How to Paint a Halloween Watercolor

Last Updated: February 25, 2021

Halloween scenes are a chance to have fun and use spooky elements on your painting; anything that causes the viewer to get chills. Dark tones are usually associated with how the world looks during nighttime. This holiday is a chance to revel in the unknown and bring out the creatures of the night who are normally not around for us to enjoy. Use various seasonal items to have a fun painting experience!

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Thinking and Planning

1
Simplify your subject. Think about making the painting about a single tree, figure, rickety house, scarecrow, tower, bridge, crypt, ghost, ghoul, monster, crow, raven, fence, wolf or wolf-man, an old well, black cats, or another subject.
- Adapt an ordinarily pretty flower to give it a creepy look. Think of strange un-flower like things such as teeth, mouths, dripping blood or just a flower that is very spiky and sharp looking.
2
Remember the jack-o-lantern if you want a simple subject. They come in many shapes, sizes, and colors. They are very easy to draw and paint, too.
- Find a scene to give you chills. Some are classics and used every year, so celebrate their familiarity.
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3
Draw a haunted house. Could there be a more perfect setting for a Halloween picture?
- Don't shy away from trees and other growing things. They can take on a frightening look at night.
Birds and things that fly are scary at Halloween.
Think of something like a zombie, scarecrow, wolf-man or ghost.
They appear every Halloween. What is your favorite girl? Have you dressed up like her?
You could try copying the image above.
This will reduce the middle space. Perhaps you'd prefer to have less space to fill. Borders make a piece lively and fun.
9
Prepare your paper, paints and brushes. This will help you stay in flow when you are painting.
- Use a high-quality, heavy, 140 pounds (64 kg) watercolor paper for best results. Good paper won’t buckle when wet and will allow for the watercolor special effects such as seamless blending of colors, water blots and back runs, allowing colors to dry rich and keep their intensity.
- Prep your paints. If you are using dry pads, wet each one with a few drops of water to soften them. If using tube paints, squeeze out small amounts of each color on a palette. Keep tubes handy for replenishing the darker colors. Use black pigment if you wish, but it will dry flat and without depth or richness. Deep darks mixed from other colors are vibrant and intriguing.
- Assemble your brushes. You will need an assortment of various sized round and flat brushes. Also, a fat, soft-hair wash brush to cover large areas fast and a thin, long-haired liner brush for details.
- Get other supplies ready. A water container, a pencil, eraser, tissues and a palette or white plastic plate for mixing colors.
- Have a reference in mind, too. Go with something that really appeals to you.
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Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Creating the Scene

Make it large enough to show details and place it near to, but not directly in the center of the page. When satisfied with it, paint it in diluted colors, establishing the main elements of the figure.
4
Move on to the surroundings. Add such things as the barn door behind the scarecrow.
- Paint barn boards with a big brush.
- Sponge on texture with a natural sponge onto the barn floor.
Allow it to dry thoroughly.
Outline some of the barn boards, brighten colors overall where needed. Add mice.
7

Stand up the piece and study it to decide how much more painting it needs. When you are happy with it, hang it up and enjoy it.

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How to Paint a Halloween Watercolor

Steps

Thinking and Planning

Creating the Scene

Expert Q&A

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