessary, make a light sketch, marking the flower heads, stems and leaves.
Determine the color scheme of the future drawing. The dots in the diagram below are ideal, from the point of view of professional artists, color combinations.
Watercolor loves water! And even special sheets of paper are prone to deformation during the drawing process. To minimize the effects of deformation, the sheet should be fixed on the surface with masking tape (along the perimeter).
Moisten the watercolor sheet well with a spray bottle.
Remove excess moisture with a clean sponge. Look carefully at the surface: the sheet should not shine. If you notice a sheen, blot the surface again with a sponge.
Start drawing. Write easily, without effort. The paint will spread gently, creating a blurry edge.
Having mastered the technique, proceed to create a masterpiece.
Let the drawing dry.
Draw the contours and details with a goal pen or a special liner, if you see the need for this. A few clean lines in the picture below have turned the blurry watercolor blobs into delicate flowers.
Watercolor "Irises" "Wet" technique does not limit the flight of fancy and allows you to create unique floral images.
Watercolor "Irises" The combination of wet and dry techniques produces stunning, in their realism, images.
Watercolor "Iris"
To minimize the effects of deformation from moisture and subsequent drying, fix the sheet on the work surface with masking tape (along the perimeter).
Make a light sketch, noting for yourself the location, shape and size of the flowers. Use a wax pencil to outline the image. The lines should be thick and clear. Their purpose is to prevent the paint from spreading and to preserve the boundaries of each individual element.
Draw the leaves and stems (wax pencil).
Lightly dampen the center of one of the petals with a brush and clean water. Color the petals by working with two matching colors (see diagram above). As a result, you will get a beautiful and natural gradient inherent in irises. The photo uses purple and blue paint.
Moisten the unpainted areas of the petals with clean water. Color in pale yellow or lemon watercolor. Closer to the base of the petal with a thin brush, drip some ocher paint. The wet watercolor will start moving, creating an interesting transition. You can also shade yellow with orange. Color the leaves. Let the drawing dry. Draw thin veins on the leaves.
Shade the background carefully. And draw thin veins on the petals.
Video: Watercolor iris. Detailed video tutorial. 1st lesson. TUTA-KA art studio!
In order to draw a bouquet of roses in a vase, it is advisable to have a visual aid in the form of the roses themselves or their photographs. For starters, a small bouquet of 3 flowers will be enough, because roses are not as easy to draw as they might seem. Try not to choose complex compositions from a large number of colors. It is also better to find roses that will have a clear outline.
Once you've chosen the roses you'll be painting, take a piece of watercolor paper and pin it to a board so it doesn't curl up when it gets wet. Draw a general outline of future roses with a pencil.
After that, draw the smaller details. It is not necessary to accurately draw each petal. The main thing is to try to display the most characteristic features of the flower. However, take care to draw the details responsibly, as this will help you not to get confused in the future. Use a hard pencil for this so that the lines do not turn out too bold and are not too visible under the paint.
After the sketch is finished, wet the paper with water and you can immediately start painting on the wet paper. Start with the lightest and purest tones. You can completely paint over the flower with the color that will later remain only in the light areas. At the same time, do not use only one color - the more diverse your palette, the more picturesque the picture will turn out. Try to combine 2 - 3 shades, drawing one color.
After the general background is set, let the paper dry a bit and start painting the details. Take the paint a little darker and draw penumbra. In order to see them better, you can squint your eyes and then it will be easier to distinguish the most basic color spots. From the very beginning, it is necessary to determine from which side the light falls on the bouquet - each flower has a lighted side and a shadow side. In this case, the light falls on our roses on the right, and therefore, there are more illuminated areas on the right.
After the penumbra is drawn, squint your eyes again and determine the darkest areas. There should not be too many of them so that the flowers do not turn out to be monotonous. Please note that in watercolors, a dark color can no longer be painted over with a light one. But if you still painted too much, it does not matter - the paint can be soaked and wiped off with a brush like a sponge.
When the roses are drawn, you can draw a vase. It is drawn much easier than flowers, and besides, it is not necessary to focus on it and draw it too carefully - after all, the main thing for us is flowers.
The vase is conditionally divided into several main areas of varying degrees of illumination. Starting from right to left: penumbra, light, penumbra, shadow, penumbra. At the same time, there are only 2 most important areas - light and shadow. It is enough to correctly display them, making a smooth transition between them, and the vase is ready. In the neck of the vase there is also a lighted and a shadow side, we must not forget about it.
