How to Trace and Paint Effectively
If you’ve been around for a while, you know I’ve created my Trace and Paint books to help you practice your watercolor technique without the stress of drawing or sketching before you paint. I get asked how to use these books or why they’re helpful in your art practice.
What is tracing, and how can you start?
When you’re practicing your watercolor, you might not know where to start or what to paint. And if you do decide what to paint, sketching it out or finding reference images or materials to get you started can be hard. That’s why the Trace and Paint books create the perfect tool to get you straight to painting. You’re provided with many different botanical or nature-related motifs, and you can start working on your brush strokes, color mixing, and layering without worrying about what to paint!
Trace and Paint watercolor books take the stress out of painting
There are a couple of different methods you can use to trace the motifs before painting them, and all of them require a different level of supplies and time.
Trace onto your watercolor paper
The first way you can use these books is by simply tracing directly onto your watercolor paper. This method requires the least amount of tools because you only use your book, paper, and pencil. Simply place your paper onto the motif in the book you want to paint, and push it down slightly to see the motif through the paper. And there you have it.
Use a lightbox
If your paper is too thick, you may not be able to see the motif enough to trace it. This is where a lightbox would come in handy. The lightbox creates a light source under the motif allowing it to shine through your paper and making it easy to trace. In a pinch, I’ve put up my motif to a window pane and used natural light to trace something, but this isn’t super ideal because it’s not very comfortable. If you have an iPad or tablet, you could also try and use that as your own “lightbox”.
Use Tracing paper
Tracing paper is another way to transfer your drawing onto your watercolor paper. Tracing paper is a thin paper that helps you transfer your image onto your canvas. You would place the motif on top of the transfer paper, and your watercolor paper would be at the very bottom. Then you would trace over the entire motif, which would apply the design to your watercolor paper and have it ready to paint. Transfer paper is fairly inexpensive and is really easy to use. If you can get your hands on it, this method is very user-friendly.
These are a couple of ways to trace and paint effectively, and I hope you find them all useful! If you want to take the stress out of drawing or choosing what to paint, I highly suggest you try my Trace and Paint books!
Which method will you use first?
