Now that you know how to mix gouache, you’ll have to understand how to use them to get the most out of your paints. A lot of this comes with practice, but to help you get started here are a few techniques to experiment with.
I’ve used all of these techniques in my own painting practice and I’m always in the process of experimenting and playing around to see what else I can do. I encourage you to do the same—be curious, stay open, and most importantly: have fun with it!
Staining
This is a great technique for laying down a strong foundation for the rest of your painting. It’s similar to creating a wash in watercolor. To start, mix a small amount of paint with a lot of water.
If you’re in a hurry and don’t care about streaks, just cover your page quickly and let dry. Done!
For a more even surface, use the same method but make sure your paper is damp before painting on any color. Move quickly and layer as necessary until the color is flat and even.
Wet on Dry
The “standard” technique of painting in gouache is this one, and it’s exactly what it sounds like: apply wet paint to a dry surface.I think it’s the technique that offers the most control. All my paintings are technically “wet on dry” except in select areas (like when I’m playing with eye color).
Wet on Wet
For softer edges and a looser look, use this technique. Simply add gouache to damp paper, similar to staining but without the paint being too watery. To me, this technique feels a bit more like working with watercolor, but the result can end up being a delightful surprise once it’s dried.
Dry Brushing
You can’t go wrong with scratchy, random marks. It’s always interesting, and frankly, fun to do. Load your brush with paint before removing most of it using a rag, scrap of paper, or (my personal favorite) your painting smock. Now, use whatever’s left over on your “dry'“brush to mark up your page. That’s it!
Blooming
This technique is borrowed from watercolor, but works just as well with gouache to create little blotches of color. To start blooming, wet a small area of your paper. This is your bullseye, the spot where you’ll place your paint. Load your paintbrush with water and pigment and gently touch the tip of your brush to the damp spot. Watch it spread and bloom into its own unique shape!
This is a great technique for creating a base for flowers, add-on spots, making a light flare, and even giving a background some texture.
Reworking
One of gouache’s best features it that it can be reworked. If you want to tweak a section of your gouache painting after it’s dried, just use a slightly wet brush carefully to reactivate your paint. Use this technique to soften an edge, take off some color, or blend. With so many possibilities, it’s just a matter of trying things and playing to see what you like.
I originally had hard edges forming the inside of this ear. Once the layer was completely dry, I used a soft wet brush to reconstitute my gouache and blend the colors together. As I blended, I lifted off some of the paint and this was the result.
Gradient
Creating a nice gradient with gouache takes a bit of practice, but once you understand the process it can lead to beautiful results. To keys is to work quickly! Have your colors pre-mixed, and use two separate brushes to avoid contaminating the colors. Start by adding two strips of color, leaving a small space between them. Gradually build up each color until they meet and begin to blend. If the transition looks too sharp, add a touch of water to encourage the colors to blend into one another.
Paper Color
Gouache’s natural opacity makes it an ideal match for colored paper. Try using bright tones on black paper for a big pop of color, or choose a colored paper as a foundation layer instead of staining. This is where you get to have some fun and play with color combinations. Red on turquoise, gold on blue, green on peach. You won’t know what works for you until you start experimenting!
Play
This is one of my favorites techniques to use because there are literally no rules. It’s all about answering the question: What else can I use to create texture? Sometimes I use my finger to paint because I love the texture and look of a random fingerprint. Sometimes I’ll randomly add salt just to see what it does. You can use things like leaves, rags, paper towels, or aluminum foil to play with— all of them together if you want! There’s also masking fluid to preserve white spaces, or literally splashing on color for an unpredictable pop of fun.
For one of my most recent paintings, I decided to use masking fluid to create stars in the sky. It was completely experimental and it literally got EVERYWHERE but the result came out better than I expected. That experiment led to one of my most loved techniques.
I used masking fluid and a splatter technique to mimic the stars in this piece. I was very careful to let the masking fluid dry completely before adding paint, and also in making sure that the paint was completely dry before attempting to take the masking fluid off.
Glazing
Glazing is all about layering transparent washes to fit your needs. For example, adding a wash on top of an area can be used to enhance a color, but if a color feels too strong, you can also use a diluted wash made up of that color plus white to make it a few shades lighter. The most important thing about using this technique is timing: always glaze on top of completely dry areas, work quickly, and keep your touch light. The point is to avoid reactivating the layer beneath, and if you need to adjust the layer again, make sure each glaze dries completely before adding a new one.
Mixed Media
Gouache is an incredibly versatile medium, making it a great choice for mixed media work. You can use it on top of other mediums—like adding a pop of color to a watercolor painting—or mix it with acrylic to create a hybrid species of paint that’s more matte than acrylic and more permanent than gouache.
You can also use media on top of it. Once dry, it has a slight tooth, which gives pencil, pen, and pastel something to latch on to. I’ve also seen artists pair it with colored pencil, graphite, pen and ink, graphite— you name it.
Another fun fact about gouache? It’s surprisingly durable when it dries. You can even erase on top of it as long as you’re gentle. For the best result, let your gouache layer dry completely before adding anything on top. I usually give it overnight just to be safe. (Some might say that’s overkill, but if I’ve already spent hours painting something, waiting a few more is a small price to pay for peace of mind!)
I used colored pencil on top of gouache to give these shells a bit of texture.
These techniques give you a solid starting point for exploring gouache. I hope they inspire you to play, experiment, and see where the paint takes you.
Remember: the process is the point. Each failure is part of the journey to discover what works for your practice: what you like, what you hate, and what boundaries you want to push. And the only way we can learn is by doing. So I hope you fail, succeed, play, have fun, and grow as gouache painters.
If you have any other gouache techniques I missed please leave them in the comments below. I love learning new things and would be happy to try them out—I’m sure other people would too!
Happy painting, and until next time!
x
Manda