Then you can draw a shadow falling from the vase on the table.
In order for the shadow to look natural, you need to know one basic, simple rule - your own shadow (the unlit side of the subject) should be drawn with colors of warmer tones, and the falling shadow (which the object casts) should be relatively cold.
Therefore, on the jug, its own shadow is warm brown, and the falling gray-blue.
After the vase, move on to the leaves. First, paint them completely light green, as they will be in the light.
After that, darker green, draw a penumbra, and make some areas the darkest. Do not forget that the shadow falling from the flowers on the leaves should be cold. Therefore, it must be drawn in blue-green.
The roses can then be given contrast by highlighting them in the background. For the background, it is better to use paints of cold shades, this will push the background into the background. The background does not have to be made uniform, but vice versa - make it darker next to the light areas of the flowers, and where the flowers have a shadow, make it lighter. Also, you can slightly blur the contour of those parts of the roses that are further away, but at the same time, those petals that are closer to you should remain clear. At the very end, very carefully and so as not to overdo it, you can increase the contrast by darkening the darkest parts of the shadows in several places. This will give the picture more volume and clarity.
That's all, a simple bouquet of roses in a vase is ready.
We wish you good luck!
The end of May is the time when nature has already come to life after a long winter sleep and is now beginning to bloom, illuminating the world with colors. At this time, there are many sources of inspiration everywhere, you need to capture everything that your eyes see. Below you will learn how to display the world as you see it in watercolor with all the accuracy and brightness of shades. We will study on such a bouquet of tulips, which can be found in spring in almost any home. 
You can take other flowers that you like. The main thing is that the bouquet should be lively and "juicy". Always draw from nature - so you can fully see even the smallest changes in shades. From this lesson, take the principle of work into the piggy bank of your knowledge in order to understand how to create similar images in the future.
The scheme of our work will be divided into several stages:
sketch
Chiaroscuro
watercolor test
The drawing itself
The sketch is very important when painting with watercolor, because it is on it that the whole image is based. In our example, watercolor paper was used, which allows you to "play" with shades, due to the fact that paints take longer to dry and you can mix several different colors in an interesting way. Learn the simple technique of drawing flowers with a pencil:
We mark on paper the position of all the flowers from the bouquet. We try to accurately convey at least the general form of each of them. We keep the proportions due to the sighting method. To do this, take a pencil, put it horizontally on an outstretched hand and measure the width of each bud. After that, put the pencil vertically and see how many times the width is included in the length. Thus, the size of the buds will be preserved, the drawing will become realistic. Our flowers are still circles and ovals - we do not focus on the details. 
Carefully examine the flowers, count the petals, look at the structure of the cups. In this case, we have 4 red-orange tulips with folds in the middle of smooth petals and 1 yellow with a fringe around the edges. On red buds, the petals are arranged in one layer, overlapping each other in a circle, on yellow they bloom in two rows. 
We begin to draw the details from the "bones", we build the petals around them. These buds look like hexagons. It will depend on the “guides” in which direction this or that leaf will bend. All our tulips are different, because we draw each one individually. Remember that depending on the time of day and temperature, the flowers can change their shape, so do not drag out the hover sketch for several hours. The flowering phase is also important, so you need to be able to display it correctly. Our bouquet has three buds that are in different phases very well. 
We display the lower yellow tulip open so that not only the petals are visible, but also the inner part with stamens. 
It remains to draw the leaves. For the entire time of work, do not overdo it with the eraser, so that in the future the watercolor does not roll down in the places of “rubbing”. 
You can start applying paint right away, but we recommend that you first make two small sketches on small pieces of paper. The first one will display how the shadow falls - it will be easier for us to distribute the paint as needed: 
Next, using watercolors, we determine which colors are suitable for our large creation, and which ones can be immediately rejected. To do this, we draw something like this picture, without accuracy and additional details: 
In a color sketch, it is important to see how the background will look, whether it should be made brighter or darker. We determine the level of darkening on the shadow sides and the brightness of the flowers themselves. After this work, you can safely take watercolor paper and start drawing. It is better to choose imported cotton paper, not artificially bleached. It has a grayish tint, compared to a regular leaf. On white wallpaper, however, it will not look the best, so it is preferable to choose a different background for your masterpiece.
Distinctive features of watercolor paper in its heterogeneity and speed of moisture drying. Until one layer is dry, you can mix a few more tones, which creates volume. For example, fill the petal with a yellow-green mixture and carefully drip scarlet on top and dark green paint on the bottom, slightly shade it. 
