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# Your first washes: flat, graded and variegated
- URL: https://syllabus.ghostcms.templates.codememory.com/your-first-washes/
- Published: 2026-09-21T09:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-21T09:00:00.000Z
- Description: The most useful watercolour technique, and the reasons most washes go wrong.
- Author: Hana Sato
- Tags: Watercolour Foundations, #chapter Getting started, #Import 2026-09-30 07:57

A wash is a thin, even layer of colour over an area. It is the most basic watercolour technique and also the most useful: skies, backgrounds, shadows and the first layers of almost every painting are washes. In this lesson you will paint three kinds, and learn why most wash problems come from too little paint or too little water.

![Colour flowing into wet paper: the start of every wash.](https://syllabus.ghostcms.templates.codememory.com/content/images/2026/09/wash-sky-1.jpg)

Colour flowing into wet paper: the start of every wash.

## Before you start: mix more than you need

The most common mistake is running out of paint halfway through a wash. When you stop to mix more, the edge you already painted starts to dry, and you get a hard line. So mix a generous puddle first. For a postcard-sized wash, fill the well of your palette with a colour about the strength of weak tea.

Tilt your board slightly, at about 15 degrees. Gravity will help: the paint collects at the bottom of each stroke in a small bead, and the next stroke picks up that bead and carries it down.

💡

Test your mix on a scrap of the same paper. Watercolour dries about 30% lighter than it looks when wet.

## The flat wash

A flat wash is one even colour from top to bottom.

1. Load your flat brush fully with the mix.
2. Paint one horizontal stroke across the top of the area. A bead of paint forms along its lower edge.
3. Reload the brush and paint the next stroke so that it just touches the bead.
4. Keep going to the bottom without stopping or going back.
5. At the end, dry your brush on a towel and touch it to the last bead to soak it up.

Leave the wash alone while it dries. Going back into a drying wash is what causes blooms: the frilly, cauliflower-shaped marks that appear when wet paint flows into damp paint.

![Clean water in one jar, rinse water in the other.](https://syllabus.ghostcms.templates.codememory.com/content/images/2026/09/wash-water-1.jpg)

Clean water in one jar, rinse water in the other.

## The graded wash

A graded wash goes from dark to light. It is perfect for skies, which are usually darkest at the top. Start as for a flat wash, but before each new stroke, add a brushful of clean water to your mix. The colour gets gradually weaker as you go down. By the bottom you are painting with almost clear water.

The trick is to change the mix a little each time. If you add too much water at once, you get stripes instead of a smooth fade.

## The variegated wash

A variegated wash moves from one colour to another. Mix two puddles, for example a warm yellow and a soft rose. Start with the yellow at the top, then, halfway down, switch to the rose and let the two meet while both are wet. They blend on the paper. This is how you paint a sunset in a few minutes.

![Keep your practice swatches: they show you how each colour behaves.](https://syllabus.ghostcms.templates.codememory.com/content/images/2026/09/wash-swatch-1.jpg)

Keep your practice swatches: they show you how each colour behaves.

## Common problems and fixes

| Problem                 | Likely cause                           | Fix                                  |
| ----------------------- | -------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------ |
| Stripes                 | Strokes too far apart or brush too dry | Load more paint and overlap the bead |
| Blooms                  | Went back into a drying wash           | Let it dry fully before touching it  |
| Pale, weak colour       | Mix too thin                           | Use more pigment than you think      |
| Hard edge in the middle | Paused to mix more paint               | Mix enough before you start          |

#### Should I wet the paper first?

For a very soft wash, yes. Brush clean water over the area, wait until the shine goes, then paint. We look at this in detail in the next lesson.

## A practice sheet: nine small washes

Divide a sheet of paper into nine rectangles with pencil, about the size of a playing card. Paint three flat washes, three graded washes and three variegated washes, each with a different colour. Do not correct anything. When the sheet is dry, look at it from across the room and choose the best and the worst of each row. Ask what was different: the amount of paint, the speed or the tilt of the board.

Repeat the sheet a week later. The improvement is usually obvious, and it is the fastest way to build confidence before you paint a real subject.

## Choosing colours for washes

Not all paints behave the same in a wash. Some are **staining**: they sink into the paper fibres and cannot be lifted easily. Phthalo blue and quinacridone rose are examples. They give strong, clean washes but no second chances.

Others are **granulating**: their pigment particles settle into the texture of the paper and make a grainy, speckled look. Ultramarine and many earth colours granulate. They are beautiful for skies, stone and old walls.

Others again are **transparent** or **opaque**. Transparent paints let the paper glow through and are best for glazing. Opaque paints, such as cerulean or yellow ochre, look softer and can turn chalky if you use too much.

Look at the tube or the manufacturer's chart: most list staining, granulation and transparency. Or paint a small swatch of each colour, let it dry, and try lifting half of it with a damp brush. You will learn more from that swatch than from any chart.

📌

Key takeaways: mix plenty, tilt the board, keep a bead of paint moving down and never go back into a wash while it dries.

## Quick check

What causes a bloom?

- Using too much pigment
- **Wet paint flowing into a drying area**
- Tilting the board

How much lighter does watercolour dry?

- It dries darker
- **About 30% lighter**
- It does not change

How do you make a graded wash?

- Add more paint to each stroke
- **Add a little water to the mix before each stroke**
- Paint it on dry paper with a dry brush