Today, we’re going to have fun making a beautiful sunset picture using watercolor pencils! Follow along with these easy steps, and you’ll create a colorful masterpiece.
Let’s gather everything we need before we start:
To keep your paper nice and flat, tape it to a clipboard. If your paper is too big, you can cut it in half. This will help keep your painting smooth.
For our sunset, we’ll use these five colors:
Start with the orange pencil. Draw a line a little below the middle of your paper. Make it dark at the line and lighter as you go up. This will look like a glowing sky.
Now, do the same at the top of the paper. Start dark and get lighter as you go down. This makes the sky look deep and pretty.
At the bottom, use the orange pencil again. Press hard to make it dark, then lighter as you move up. This will look like the sunset reflecting on water.
Take the red pencil and color over the bottom of the orange. Press hard and get lighter as you go up. Add red to the top of the sky, too.
Now, use the yellow pencil. Color thickly at the bottom, mixing with the other colors. This makes the sunset look bright and cheerful.
Use the purple pencil at the very top. Press hard and fade down to mix with the red and orange.
Dip your paintbrush in water and gently brush over your colors. Use just a little water to keep the colors bright. This will make the colors blend smoothly.
Let your painting dry completely. This is important to make it look its best.
Once dry, use the black pencil to draw details like grass, birds, or boats. Be creative and make your sunset special!
Carefully take off the tape from your paper. If you used duct tape, go slowly to avoid tearing the paper. Masking tape is gentler and works well.
Your beautiful sunset painting is all done! The white border left by the tape makes it look extra nice. I hope you had fun and love your artwork. Share your painting with friends and family so they can see your amazing creativity!
Color Mixing Experiment: Gather some watercolor pencils and a piece of watercolor paper. Try mixing different colors together to see what new colors you can create. For example, what happens when you mix yellow and red? Or purple and orange? Use a wet paintbrush to blend the colors and observe how they change. Discuss with a friend or family member about the new colors you discovered and how they might use them in a sunset painting.
Sunset Observation Walk: Take a walk outside during sunset with a family member or friend. Observe the colors you see in the sky and how they change as the sun sets. Try to spot the colors you used in your painting. After your walk, draw a picture of the sunset you saw using your watercolor pencils. Compare it with your first painting and talk about the differences and similarities.
Create a Story: Look at your sunset painting and imagine a story that takes place in that scene. Who might be watching the sunset? Are there any animals or people in your picture? Write a short story or tell it to someone, describing what happens in your sunset scene. This will help you think creatively and connect your artwork to storytelling.