We also fill each petal on the flowers, shade, distribute the shadow. The heterogeneity of tones will only emphasize the realism of the picture. 
The single-layer technique makes the drawing lively and bright. Look at an unopened bud - you will agree that such a huge number of shades can only be created by nature and ... we: 
While the buds are drying, write one leaf. Mixing green tones and experimenting with brightness. Before the watercolor is dry, you may notice this beautiful sheen: 
Now we move on to the central orange-red flower. Fill with a background color - in this case, rich yellow, then draw red streaks, mix colors to create overflows. 
We emphasize the shadow on the right side with light cold shades. Fill the stem with light green paint, and draw a dark shadow with a thin brush. 
We start pouring the second sheet from the outside, then move on to the darker inside. For convenience, sections can be divided into as many fragments as you like. 
Let's start working on the left blooming tulip. The most jewelry work - the middle, we leave in the end. 
As you work, your table might look something like this: 
It is important to decide where which petal is in order to individualize each fragment. Pay attention to where the edge is lighter and where it has a darkening. 
We visually enliven our flower with stamens. Yes, in nature they are black, but we depict them with umber. Each stamen belongs to its own petal, and the pistil in the middle complements the composition - we draw it especially carefully, shade it, but act carefully so as not to get a stain. 
Next in line is the most beautiful and catchy - a yellow flower. We highlight the core of the bottom row with dark shades - this is not a shadow, but part of the petal, so we express it especially carefully and accurately. We shade the orange paint around the edges so as to emphasize the whole spectrum of colors on a single leaf. 
We make the second row darker, add a little more reddish warm shades. 
Carefully select the core: 
Now it's up to the leaves. You need to depict them as accurately as possible. We pay attention to the incident light, emphasize the reflections on glossy surfaces with neat lines. We shade the resulting parts and combine different colors. 
Now a few tips summing up our big master class:
More samples. Use a variety of papers, brushes, color combinations, and paint brands to find the ones you will always use in the future.
Whatever the paper, it is you who create on it, therefore it depends only on you and your mood how original and bright your work will turn out.
We always start drawing flowers with sketches. We generalize them to simple contours, and we already enter the details inside the geometric shapes.
We carefully look at each flower individually. The task of the artist is to study the object of his inspiration, to notice the smallest play of light and natural play of tones.
Be sure to make shadow and watercolor sketches in order to correctly “scatter” the shadow over the future “clean-up”, and also not to make a mistake with the tones.
We focus our attention on the structure of the objects that we draw. It is the "anatomical" details that often become the basis of the design, like the skeleton of our petals, for example.
Do not be afraid of heterogeneity and spots - imperfections are often a sign of realism, and absolute symmetry and uniform tone eliminate liveliness in the drawing.
Watercolor painting is a fairly complex technique that requires thoughtfulness and accuracy. Unlike oil and gouache, she does not forgive mistakes. But on the other hand, how amazingly beautiful are the landscapes and paintings painted in watercolor - they seem to be filled with air and light! You need to master such a subtle technique gradually. Learning how to paint a flower in watercolor is not that difficult, and it will be a great start to a long and interesting journey.
Choosing accessories
Watercolor paints are best chosen based on beeswax. Only they will provide beautiful bright colors, and they are actually inexpensive. To recognize them in the window, you need to carefully study the cover - it should have the inscription "honey".
The next step is choosing brushes. This is the main tool that determines how the paint will fall on paper and how much the result will correspond to what was intended. The best option for watercolors is squirrel wool brushes. Why? They are very soft and pick up color very well. The tip of the brush should be pointed. It is important to pay attention to how well the hairs are fixed at the base. To paint flowers in watercolor, you will need brushes No. 1, 2, 4, 6. Thinner ones will help to draw small details, and those that are wider will fill the background and the main part.
A palette for mixing paints is also useful - it can be made from a sheet of very thick paper. Just remember to fold the edges in so the paint doesn't drip.
The paper on which the drawing will be applied should also be thicker. Watercolor is diluted with water, so a thin base can become very soft and spread. There is a special thick paper for this technique with a rough surface.
Create a sketch
Consider how to draw flowers in watercolor in stages.
The first thing to start with is creating a sketch with a simple pencil. This can be done in many ways, depending on the skills and ability to draw.
