You know that feeling when you’re done with a watercolor painting and can’t wait to frame it or put it on display? But once it fully dries, the corners have turned up, and there are ridges from all the water you used. This issue is most likely to occur when you’re working on larger-scale paintings, watercolor abstracts, or anything that requires more water. Here’s a tip on how to flatten watercolor paper easily after it has dried.

What You’ll Need to Flatten Your Watercolor Paper

To get started you’ll need your piece of course, I also use an old kitchen sponge that I cut up, a clean jar of water, and a spray bottle. Nothing too fancy here; you most likely have these items around your house. You’ll also need a flat surface, cardboard, or drawing pad to lay on the paper.

How to Flatten Warped Paper

1. Wait for the piece to dry completely. You want to ensure you’ve allowed time for your painting to dry before proceeding.

2. Flip to the back of your painting and spray the backside with water. You don’t want much water, but you’ll need enough to coat the back of your paper lightly.

3. Lay a flatboard or book on your paper once you’ve covered the back with water.

4. Add heavier books on top to ensure it dries flat!

Once you’ve done that, just leave it to dry completely overnight. In the morning, your paper should be flattened and ready to be framed and displayed.

It’s that simple! I use this trick whenever I have wonky and warped paper after my paintings have dried. To watch how I do it, you can watch this in-depth YouTube video I’ve shared here.