Whenever I am deciding what I am painting, I always play it through in my mind before I touch a brush. I can then see potential problems before they occur. Such as… You always start painting the things that are farthest from you first, so you look those things over as they get closer. Now you know what order you will be painting them. And as you play them over in your mind, you can imagine what brushes you’ll use and how you’ll use them. Now, …. you aren’t always right. Sometimes I think I’m going to use a brush for a particular effect, but it doesn’t work like I thought it would so you have to improvise sometimes. Then there’s always drying time (unless you’re Bob Ross). Before some things are painted over another, you need to allow it to dry; Sometimes it just needs to get tacky and other times it needs to completely dry. Practice and experimentation will teach you what works best for you. You’re also seeing what colors you’ll be using and thinking about how you might mix those inbetween colors. And I always find I experiment a little with effect, so i always learn something new as I do each painting. Sometimes I only learn what not to do, but I’m learning. The main thing is to visualize what you’ll be doing before you start painting to avoid potetial problems that you might encounter. And the most important thing of all is, … Have Fun!
