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I’m Jenna Rainey.

I'm an artist, self-taught designer, and multi-faceted creative entrepreneur who is hell-bent on teaching everyone how to find their inner creative voice.

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Watercolor Tutorials

Watercolor Painting Background for Beginners: Easy Tips That Make a Big Impact

Backgrounds used to completely intimidate me—until I realized they don’t have to be complicated. With a few simple watercolor painting background techniques, you can add depth, mood, and confidence to your work without overthinking or overworking your painting.

Artist sketching a floral composition in a notebook surrounded by brushes and a paint palette. The calm workspace sets the stage for planning a watercolor-painting-background, helping guide composition, color choices, and overall mood before painting begins.

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Art Tips

Close-up of a watercolor color study chart with neatly arranged gradient swatches in pinks, greens, and blues. Small paint samples rest on jars below, alongside a wide brush, showcasing experimentation and precision in mixing tones.

How to Make Watercolor Mother’s Day Cards (Step-by-Step for Beginners)

Close-up of hand painting a detailed color chart with watercolor squares, demonstrating step-by-step color mixing for beginners and how different pigments shift in value and tone.

Color Mixing for Beginners: Understanding Consistency, Value, and Tone

Woman smiling in front of a large, colorful floral watercolor mural, wearing layered denim and a light jacket in a bright, creative studio space.

Things to Paint in Winter (And What They Teach Me About Slowing Down)

Woman seated in front of a large floral watercolor backdrop, wearing denim and holding a paintbrush, smiling gently in a bright studio setting.

What Are Muscle Memory Drawing Exercises (And Why Every Artist Needs Them)

Loose watercolor roses in shades of red and pink with layered green leaves, painted on textured paper with a watercolor palette visible at the top.

2026 Watercolor Trends: What I’m Seeing and How You Can Use Them

Woman smiling outdoors in soft sunlight, wearing a light-colored jumpsuit, holding a small object in her hand with greenery and bamboo plants behind her. | watercolor projects for valentine's day

Heartwarming Watercolor Projects for Valentine’s Day

A vibrant watercolor seascape in progress shows crashing waves and coastal cliffs, surrounded by paint tools and a palette—perfect for illustrating how to paint water with dynamic texture and movement.

How to Paint Water in Watercolor

Close-up of a watercolor fruit and botanical painting with lemons, berries, butterflies, and leaves beside a colorful artist palette.

From Watermelon to Pumpkins: My Favorite Watercolor Fruit Projects

A woman standing in the doorway of a bright art studio with wooden doors, wearing a green sweater and jeans, surrounded by potted plants. - watercolor animals

Watercolor Animals: Step-by-Step Tutorials for Every Skill Level

A watercolor painting of a cityscape with pastel skies and flowers beside a paint palette filled with greens and blues.

Scenery Watercolor Painting: My Favorite Step-by-Step Tutorials

Overhead view of watercolor workspace with vibrant floral and fruit illustrations, paint palettes, and brushes, showcasing results of watercolor classes near me.

Watercolor Classes Near Me? Here’s Why You Don’t Need to Leave Home to Learn

Artist standing in front of a large floral fall painting mural, wearing denim and a light coat, smiling against the vibrant pink and green watercolor background.

Cozy Watercolor Fall Painting Ideas (with Step-by-Step Tutorials!)

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Close-up of a brush mixing warm orange tones on a watercolor palette surrounded by paint tubes and paper. The rich blends and limited color areas highlight the process of a painting challenge that encourages color mixing and creative exploration.

Resources for Creatives

Try This Limited-Palette Painting Challenge: 3 Colors, 1 Composition, Endless Creativity

Overhead view of an artist painting loose watercolor florals surrounded by palettes and brushes. Multiple compositions show how varying size, color, and placement can create a strong focal point in art while keeping the overall design balanced and expressive.

Resources for Creatives

What Is a Focal Point in Art? A Beginner’s Guide to Composition Magic

Wide shot of an artist in a white suit standing on coastal rocks overlooking the ocean and distant cliffs. The expansive landscape and soft evening light evoke the beauty and inspiration behind a plein air watercolor painting session.

Top Tips for a Successful Plein Air Watercolor Session

Artist sketching a floral composition in a notebook surrounded by brushes and a paint palette. The calm workspace sets the stage for planning a watercolor-painting-background, helping guide composition, color choices, and overall mood before painting begins.

Watercolor Painting Background for Beginners: Easy Tips That Make a Big Impact

A detailed color study display with neatly arranged watercolor swatches in gradients of greens, blues, and yellows. Small sample papers rest on jars below, alongside a brush, showcasing careful mixing, testing, and organized artistic exploration.

Resources for Creatives

Try This One-Brush Art Challenge to Boost Your Watercolor Skills (And Let Go of Perfection!)

Delicate watercolor illustration of pink roses with soft gradients and leafy green stems. The petals bleed gently into the paper, creating a light, airy composition that highlights fluid brushwork and natural color transitions.

5 Common Mistakes Artists Make When Painting Shadows (And How to Fix Them)

Two small glass jars with cork lids sit on a worn tabletop, filled with earthy-toned pigment powders. Blurred jars of brushes and pens in the background create a moody studio feel, highlighting raw materials used in painting and color mixing.

Oil Painting vs Watercolor: The Real Differences

Close-up of a watercolor color study chart with neatly arranged gradient swatches in pinks, greens, and blues. Small paint samples rest on jars below, alongside a wide brush, showcasing experimentation and precision in mixing tones.

How to Make Watercolor Mother’s Day Cards (Step-by-Step for Beginners)

Close-up of bold red and pink floral watercolor with flat brush, demonstrating wet-on-wet and wet-on-dry methods from a watercolor techniques cheat sheet.

Watercolor for Beginners

Watercolor Techniques Cheat Sheet: Wet-on-Wet, Wet-on-Dry, and More

Overhead view of watercolor supplies and finished floral illustrations arranged for creating a DIY calendar with monthly artwork and vibrant blooms.

Watercolor for Beginners

Seasonal Watercolor Projects: Creating a DIY Calendar with Monthly Themes

Close-up of hand painting a detailed color chart with watercolor squares, demonstrating step-by-step color mixing for beginners and how different pigments shift in value and tone.

Color Mixing for Beginners: Understanding Consistency, Value, and Tone

Woman standing on rocky shoreline at sunset, embracing coastal light and inspiration before a day of plein air painting.

Watercolor Retreats That Combine Art, Travel and Creative Community

My favorite posts

01

Which Watercolor Paper Should I Practice On?

02

The Ultimate Guide to Watercolor Brushes

03

3 Reasons You Haven't Found Your Artistic Style

04

5 Health Products That Changed My Life

My 40-page watercolor companion to help you find my best tips, resources and tutorials on the topic of watercolor!

The Complete Beginner's Guide to Watercolor

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Don't leave without these!

A free class on how to scan, digitize and edit your artwork. I'll walk you through the equipment you need and the tools for cleaning up your artwork!

How to Digitize Your Artwork

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(on YouTube!)

It's like binge watching Bob Ross videos on Netflix only with a slice of dry humor and an extra helping of the greatest art tips you ever did see!

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The Complete Beginner's Guide to Watercolor

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