During a Friday LIVE with John Cogley, Brand Ambassador Silvia Monge shared her favorite ways to use DANIEL SMITH Watercolor Ground. Known for her experimental and intuitive painting style, Silvia showed how this versatile medium can transform almost any surface into a watercolor-ready canvas—opening up endless creative possibilities for texture, depth, and shine. Be sure to watch the demo to see Silvia in action!

“Using DANIEL SMITH Watercolor Ground opens up a whole new world of creativity. It allows watercolors to flow and bloom on different surfaces, each brushstroke becomes an experiment in freedom where your imagination takes the lead.” 

-Silvia Monge

Silvia often applies Transparent Watercolor Ground directly to paper before painting. Instead of covering the entire sheet, she adds it in select areas to create subtle texture. Once dry (allow 24 hours), the ground provides a unique surface that interacts beautifully with transparent watercolor washes.

Silvia loves using commercial stencils—and encourages artists to make their own—to create raised textures and shapes. She applies watercolor ground over the stencil, lets it dry completely, then removes it to reveal patterned surfaces that shine through later watercolor layers.

Tip: Choose a thick stencil so the ground doesn’t seep underneath for cleaner, more defined patterns.

Silvia doesn’t limit herself to paper. She’s tested watercolor ground on cardboard, ceramic tiles, white clay, and glass.

• On ceramics, she first applies a ceramic underglaze, fires it, then paints with watercolor ground and DANIEL SMITH Watercolors.

• On glass, she recommends cleaning thoroughly and lightly abrading the surface with very fine grit sandpaper to help the ground adhere.

Silvia switches between different watercolor grounds to achieve varied effects:

• Transparent Watercolor Ground

Silvia’s go-to for subtle texture and depth. “You can also apply Transparent Watercolor Ground through a stencil, creating textures that invite light and shadow to play.” -Silvia

• Pearlescent White Watercolor Ground – adds a luminous glow

• Iridescent Gold Watercolor Ground

Creates metallic shine that’s especially striking in person. “Applying Iridescent Gold Watercolor Ground before painting brings a magical luminosity to the piece. The gold catches the light beneath each transparent wash.” -Silvia

For non-paper surfaces like tiles or ceramics, Silvia finishes her pieces with an acrylic varnish for durability. Paper-based paintings usually need no extra protection—once the watercolor ground is dry and painted, the surface remains stable and vibrant.

Silvia also demonstrated a fun reverse stencil technique—painting watercolor first, placing a stencil on the wet surface, and lifting color with tissue. This removes paint in the stencil’s shape, creating soft, organic textures and negative space effects.

Whether you’re exploring new textures or painting on unconventional surfaces, DANIEL SMITH Watercolor Ground invites experimentation. Available in a variety of finishes—from transparent to iridescent—it turns almost any surface into a watercolor playground.

Explore the full range of grounds at danielsmith.com and watch the full demo replay on our Friday LIVE page to see Silvia’s techniques in action.