Not everyone at the initial stage is able to draw a sketch of a flower themselves. The easiest way is to find the picture you like and circle its outline. You can find and print a ready-made sketch. If you want the contours of the flower to be clearer in the final drawing, it is best to outline them with a pen filled with water or alcohol ink. When we start painting the flower with watercolors, in the first case, the ink will be slightly blurred, in the second case, it will remain unchanged.
For those who still want to make a sketch on their own, it is recommended to very thinly and subtly line the sheet into sectors, that is, draw a vertical and horizontal line in the middle. This will help maintain symmetry and make the position of the flower in the picture more harmonious. Avoid using an eraser, as it leaves spools.
Painting flowers in watercolor. Background
After the sketch is ready, in the future picture you need to fill in the space around the main object with color. If oil or gouache is applied to the canvas with strokes, then watercolor is layers.
The background is written first, because it should be more transparent and cold, focusing on the main thing - the flower.
Watercolor tends to spread across the canvas. A masking fluid is applied to fill the background completely, avoiding the paint creeping onto the outline of the flower. If it is too thick, it can be thinned with water. The mask is simply applied to the flower image with a brush. If necessary, it can be stretched with matches into sharp and small corners. Now we need to wait for it to dry. Don't worry about falling drops, just clean them up. But it is better to wash the brush immediately after use, as the dried mask will tightly grab the hairs.
Make the background the color you want. Use a palette to mix colors until you get the desired shade. It is not necessary that the layers dry out much, otherwise clear boundaries will appear, but here this is superfluous.
Drawing petals
The flower itself is drawn in watercolor in stages, layer by layer, and only after the background has dried, otherwise the paint from the stems and petals will blur it. Do not rush to immediately start painting, first practice creating smooth transitions.
The rose petals have a darker shade of lapels. Take thick paint with a brush and draw a thick line on a separate sheet of paper. Draw a strip below with just water, and the same one in the middle. So you get a smooth transition from a darker shade to a lighter one.
Each petal must be drawn separately. Use less water here than when filling the background. The very first layer is applied in a very transparent yellow or red color - depending on the petal. Dry it well so that there are no pellets. Let the previous one shine through each layer, as a result, the final drawing will glow. Where the color deepens, use red. Carefully apply blue, its shades should be barely perceptible. Excess water from the drawing can be removed with a dry, clean brush. Remember that each layer must be very transparent!
Stems and leaves
When we paint flowers in watercolor, we need time and patience. After the petals are ready, you can proceed to the stems and leaves.
The same principle of layering is observed here. In order for the drawing to turn out to be voluminous, the shades must change and flow into each other. Don't use too much paint as it will spread. And always be sure to dilute it heavily with water. Green can be mixed with yellow to make lighter shades.
Since the first layer is always the most transparent, the color should be very light. Only the final layer is written in dark green. The darkest areas will be under the color bed and around the edges.
First, it is better to fill the stems with color, and then proceed to the leaves. All additional details are drawn later. Each new layer, if you want to change the shade, first try on the palette. Painting a flower in watercolor is a rather painstaking work.
Adding details
To make the drawing more realistic, you need to deepen the colors where necessary, and draw the veins on the petals and leaves. This stage is no longer so monotonous.
Color build-up on the lapels of the petals and the edges of the leaves is also carried out in layers. Each of them should dry well. After all the shades have fallen into place, you can move on.
To paint the veins, take the thinnest brush. But here, too, it is not recommended to use undiluted paint. Let the shade be a little darker than the main one in this place. For petals it will be red or yellow, for leaves it will be green. The lighter they look on the finished picture, the more the flowers will look like living ones. If in your sketch the veins on the leaves were originally drawn in ink, it will be easier for you. Add notches with thin strokes.
Create shadows
When painting a flower in watercolor, it is important not only to apply layers correctly, but also to be able to play with details that greatly affect the final result.
The picture will look voluminous and lively thanks to the shadows. As a rule, to make them, the darkest shades are taken - blue and a mixture of black and green. Where should shadows be placed? On the petals, under them, on the leaves. Before applying the paint, leave the excess on the palette, otherwise the shadow will turn into a smudge.
In blue we apply shadows on the petals, in dark green - on the leaves. If the shade is taken dark, this means that it does not need to be heavily diluted with water. The most important thing when applying watercolor layers is their transparency. Shadows are drawn closer to the end of the work. It is important to dry all previous layers.
