Edit: Here is the final painting from today’s live stream:
Hi friends! Today at 12:30pm eastern time we are going to have fun exploring water-coloring on YUPO paper!
Recently Yupo Paper has been popular with alcohol ink artists (I’ll be posting a tutorial on that soon!) but I always enjoyed it for watercolor. I first tried out the paper about 15 years ago and liked it so much I bought a pack of huge sheets that I am still working through today! I had a few requests to demonstrate it so I figured that would be fun to do today. In the photo above you can see a quick teacup painted on regular cotton watercolor paper (top) and YUPO below and you can see the difference the papers make. If you have ever wanted to loosen up more in your work I recommend giving YUPO a try! Here is the reference photo for today’s painting.
You can watch the live stream or the replay in the player below but if you want to chat live with other painters or ask me questions be sure to watch on the YouTube watch page.
Supplies! I scouted out this mornings steals on Amazon and will share links and prices below. By purchasing via my special discount links you get awesome deals and you help support my free live tutorials, thank you:) *As always follow along with what you have at home, having more supplies does not make you a better painter:)
- Watercolors: Here are some deals on Student & Professional grade watercolors that I personally use: Sakura Koi set of 24 (never seen the price this low!) $14.18 *They also have a good price on the 48 set!, Prima Tropicals Set of 12 in metal tin $14.16 (great mixing set!), Prima Decadent Pies set of 12 in metal tin $12.13 (Great for landscape panting) and Cotman Sketcher set of 12 $12.99 (this is what I teach with) For Professional grade paints today’s deals are: Holbein watercolors at about $2 per tube when bought in sets (vs $9 when bought individually) Mission Gold sets $38+ (They are always cheaper on amazon for some reason and I am using the 24 perfect pan set in today’s tutorial) and Daniel Smith 6 tube essentials set (A GREAT mixing set) $25 *The price on this fluctuates between $25-$45 on Amazon and retails for $60 on some sites.
- Yupo Paper: 9″x12″ pad of 10 sheets $13.55 *other sizes available too!
- Silicone tools to wipe out highlights (these nail art tools are the same as expensive art silicone tools at 1/4 the price!)
- Watercolor brushes (you want ones that do not hold a lot of water because Yupo does not absorb anything) this set of 5 Majestic brushes for $16.32 has all you need!
- You will want a fine tip pen for today’s project, I am using a ultrafine sharpie because I know it will dry. I will use this to draw my design directly on Yupo paper.
- *Yupo paper is also great with alcohol inks and markers, tutorial on that coming soon!
- Pattern to print and trace
Tips & Tricks for Yupo!
- Yupo is made of plastic so it does not absorb the paint and water so use little water or it will take a long time to dry.
- If you don’t like your painting you can rinse away watercolor, although some colors might stain.
- Yupo will not warp so you can use the cheaper lightweight Yupo with no problem whatsoever.
- Thick watercolor application may remain stick when dry especially if you are using a paint containing honey. Make sure to frame your masterpiece with a matte and glass (not Plexiglas because it can flex and stick to the paint) if you want to keep it for posterity.
- Go with the flow! Yupo is a very fluid and slick surface to paint on, let it do its thing and don’t try to control it too much.
- Avoid using a heat tool or blow dryer on Yupo, the heat tool can warp the paper and the blow drier will just push your paint and water around. Patience grasshopper.
I hope you check out this fun project. I think Yupo would make a great paper for kids too, you can simply wash it off and reuse as much as you want for little kids watercolors and finger-paintings. There are just a lot of uses for this wonderful “paper” and I hope you get your hands on some to try! Have you or would you try Yupo? let me know in the comments and til next time happy crafting!
LIVE: Tea-time With Flowers & Lemons Watercolor Tutorial on YUPO Paper!