During this time of self isolation maybe you would like to have a go at a quirky watercolour painting. Please feel free to download the pencil sketch and trace it to your watercolour paper. I hope it eases the boredom a little for you. Best of luck.

I make a quirky styled pencil drawing of the scene, I try to make straight lines wobbly. I start from the roofs and work downwards. Next I add characters to enhance the quirkiness of the scene. I usually practice drawing odd looking people on paper.

Stage 2

Starting from the top with the paper at around 30 degrees slope freely splash french ultramarine with hints of mauve or similar colours. Make rough suggestions of warm areas and cool areas with warm and cool colours. Suggest skin colours on a few characters. Don’t be too concerned about colours bleeding into each other and the sky, this is just a rough undercolour to get rid of the white. It will dry many shades lighter, so be bold and have fun.

Stage 3

Once the previous layer is bone dry, create strong mixtures and start creating mid tones on the roofs mid shadows defining the shapes of the buildings etc

Paint base green colours on the tree and grass areas and suggest brickwork.

Where shadows are; make them darker and cooler as you move down the building.

Under the umbrellas and canopies begin to paint around the people, defining

Stage 4

Now paint the windows by mixing burnt sienna with french ultramarine blue and with a light mix. When dry, add a stronger mix of the same colours to the top part of the windows suggesting shadow and reflection. 

Add more shadows to the buildings and trees defining darker areas under the eaves of the buildings. Also add a loose textured blend of siennas and cool colours to the wall at the foreground.

Stage 5

The final stage is to start to tighten up areas around the chimneys and add a little richer colour to the pink building and define the rest of the buildings. Pay attention to the eaves again and the details on the chimneys.

This is the part where the foreground characters can be coloured up and brought forward.

Add more texture to the brickwork and shadows behind drainpipes etc

Paint the lamppost with a rich mixture of burnt sienna and Prussian blue.

With a rigger brush, add the railing in the foreground and add little notes of shadow and detail around the picture also using a little gouache for interest in the windows, bringing it all together.