The Magic of Watercolor: 5 Tiny Joys

Let’s talk about watercolors and their magic! I find the process of creating a floral watercolor painting joyful in many ways.

Here’s my first watercolor painting of 2026. The title “Toiveiden tuoksu” could be translated as “The Scent of Wishes” or “Desired Scent.”

Tiny Joy #1 – Randomness

It’s so much fun to leave a paper with random splotches of water and paint and then come back and see what has been born.

As a former engineer, I love to bring order into the randomness.

Tiny Joy #2 – Slowness

When I turn on a good audiobook and start painting the details, time seems to stand still.

I remove the watch from my wrist and slowly move from one detail to another while listening to a captivating story, often a suspense novel.

When I paint slowly, one section has time to dry before I move on to the next.

Tiny Joy #3 – Translucency

I don’t know of any other medium that is as translucent as watercolors. When paint is thin like a film, the effects are pure magic.

All you need to do is wait for the previous layer to dry, and then apply watery paint over it.

I especially love using this effect on the outer petals of flowers. Painting a new layer with a flat brush is like pulling tape over the painting.

Tiny Joy #4 – Accuracy

Small brushes are my best friends in watercolor painting. I enjoy picking just tiny amounts of paint and using a brush as if it were a pen. I love to make tiny corrections with a thin brush and have full control of the central parts of the painting.

Creating a small, concentrated mixture of colors and water feels like preparing a secret ingredient on the palette.

Even if my paintings are minimalistic, I feel like a minimalist when picking a small dose of paint from the palette.

Here’s a close-up of the central flower in the finished painting.

I enjoyed painting all those details, including the petals. Notice that I let the random spots dominate some parts.

Paint watercolor flowers freely without references!
See courses Wild Garden and Freely Grown!

Tiny Joy #5 – Cleanliness

Watercolors are easy to clean. The brushes are quick to wash and don’t wear out much. I use a plastic plate to cover the tabletop, and it’s easy to wipe clean. Compared to oil painting, it’s much quicker to both start and finish the painting session.

What little joys did I miss? What would you add?