There’s just no place like the ocean during the summer, with the sun shining on the water, white waves, wind, the call of seabirds, the smell of seaweed and kelp (strange, I know, but for some reason I love it!) and the soothing sound of the water. Certainly puts me in a mood to capture the feeling by painting it, so I can recall and enjoy another day!

Since I fell head over heels in love with DANIEL SMITH Watercolors several years ago, Blue Apatite Genuine has remained one of my favorites. Not only was it one of the first four tubes I had ever purchased, but the blue/gray shade appeals to my sense of Pacific Northwest roots! Then of course, there is the fascination of it being made from rock. I still can’t get over the fact that the DANIEL SMITH PrimaTek series is created from minerals, binder and a little water thrown in for good measure! Ancient pigments creating modern watercolors – that really rocks!

In this ocean painting, I paired the granulating Blue Apatite Genuine with the deeper blue of Sodalite Genuine for some dark contrasts, and then lightened up the mood with a few brighter notes. A combination of Iridescent Electric Blue with Blue Apatite gave me some summer blues in my sky. I appreciate the way the Iridescent Electric Blue “turns on” the color of a sky! It’s become my go-to sky blue. If you haven’t already tried it you will want to add it to your list!! A few strokes of Green Gold provided highlights in the water. Green Gold is a very yellow green which can also be used to turn on the sun in a landscape or on sunlit foliage.

So now here I sit in Sweden, half a world away from where I had been sitting in the Pacific Northwest, looking at “my” ocean…I can almost smell the kelp.

TIP:  If you ever need to reclaim lost white highlights, try using a fine-tipped paintbrush loaded with Titanium White Watercolor Ground. A tiny bit of water can be added as needed to make it easier to apply those fine lines. You can also paint more watercolor over the Titanium White Watercolor Ground.