Take your time. Look carefully at the picture, maybe you missed some detail. The upper leaves always cast shadows on the lower ones, as do the flaps of the petals. Painting flowers in watercolor is a subtle art.
And finally...
When the work is close to completion, all the veins on the petals and leaves are drawn, shadows are created, colors are deepened, it's time to return to the background again.
Where the flower is lighter, the background should be darker, and vice versa. This will give the drawing volume. Here you can additionally draw stains from mixtures of paints with which the flower was painted, and simply with spots. So the picture will look more alive, and the play of shades will balance the main object with the space around it.
Closer to the contour of the flower, add a mixture of colors of green, yellow, ocher. Far leaves do not have to be clear, they can just be smeared as a background.
To give the work the look of a real painting, make a passe-partout. You can insert a finished picture into it or draw a workspace from the very beginning.
So we looked at how to paint flowers in watercolor, painting this technique in stages precisely because of the complexity of its implementation. So, following all the recommendations, doing the work with love and pleasure, it is quite possible to master it yourself.
Drawing flowers is both simple and difficult at the same time. A large variety allows you not to get hung up on the rules for submitting forms. But the incredible beauty and saturation of colors is a big headache for meticulous artists. After all, it is very difficult to convey this beauty with the help of ordinary paints. Let's talk about how to paint flowers in watercolor. This tool is most suitable for conveying the charm of flowers that is found in nature.
Features of watercolor paints
If the word "watercolor" is translated from Greek into Russian, then we get "water colors". The key word "water" explains the transparency of watercolor beauties, their inimitable charm, fabulousness, airiness. With regard to them, you can paraphrase the well-known proverb: “You can’t spoil watercolor with water!”. Indeed, the more water, the more beautiful watercolor works.
The wet writing technique is very popular for them. This is when colored strokes are applied to wet paper, in contact with each other. From this they are mixed in an unimaginable way, creating unique combinations. Another feature of watercolor is its incredible transparency. No matter how many layers you overlay, every previous layer will still be visible. Thanks to this quality, many masters of watercolor painting achieve wonderful effects of superimposing different color layers on top of each other.
Do you already want to try this enchantress in action? Do not hurry. Otherwise, the first failures can be very disappointing. Although watercolors are among the most common among beginner painters, they are the most difficult to master. That's why:
Watercolor does not tolerate mistakes. Having applied an incorrect smear, it cannot be corrected if it is not completely washed off before it dries.
It is very difficult to achieve color purity. This requires a lot of experience in their use. When mixing more than three colors, the result is dirt, not a color cast.
When using multi-layer painting, it takes a lot of time. It is necessary to wait for the complete drying of the last layer in order to prescribe a new one. Not everyone has the patience for such science.
These paints require good paper and quality brushes. Unfortunately, not everyone has the opportunity to purchase them. And the paints themselves of good quality are not so easy to find in some circumstances.
However, you should not be stopped by all these difficulties. After all, having mastered the basics of watercolor painting, you can create with any paints. And the charm inherent only in watercolor sorceresses will delight both you and your admirers.
We draw flowers in watercolor in stages
It is best to start learning to write with watercolors with color exercises with filling spectral stripes. Having drawn a sheet of paper into squares according to the principle of a chessboard, paint over all horizontal lines with primary colors. After they dry, paint over the vertical stripes with the same colors. As a result, you will immediately know what shades their combinations give.
Now you can start still lifes of flowers. You can go out into nature and write from nature, or you can pick a bouquet and bring it home. Immediately prepare an easel or sketchbook, paints, brushes and special watercolor paper. For a palette, it is better to use a plastic board, but the easiest way is thick white paper, best of all the same on which you draw. So, everything is ready. Let's get started:
We outline the drawing. Yes Yes! Namely, we plan, the drawing is done with a slightly noticeable pressure of the pencil, the fewer lines, the better. Eraser, it is desirable not to use at all.
We begin to attribute the main colors. To do this, select them on the palette. An important note: you should start from the brightest places and it is very important to hit the color the first time.
We prescribe penumbra, then the shadow parts of the flowers.
In addition to this method, you can also use the popular “wet” technique for depicting flowers. At the same time, at the second stage, the sheet is moistened with water and the primary colors begin to be written on the dry paper. And after drying, proceed to the next steps in the above sequence.
The scheme is simple, but very difficult to implement. Don't despair if you don't succeed right away. Do not give up! Try again and again, the more you work with watercolor, the more obedient it will become in your hands. Do not forget that any perseverance and hard work is rewarded.
