Using Titan Buff, white, Cobalt Blue Hue, black, and touches of metallic gold, we’ll build a soft neutral background and oversized flower, then add expressive linework and splattered details. The goal isn’t a perfectly drawn flower – it’s to keep everything loose, imperfect, and fun!
Begin by taping off the edges of your art journal with painter’s tape. Start with Titan Buff acrylic paint and a flat brush. Loosely brush the color across the page, working horizontally and vertically and allowing your brushstrokes to remain visible.
Don’t completely cover the page. Leave some of the original paper showing around the edges and toward the bottom. The uneven, wispy edges are part of the look – we aren’t trying to create a perfectly painted rectangle. This neutral background gives us a soft foundation while still adding plenty of texture.
Once the background is dry, begin planning the flower. Start with two loose circles for the center. Then work outward, sketching large petals around them. Let the flower extend beyond the edges of the painted background and even off the page. That cropped composition is what gives this simple design so much impact.
Don’t worry about making every petal identical. Vary the shapes, widths, and curves so the flower feels organic.
Fill the petals with white acrylic paint, but resist the urge to make them perfectly opaque. Allow some of the background and sketch marks to peek through. Leave uneven areas and visible brushstrokes. The imperfections will become even more interesting once we add the linework.
This is where the flower really begins to take shape. Using black acrylic and a liner brush, loosely trace around the petals. Add thin, imperfect lines inside each petal that travel from the flower center toward the outer edges. Don’t try to create one perfect outline. Let lines overlap, double back, wobble, and vary in thickness.
If you’re uncomfortable using a liner brush, a Sharpie or Posca paint pen can also work for this step. Add loose scribbles, dots, short lines, and marks throughout the center of the flower. Continue adding black marks around the inner ring of the flower, letting some lines extend outward into the petals. This contrast against the white petals immediately gives the flower more depth.
Now bring in Cobalt Blue Hue. Use a small amount on a stencil brush and pounce it around the flower center.
Using a liner brush, add metallic gold sparingly around the center of the flower and through a few areas of the petals. You don’t need much. The gold should catch your eye when the light hits the page without competing with all of the beautiful black linework.
Load a fan brush with a small amount of gold paint and create very fine splatters over the flower. The speckles help tie the loose painted areas, linework, and metallic details together.
Once everything is completely dry, finish the page with satin varnish. The varnish protects all those layers while giving the finished piece a smooth satin feel.
This project is a great reminder that you don’t always need a detailed sketch, complicated color palette, or finished idea before you begin.
A little Titan Buff, white, Cobalt Blue Hue, black, and gold became an expressive oversized flower simply by responding to the page one decision at a time. Even I admit that this muted combination wasn’t what I would normally expect myself to choose, and I ended up loving the finished painting!
So grab your journal, choose a few colors that match your mood, and see where they take you. Keep it loose, embrace the imperfect marks, and do something creative today!
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Supply List:
- Strathmore Watercolor Journal
- Painter’s Tape
- Marker: Posca PC-1M (Black)
- Paint: Decoart Media – Titan Buff, Titanium White, Carbon Black and Cobalt Blue Hue and Extreme Sheen 24K Gold
- Brushes – Tracy Weinzapfel Brush Set 1
- Dynasty Stencil Brush
- Dynasty Micron Detail Brush X Long 10/0 or 15/0
- Micron Fine Liner Brush
Check out Tracy’s Art Journal Starter Kit!
Tracy’s Resources Page and visit Tracy’s Shop