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, 天然藍色磷灰石 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 天然藍色磷灰石 with the deeper blue of 純蘇打石 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.