Evergreens & Berries Christmas Card

by Laura Watson December 04, 2022

Welcome to the December 2022 full length tutorial! This month we are painting Skimmia japonica, which is lovely evergreen shrub with bright red berries. I picked this piece out of my moms garden and painted a holiday card inspired by it.

If you would like to learn how to make the card base for this project, you can check out this tip video.

Mindset TIP: Leaving some reflected light while painting round objects will help them look more 3D. Reflected light is a highlight around the edge of something round like a berry. Even if you do not see reflected light on your reference photo, you can leave a little highlight around the edge to create dimension. I show you how in this lesson. You can still make a botanical painting look good while using some artistic license.

Printable Resources

PDF

Download the reference photo for the Skimmia japonica here.

Download the line drawings for the Skimmia japonica here.

Download the Skimmia japonica finished painting reference here.

JPEG

Download the reference photo for the Skimmia japonica here

Download the 8.5 x 11 line drawing for the Skimmia japonica here

Download the 4 x 6 line drawing for the Skimmia japonica here

Download the Skimmia japonica finished painting reference here.

Materials
Paper	140lb cold pressed paper by Fluid
Brushes	#4, #2, and #0/2 round brushes
Colors
Berries	Pyrrole red Pyrrole red + alizarin crimson alizarin crimson + permanent violet alizarin crimson + permanent violet + neutral tint
Leaves	Gamboge nova + cerulean blue Gamboge nova + French ultramarine More gamboge nova + a touch of French ultramarine Gamboge nova + more French ultramarine + neutral tint Light red + pyrrole red + neutral tint (for stem markings)

If you would like to learn how to slow down and speed up the videos I post here in The Watercolor Garden to customize your viewing experience you can check out this quick tip video.

Part 1.

Part 2.

Part 3.

Please upload your project here if you would like feedback on your work during our next live members only watercolor workshop on Zoom.

Please note that each student can submit one painting for feedback per month.