Hey everyone, Katie here to show you how to paint a fun and easy watercolor winter art journal page, and how to create a few different winter snow effects using Dual Brush Pens combined with other mediums.
How to Paint a Watercolor Winter Art Journal Page with Dual Brush Pens:
Supplies:
- Tombow Dual Brush Pens, Wonderland, 6-Pack
- Fudenosuke Brush Pen, Hard Tip, Black
- Tombow Water Brush
- Tombow MONO Eraser, Medium
- Mix Media Art Journal, or Watercolor Paper
- Washi Tape
- Salt
- Alcohol (optional)
- Plastic Wrap (optional)
Step One:
Start by taping off your paper. I’m creating this watercolor Winter night sky scene in my art journal (that has heavyweight paper), but you could also just create this one on a piece of 90-140 lb watercolor paper if you wanted to.
Step Two:
Use 291, 569, & 373, to create an ombre effect across the page, with the lightest blue on the bottom, and the darkest blue on the top.
The Wonderland 6-pack of Dual Brush Pens is perfect for a winter scene with some gorgeous cool shades of blue.
Step Three:
Wet the ink to blend it. I like to mist it with a spray bottle, and then lightly use a paintbrush to move the ink around and blend out any marker streaks.
While the ink is still wet, sprinkle salt into the ink, all across the page. Let dry. This is my favorite technique to use when watercoloring with Dual Brush Pens, because you can get such fun results that are always different.
Step Four:
Once the ink is dry, wipe away the salt. Pro tip: lightly rub the page with a MONO Eraser to remove the salt!
Step Five:
Use the green Dual Brush Pens, 228 & 249, to draw fir trees across the bottom of the page. You can also go over them with a small Water Brush to give them a painted effect.
Step Six:
Once completely dry, peel away the tape! I also used a Fudenosuke Hard Tip (my fave because of its rigid tip) to add a quote onto the right half of this art journal spread.
Three “Snow” effects you can achieve with Tombow Dual Brush Pens:
- Salt
As I mentioned, I love using salt. It is different every time and your results will vary depending on your paper, amount of water, ink, and salt, as well as the kind of salt you use. Experiment and see what you like!
- Plastic Wrap
To create this effect, Place a piece of plastic wrap on top of wet ink, and smush it around a little bit. Let it dry with the plastic wrap still on the ink, and then once dry, remove the plastic wrap. I love how “icy” this looks.
- Alcohol
Add drops of rubbing alcohol into wet Dual Brush Pen ink. The ink will resist the alcohol and you’ll achieve these little circles that could look like snow, depending on your project!
If you’re looking for more ways to do fun projects with Dual Brush Pens, check out these posts from the Tombow blog archives:
Learn how to make a wintery bookmark for your new year reading goals.
3 Ways to Watercolor with Dual Brush Pens.
DIY Monochrome Art Journal Page.
3 Easy Art Journal Hacks with Tombow.