Painting mushrooms with watercolor is one of the most relaxing and enjoyable ways to connect with nature through art. In this post, I’ll share my Watercolor Mushrooms in Under 10 Minutes tutorial, a quick and easy project that’s perfect for both beginners and experienced watercolor artists who want to loosen up and enjoy the process.
Why Paint Mushrooms?
Mushrooms are such charming and earthy subjects to paint, their organic shapes, soft shadows, and warm autumn colors make them perfect for learning watercolor techniques like wet-on-wet and layering. They’re also great for practicing how to balance light and shadow to create depth and realism in your watercolor paintings.
Materials I Used
For this painting, I used:
- 300 gsm watercolor paper (cold press)
- Watercolor paints (Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolor Paint Set)
- Brushes (Winsor & Newton, Number 0 and Number 2)
- A pencil for sketching
- Water and tissue for lifting highlights
My Painting Process
I started with a light pencil sketch of three cute mushrooms, each with a slightly different shape and size. Then I used the wet-on-wet watercolor technique, wetting the paper first and applying soft washes of brown and beige to create natural transitions.
Once the first layer dried, I added darker tones to the shadows and edges, layer by layer, until the mushrooms looked three-dimensional. The key is to start with light colors and gradually build up the depth, it’s much easier to darken an area than to bring it back to white.
A Tip for Choosing Your Reference
Always use real mushroom photos for your reference instead of copying other artists’ paintings. It helps you build your own artistic style and improve your understanding of color, shape, and lighting in real life.
Watch the Full Tutorial
🎥 You can watch the full Watercolor Mushrooms in Under 10 Minutes video on my YouTube channel here:
👉 https://youtu.be/h18srbOakJI
If you follow along, you’ll see how easy and relaxing it is to paint nature-inspired subjects with watercolor.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re painting for relaxation, mindfulness, or to improve your watercolor skills, mushrooms are the perfect starting point. I hope this tutorial inspires you to create your own cozy, autumn-inspired artwork.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more beginner-friendly watercolor tutorials and nature painting ideas!