Hi, my name is Tanya, and today I am going to show you how to paint a flower. I have been painting for 10 years now, and I have taught people who have wanted to learn how to paint for several years. Painting a picture makes a great gift for someone, it can be used for decoration in the home, but not only does it do that, it allows a person to show their individuality. I am going to show the 7 steps to create a painting of a flower.

Step 1: Supplies Needed:

First things first, gather all of the materials needed for this project. A blank canvas, a pencil, paint brushes (flat and detail brushes), a cup of water, a picture for reference, all of the colors of paints that are going to be used, and a positive attitude will be needed to complete this painting!

Step 2: Starting Out With a Sketch:

After gathering the materials needed, sketching out the flower is the next step. Taking the reference photo of choice, begin sketching it on the canvas. Remember to draw lightly, and do not worry about getting too much detail in the flower with your pencil. Also, drawing lightly will let allow easier erasing after completing the sketch of the flower.

Step 3: Time to Paint... Finally!

Take the color for the base color of the petals and go ahead and paint the petals. If paint gets outside of the sketched lines, that is ok, because it will be covered up when the background gets painted. Make sure that there is a solid coating for the base, that way it covers up the white from the canvas.

Step 4: Let's Look at the Details.

Let the paint from the base color of the petal dry for approximately 10 minutes. Once semi-dry, add the accent colors to the petals. There is no real specific way to do the accent colors, but allow creativity to happen. Take lighter colors, such as white and the lighter yellow for the accent. Choosing lighter colors will add dimension.

Step 5: Center of World.. or Actually the Flower.

We are going to paint the center of the flower now. Take the opposite end of one of the flat brushes and dip that in the dark brown paint. After doing the dark, take a shade lighter of the brown and place dots over the dark spots. These do not have to be as many as you did the dark brown, but it’s the painters choice. after doing the dots, take a flat brush and blend it, making it somewhat smooth.

Step 6: Background Check- Adding Contrast to Flower.

Allow dry time for what has been painted already. Wait about 20 minutes or so before continuing on. Once flower is dry, begin to paint the background. This can be as light or as dark as wanted, but keep in mind that contrast is what makes the flower stand out, so choosing a color from one side or the other will aide in that. Once the area around the flower is covered, and the front of canvas has been painted, move to painting the edges of the canvas.

Step 7: Can I Have Your Autograph?

Last but not least the signature must be added. Add your signature to any corner of the painting. This will make sure the painting belongs to the artist.