Paintable Pages: Daffodil Tutorial

The Vibe: The sky is blue, the air is warm, and it’s a good day for a walk around the neighborhood. The yellow daffodils bloomed overnight just for us. 

The Playlist: 

The Materials:

• Water cup

• Paper towels or cloth

• Watercolor paints of your choice (see color palette below)

• Mixing palette/plate (I recommend ceramic or porcelain for easy mixing)

• Brushes (I recommend a no. 6 and no. 2 round)

The Color Palette:

For this piece, I primarily used three colors: lemon yellow, yellow ochre, and earth green/terra verde.

Stretch your legs, turn on chill pop, and let’s paint... 

VIDEO TUTORIAL COMING FALL 2025

Step-By-Step Instruction:

1.iSet the Scene | On a flat surface, set out water, paper towels, paints, 

a mixing palette/plate, and desired paintbrushes. I recommend a #6 round brush for washes of color and a #2 round for details. 

2. Prep Your Paints | Put a water drop on each color to “wake up” your watercolor. Before painting directly on the page, mix colors & water on your mixing plate to get your desired shade. 

3. Use Water Wisely | More water = lighter color. Less water = bolder color. 

Play with both! You can use the back of the title cards for practice. If you experience pooling, your brush is too wet - dab it on the paper towel. You can remove the pooled watercolor with a clean, dry brush.   

4. Start Light | Put down a light wash of color over each distinct area with 

your larger brush first - avoiding any areas that you want to keep white/general highlights. For example, use a light wash of lemon yellow to color in each petal and a light wash of green to paint in the stem and leaves.

5. Layer Slowly and Add Details | Let each layer dry before adding more color. Using less water than your initial wash for a slighter bolder hue, use your detail brush to follow the outlines in each distinct area. For example, mix your yellow ochre and lemon yellow to outline each petal, paint in the crease lines and stamen, etc.

6. Embrace Imperfection | Watercolor is fluid and unpredictable—

that’s part of the magic. Don’t get too hung up on copying the samples.

7. Let It Dry Completely | Before mailing or displaying, make sure your 

piece is totally dry to avoid smudging!