Painting kitten is doable when you work step by step in watercolor, even for beginners! For even easier success, just paint the face – a kitten portrait, and concentrate on the eyes, ears and nose. The head of the 8 x 10 outline is the perfect size for a card. (Kitten reference photo from Pixabay.)
Downloads for Kitten in Watercolor
Suggested Colors for Step by Step Kitten in Watercolor
- Grays and Blacks – mix Ultramarine Blue + Burnt Sienna (or other brown) or use a tube gray or black
- Greens for eyes – any green, add brown to make olive green
- Pinks for nose and ears – mix red + gray or brown to make an orangy pink
- Background – any colors – I used Ultramarine Blue, Burnt Sienna, Quinacridone Gold and Transparent Orange
Painting Tips for Watercolor Kitten Step by Step
Draw or trace the outline of kitten (or just the head for a head study), with dark lines. Fill in the areas to be black with pencil so they are easier to see. Mark the areas to be white with a dot.
Painting the features (eyes, ears, nose) – use a small brush with a sharp point for tiny detail or use an ink pen or pencil to add detail.
Painting the white shading – try to keep soft edges on your white shading and if it gets too dark, don’t worry – you can add opaque white at the end for the whitest fur.
My shading could have been a bit darker in this first step. Don’t worry if it looks odd in this step – most paintings have an awkward stage in the process of painting.
